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Guy just couldn't stop! 68 hours of sight seeing?

https://www.facebook.com/UltraPedestria ... n=timeline

Wow!

Uh oh. I know a couple of HAZers who now will feel compelled to meet this challenge!

Start South Kaibab Trailhead Sat 05/04/20123 8:12 AM
North Kaibab Trailhead (1st) Sat 05/04/2013 3:41 PM
South Kaibab Trailhead (1st) Sun 05/05/2013 1:37 AM
North Kaibab Trailhead (2nd) Sat 05/05/2013 3:18 PM
South Kaibab Trailhead (2nd) Sun 05/06/2013 3:43 AM
North Kaibab Trailhead (3rd) Sat 05/06/2013 5:31 PM
Finish South Kaibab Trailhead (3rd) Sun 05/07/2013 4:22 AM

17:25 for a single unsupported Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim (2 crossings)
43:31 for a double unsupported Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim (4 crossings)
68:10 for a triple unsupported Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim (6 crossings)

I do find it interesting that it took 9 hours longer than the 1st to do the 2nd, but an hour less than the 2nd to do the 3rd. He must've hit his stride somewhere in there!

That's definitely NOT sightseeing.

RWStorm wrote:That's definitely NOT sightseeing.

Maybe he was wearing Google Glasses so he could review his progress later....

Ranger Elyssa brought up some interesting points about this type of activity during a chat before the condor talk at IG ... though she was talking about the relatively normal R2R2R.
She said that so many people are now trying to run the R2R2R, and hiking through the night that restrictions may be put into place ... the hordes of night hiker/runners are disturbing the peace of campers in the corridor campgrounds, and sometimes causing the toilets at Phantom to reach capacity by 5a.m. because 500 people have already passed through.

chumley wrote:I do find it interesting that it took 9 hours longer than the 1st to do the 2nd, but an hour less than the 2nd to do the 3rd. He must've hit his stride somewhere in there!

Or he just plain went numb....

cactuscat wrote:the hordes of night hiker/runners are disturbing the peace of campers in the corridor campgrounds, and sometimes causing the toilets at Phantom to reach capacity by 5a.m. because 500 people have already passed through.

It's sad the antics of the 'extreme' folks become such an it's all about me thing that it takes the joy away from those who want to enjoy nature, not trample through it as fast as they can. At this rate pretty soon there may soon be lines like on Mt Everest. God forbid!

To the 68-hour R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R freak... now that you're 'world-famous' on Facebook how are you gonna top that?

I know, I know, each to their own, and I'll admit I may be way off base here but it seems to me these type of activities are attempts to be noticed. Hey, I'm fine with someone doing the R2R-ad-infinitum thing for their own satisfaction, but I'd be totally cool with it if you kept it to yourself.

Some folks have such a deep longing for significance that they will do anything for attention, or in this case I might think notoriety may be more appropriate.

Ok, I'm hopping off the :SB: now.

Thanks, C-Kid. I am not up for a major rant right now. One thing you didn't mention: Grand Canyon is not a racecourse or a gym. It's not some gigantic stairstepper machine. For some of us it's a pretty spiritual place. This type of thing--R2R for the sake of athletic "challenge" has always rankled me. Each to his own, as long as it's on the Corridor, where I almost never go, anyway.

...i'D Like to see all motorized access removed... no motor boats... no over fly airplanes... no motor vehicles entering within miles of the park boundaries. Let the area remain truly pristine instead of the overly impacted place it currently is. I spent five weeks in the canyon some years ago... every day was lacking any sense of remoteness.

Add a daily person limit by permit, if those restrictions were not enough. As it is, it is a place intentionally catering to over impact. What degree/level qualifies for complaint is just a subjective selection...



Interestingly...if those restrictions were the case, this guy would still probably make the effort to enjoy the self challenge similar to what he just completed. Hike in five miles to the Rim... then begin the journey.

R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R2R......whatever. If you want to impress me, do it on a pogostick.

Solitude--- Grand Canyon Parashant ;)

RedRoxx44 wrote:Solitude--- Grand Canyon Parashant ;)

Pretty place! I walked a couple miles up it from the river. On the way back two foxes played hide-and-seek with me. They kept running across in front of me.

I think things are pretty fine the way they are, no need to change the already limited access to the parks. The park is there for humans to enjoy, not to preserve natures masterpiece of erosion. Be it car or bus, access is fine. Only a small area is impacted by visitors, motorized vehicles, and noise. If you don't like the hikers on the trail, don't camp at the corridor campgrounds. If the toilets are overflowing, use the waterless urinals, and get low flow toilets. As it is, the have old style ones. Just reducing the water used per flush would help. A permit system seems unnecessary, I hardly ran into people down there. Anyone doing a R2R, or R3, or whatever, unless going slow, has something to prove, for whatever reason. An R8 or 16, or what ever that guy did, is purely for notoriety. No way that was fun. Mike, I know you'll argue about mindset, motivation, and all that, but plain and simple, that number of continuous rim crossings is about ego, not fun, not getting back to nature, and certainly not about experiencing the canyon.

One thing most people forget: the Canyon is about 300 miles long. So if these obsessive gym rats want to own the Corridor, let 'em have it.

I never set foot on a Corridor trail until about my 8th or 10th Canyon backpacking trip. I did that on purpose. So many people I meet seem to believe that the Bright Angel and and N. and S. Kaibab are the be-all and end-all of Canyon hiking. Such a narrow viewpoint. But, all the more room for those of us who actually like to explore and also have some solitude.

I don't mind seeing a few people here and there on a hike. But the endless "improvements" are what takes away from the Corridor experience in my view. Bathrooms, signs, rest houses, benches, stairsteps, interpretive kiosks, water faucets, etc. The whole Parky thing. I realize it is totally necessary to have these improvements in those places. But I don't have to go to those areas. There's plenty of room for me elsewhere in the Canyon.

I agree with Jim as things generally appear to be fine as is for the individual hikers.

Jason Vaughan (Ras): "I love to move through the natural world under my own power. When I run trails I feel both fully Human and fully Animal, as though I am right where I should be. I do not have a racing background. I am a backpacker who became a back-of-the-packer. An UltraMarathon is like a Mullet: business up front, party in the rear. I love running at Party Pace, whether it's a 100 mile trail ultra or an unsupported attempt to triple a 30 mile trail. I am constantly amazed and inspired by the outrageous feats of endurance that Human beings are capable of, and I am fascinated by the search for that boundary, the Thing Which Cannot Be Done.

In 2013 I will attempt to become the first person to run around the base of Glacier Peak (approx 90 miles) and may attempt to double that as well. I will also be attempting the following OKTs: Kettle Crest Trail (65 mile point to point no one has ever done on a little known trail) single and double, Timberline Trail (40 miles around Mt. Hood) double and triple, Looit Trail (30 miles around Mt St Helens) double, triple, and quadruple, and the Devil’s Dome Loop (a classic 45 mile route in the North Cascades) double."

Get a job.

He does not have a job?

Saw an interesting site where someone is going for the GC double crossing record of just under 7hrs for approx 42 miles this weekend...

GC Single Crossing NK-SK record is just over 3hrs.