Vermont native attempts record run on Long Trail

Nikki Kimball, an ultrarunner from Bozeman, Mont., launched an attempt Monday to run the Long Trail in four and a half days from North Troy, on the Canadian border, to the trail’s end at the Massachusetts border near Williamstown.

The rest of the article is here -

Good luck.

I have just returned from 9 days on the trail. I planned 14 days but had to cut it short for I poured boiling water over my foot and the raw flesh just wasn't healing.

My observations on the section between Mansfield and Brandon Gap:

When the trail gets wet the 'hiking' is really survival hiking. The trail gets incredibly slippery every step of the way...much more than any trail in NH or ME. How can someone knock the trail in 4 days under those conditions is beyond my comprehension.


p.s. had a vftt tshirt sighting on the LT yesterday on the trail from rt 2 to Camels Hump. Actually I missed it but my son and wife told me later about it.

Brambor said:

When the trail gets wet the 'hiking' is really survival hiking. The trail gets incredibly slippery every step of the way...much more than any trail in NH or ME. How can someone knock the trail in 4 days under those conditions is beyond my comprehension.

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bummer about your foot! I hope it heals quickly now that you're off trail for a while.

I agree wholeheartedly about the wet rocks in VT. The best reason I know is because the mountains there are less granite and more schist, so I guess a smoother surface. I had rain coming over Camel's Hump, and it slowed me down to a crawl. Good times

Guthook said:

... The best reason I know is because the mountains there are less granite and more schist, so I guess a smoother surface...

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Yep, its all the geology. Unlike NH, ME, and the central ADK's, the northern Greens are all heavily metamorphosed.

when did you pass over camels hump? I met a guy trailnamed Herro who was looking for you. That was at the montclair(sp) lodge.

Guthook said:

bummer about your foot! I hope it heals quickly now that you're off trail for a while.

I agree wholeheartedly about the wet rocks in VT. The best reason I know is because the mountains there are less granite and more schist, so I gue surface. I had rain coming over Camel's Hump, and it slowed me down to a crawl. Good times

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Brambor said:

when did you pass over camels hump? I met a guy trailnamed Harro who was looking for you. That was at the montclair(sp) lodge.

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Oh, that must have been my friend, Clint. I was over CH on the 22nd or 23rd, I think. Somewhere around there. It was the rainiest day of the hike... Got into Bamforth Ridge shelter literally seconds before one of the most tremendous thunderstorms I've ever been in that's a mighty fine shelter to be in when it's raining buckets out.

I wonder is shoes with grippier sole would help?

20 years ago I hiked in boots from Danner that had 'lug sole' - I believe they were grippy rubber. I remember sunning up from Speck Pond shelter to Old Speck on those ledges like nothing.

AMF said:

Yep, its all the geology. Unlike NH, ME, and the central ADK's, the northern Greens are all heavily metamorphosed.

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Brambor said:

I wonder is shoes with grippier sole would help?

20 years ago I hiked in boots from Danner that had 'lug sole' - I believe they were grippy rubber. I remember sunning up from Speck Pond shelter to Old Speck on those ledges like nothing.

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I doubt it would do much. The Mahoosucs, like the Whites and most of the mountains in Maine, have a nice, rough granite surface. The problem in VT is really just how smooth and slick the rocks get.

I was setting up camp at Montclair Glen yesterday when she passed through at around 6:30 pm. It was an aid stop for her. She seemed to be doing well and was planning to spend last night at App Gap.

Thanks for the update, Vegematic.

In addition to being a wonderful person, Nikki is a very accomplished biathlete and ultrarunner with multiple wins at the "Boston Marathon" of ultras, the Western States 100. Hoping she pulls off the Long Trail record!

One thing that interested me about the scene at Montclair Glen...there were about 17 hikers there, mostly young men. Nobody seemed to think it was odd that a woman might break an athletic record held by a man. Actually, most of the guys thought that was pretty cool. What really astonished them was her "advanced age". Nikki is 41.

The times, they are a-changin'

Nikki Kimball attempting Long Trail Record!

Just saw this on the Channel 3 news tonight! Seems she started Monday morning @ 6am on the Canadian Border. From what I can gather she hopes to finish tomorrow but would have to run through the night!? Anyway here's the only link I could find http://thelongtrailfilm.com/#/home Does anyone have more info???

The blog page on the thelongtrailfilm.com site hasn't been updated recently (maybe they are kind of busy!), but I found this article from Vermont Today:
http://www.vermonttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/RH/20120817/NEWS01/708179856

Hope she makes it!

Incidently, some of the rocks on the Long Trail are marble, and that's extremely slippery when wet. I wear the "Sticky" rubber outsole models of Inov-8 shoes, which is better than anything else I've tried on the wet rocks in the Whites, but they're still no match for the Long Trail.

vegematic said:

One thing that interested me about the scene at Montclair Glen...there were about 17 hikers there, mostly young men. Nobody seemed to think it was odd that a woman might break an athletic record held by a man. Actually, most of the guys thought that was pretty cool. What really astonished them was her "advanced age". Nikki is 41.

The times, they are a-changin'

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The world's best ultra-long-distance swimmer is a woman, Diana Nyad, and she is no spring chicken either.

Here's to hoping that Nikki is able to finish and set a new record!

I suspect the size of the support and production team required the event to start on a fixed date, which is always a huge gamble with the weather dice - especially on the Long Trail, where wet conditions can drastically cut your safe traveling speed ( particularly in the Northern section).

vegematic said:

Nobody seemed to think it was odd that a woman might break an athletic record held by a man. Actually, most of the guys thought that was pretty cool.

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The record for the John Muir Trail was held by a very well known woman for several years, I believe. I heard that she's a Vermont native too!

-Dr. Wu

some news

having only the channel 3 news story saying nikki hoped to finish in 4 1/2 days ( which would be about 6pm tonight) and being not far away this afternoon, i went to the crossing on route 9 in woodford arriving just before 2pm. no crew there. a man was crossing rte 9 and was a thru hiker heading north. he hadn't seen nikki. i hiked 1.4 miles north and back, still no one in the parking lot. after i got home i spoke with a friend very familiar with the event. nikki was quite a bit behind schedule and needed to sleep. may finish early on saturday. here's wishing her well!

dr_wu002 said:

The record for the John Muir Trail was held by a very well known woman for several years, I believe. I heard that she's a Vermont native too!

-Dr. Wu

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Yes, I believe you're on to something. She's continues to be an occasional poster here as well.

dr_wu002 said:

the record for the john muir trail was held by a very well known woman for several years, i believe. I heard that she's a vermont native too!

-dr. Wu

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Vermont tough!

Blog News

FRom the blog...

"Update from Friday night: As of 12midnight, Nikki Kimball was back on the trail, with just 37 miles to go, determined to finish her Long Trail expedition. She will come in after the men's record, but is trying to close the gender gap with the women's. We're rooting for her and hoping to see her cross the finish line with her lead pacers, Jenny and Dennis, later today. We'll post more updates about Nikki's expedition and what happened on the trail in the last 48 hours soon..."