After 3 hours of sleep (!) we had an early wake up and drove 1 mile to the start. I started the tracker and left the gate at 4:03am with Chris Heydrick who joined me all the way to mile 50. The first 3-4 miles were a slow start with a majority of open woods navigating and shoulder-high grass in the dark. It was a hot day and despite this slow start (18-25 min miles) we were immediately sweating in the dense humidity. Eventually we found some flow and met Aaron Iles at around mile 7 and were later joined by Kara Lombardo, rolling with a solid crew through the most enjoyable sections of this route chasing singletrack around the bends of the shoreline. By the time we made it to Aid 2 at mile ~30, the heat was starting to take a toll and we were sure to take advantage of our chance to refuel before heading back out. Our crew chief of the day, JB Montanye, helped me with scouting sections of the route over the spring and on this day provided support at 5 full aid stations along our run. The next stretch of 20 miles to aid 3 was brutal given the heat, and Chris and I pushed on through the crux of the route stopping at streams to cool off along the way. This section hits a rough spot where a tornado moved through leaving about a mile of trail buried under fallen trees - at this point, the map takes us around the damage via a completely exposed grass field where we eventually make it back to flowy singletrack winding through the woods and out to a bridge at the western most part of the map. The following few miles (47-50) heading into Aid 3 are the start of a section most familiar to me. Leaving aid 3, I continued on solo and felt my legs coming back after a crucial reset with sushi, coke, and lots of water and ice. I was sure to enjoy these miles as I knew the next leg would be much different. I changed into a pair of Brooks Cascadia 21s at aid 4 and left out for a difficult section with not much clearly defined trail. Most of this is open woods with blaze to follow although I ended up doing much more bush wacking than planned for which was even worse given the recent overgrowth (miles 59-65). We had scouted this section already and made plans to avoid this, although I was tired and got lost, and once I found it was even worse than last time I began to get very frustrated with the whole situation. I knew that 1. it would get better, and, 2. I had to get myself out of there regardless. So, we carried on and once the trail opened back up I ran some of my hardest few miles of the day before meeting JB and Chris at the last aid station. I threw on my headlamp (which started blinking on its lowest setting in a half mile) and went out for the final stretch. Similarly, this section did not go as planned. It involves circumnavigating the northern most point of the reservoir which is probably the least trafficked area of the whole route. Doing this in the dark didn't help. I fell in the water while running along the bank looking for the crossing point, then eventually waded across and fought to climb up the other side of the bank. It was all frustrating but I knew I only had a few miles to go, of which was a trail I typically run multiple times a week..."just run home." It was a relief to no longer need navigating, and I ran as fast as I could using every last bit of focus to grab the last remaining lumens of my headlamp and avoid falling. I made it back to the gate in 17 hrs 52 min, just under our B goal of 18 hours.
This was a soul nourishing day with it's fair share of highs and lows. Miles 59-67 or so really tested me mentally, but I was so motivated to complete this loop! It's wild how an idea can seem so far-fetched and eventually meet us along our growth trajectory to become reality. The craziest part to me is that I have friends who would willingly come out here to support and join me along in the mission, so I'm just incredibly thankful for that. This was my first real successful long run of 2026 due to injuries, so it was a great confidence booster to complete with no physical issues and it feels rewarding to get closure on the devious thought that my brain couldn't ignore. I hope to do it again some day and hope other runners give it a go as well - and if so here are a few notes to consider:
*This route will be much better in the first 3 months of the year and the overgrowth was significantly worse than I had expected in the short spans of off trail sections.
*We could have brought filters or had a water station planned somewhere in the 20 mile section between aid 2 and 3, although probably not an issue in more pleasant conditions.
*On my run we included 2 out and back sections which are just enjoyable trails that give nice views of the reservoir. Any out and backs are not required to be considered for this FKT. As a result, total mileage and elevation on the day was 71 miles and +11,600 ft. Removing those out and backs brings it closer to 68 miles total.
*Here's a caltopo map with the Aid Stations we used for any runners interested in a supported effort: https://caltopo.com/m/1AMP0B1