Christian Hampshire woke up in a haze. Slowly, he made out the pinyon pine above. Sitting up, he saw the Grand Canyon spread in every direction below him like a dry, inverted Everest. His mouth hurt for water.
He’d been out for 45 minutes. For a moment, he didn’t know why, what day it was, or what he was doing. Then, details started coming back. It was May 15, 2021, the first day the Grand Canyon was open for the season. He was 20 miles into El Cuatro, his fastest known time (FKT) attempt at four North Rim to South Rim to North Rim crossings, with the greater goal of raising awareness and funds for mental health. That’s 170 miles with 45,000 feet of climb at an average of 9 percent grade through near-freezing temperatures at night and 90-plus-degree afternoons.
Things had gone south, quick. He and Rick Ballesteros, his first pacer, had been cruising when they hit Phantom Ranch, a campsite near the base of the canyon. There, Christian told Rick to refill the bottles and catch up with him; he was determined to make each crossing in seven hours. Two hours later, out of the water, he was faltering up the exposed switchbacks of the South Kaibab Trail. There was no sign of Rick, who had bonked just past the ranch. The midday sun was merciless, and Christian had crawled under the scrubby pinyon and lain down.
Denne historien er fra Issue 6, 2021-utgaven av Runner's World.
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Denne historien er fra Issue 6, 2021-utgaven av Runner's World.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
TO RUN 26.2 IS TO FEEL ALIVE
THE SUN IS rising from the east, and the waves of the Pacific crash below to the west.
LEAVE IT UP TO A PIECE OF PAPER TO TEACH YOU TO RUN EASY
BEFORE I FELL for running, I thought the hardest thing about the sport was the fast stuff: the speedwork, the sprints, and the intervals.
WHY-AND HOW-YOU SHOULD RUN DOUBLES
Those are just a few of the titles entered into my training log for the second run of a day.
FIND YOUR RUNNING COMMUNITY, ONLINE OR IN PERSON
I SIGNED UP for my first marathon while sobbing in the back of a rideshare, on my way to the airport to fly to my uncle's funeral.
FUEL WITH WHAT YOU WANT TO EAT
AS AN ULTRARUNNER, I'm all too familiar with the saying that long-distance running is an \"eating contest with a running component.\"
AT THE FERTILITY CLINIC, MY PAST CAUGHT UP WITH ME
I SAT IN the fertility doctor's office white walls, bare wooden desk, opaque window-alone.
THIS IS NOT AN ESCAPE STORY
AT 15, DARLENE STUBBS WALKED AWAY FROM A POLYGAMOUS CULT-THEN DISCOVERED A NEW LIFE AND COMMUNITY THROUGH RUNNING.
RUNNING WITH HANK
How my daughter's rambunctious mutt saved my sanity while she was lost to the darkness.
WHEN I FOUND OUT I HAD MS.I THOUGHT I'D NEVER RUN AGAIN.
I checked the pins on my bib, shimmied my spandex shorts into place, and teed up the stopwatch on my wrist.
A RUNNER'S GUIDE to sleep
Nike rocked the running world in 2018 when it released the Vaporfly 4%, claiming that the shoe could boost a runner's efficiency by that amount.