FKT: Vincent DiFrancesco - North Branch Trail (IL) - 2022-05-22

On Sunday, May 22nd, 2022, starting at 8:20 am, I completed the 36.4 mile North Branch Trail out and back route. I ran the trail, following the GPS file on my Garmin watch, with an elapsed time of 5 hours, 10 minutes, and 12 seconds, a bit faster than the previous time of 5:30:50 set by Tommy Crawford and Mike Eisenman on April 16, 2022. (I am using my Garmin data, not Strava data, as there is a slight discrepancy and the Garmin data is less generous and likely more accurate). I will note that my Garmin watch experienced a malfunction around 8.3 miles, beeping loudly and displaying the Garmin logo screen. I could not operate the watch while this screen was displayed. After freezing for a few seconds, the watch displayed my activity again, but indicated it was now paused. I never intentionally paused the activity. I also did not move when the activity was paused. I resumed immediately once I had regained control of the watch’s functions. I was pretty frustrated about this, as it had never occurred before with this watch, and was worried it would invalidate the FKT. However, the watch still recorded elapsed time data, and this number seemingly unaffected by the malfunction. According to the Garmin Connect app, the recorded “time” is listed as 5:09:41 and the “elapsed time” as 5:10:12. This seems to indicate the watch was paused for 31 seconds. I’m including this information for the sake of honesty, and hope it doesn’t invalidate the FKT. I’m not familiar with the protocols when it comes to pausing a watch during an FKT attempt. I'm definitely new to this! Other than this mishap, the run went very smoothly. I had all my food and water with me - either handheld, in my pack, or in my belt. I carried and consumed 2.5 L of water and 1,110 calories. The stop lights and road crossings added a lot more time than I was expecting, but there was no way to avoid them. I should also mention that I was flagged down by an elderly woman at mile 35 who was lost and needed help. I stopped and provided assistance for her until a cyclist came by to help and I continued running. I definitely lost some time there. I later met the cyclist at the trailhead after I finished, and he informed me she ended up being okay. Finally, Tommy and Mike say they spotted 43 deer during their FKT run which is incredible! I counted and only saw 7, so their record still stands there!