On the weekend of July 14, 2023, a narrative of large endurance unfolded in Colorado’s Sawatch Mountains, the place David Hedges set a brand new males’s supported quickest identified time (FKT) of 39 hours, six minutes, and 40 seconds on the Nolan’s 14 route.
The route connects 14 mountains of 14,000 ft or extra, takes in a complete elevation acquire within the area of 45,000 ft, and covers some 95 miles. Hedges traveled northbound on the route, from the Clean’s Cabin Trailhead to the Fish Hatchery Trailhead.
Hedges’s benchmark knocks seven hours and 35 minutes off the earlier males’s supported report of 46 hours and 41 minutes, held by Alex Nichols since 2018.
David Hedges en path to setting a males’s supported quickest identified time on the Nolan’s 14 route in Colorado. Picture: Jack Kuenzle
The Nolan’s 14 is a route that has been on 25-year-old Hedges’s radar for his total grownup life. He mentioned: “I first heard about Nolan’s 14 about 10 years in the past whereas studying Anton Krupicka’s weblog. I used to be a excessive schooler in Chicago, Illinois, on the time.”
In 2016, Hedges moved to Colorado for college, the place he attended Colorado School and received to know former Nolan’s 14 males’s supported FKT holder Alex Nichols, who was the assistant cross-country coach on the time. When Nichols accomplished the Nolan’s 14 in 2018, Hedges joined him for what was meant to be a brief stint — however ended up masking virtually half of the route with Nichols. He mentioned:
“I ran the 9 miles in on Pine Creek Path to satisfy him between Mounts Harvard and Oxford, giving him snacks to gasoline him by means of his second evening. Each our watches and telephones died throughout that evening and by the point we met Alex’s spouse, Maddy, in Winfield and Alex regained some pep, I had no thought the place I used to be actually and had no means of getting again to my automotive … So I continued with Alex on by means of the following day.” Hedges was impressed by Nichols’s courageous end, and mentioned:
“How, after 40 hours and a lot struggling, may Alex be transferring like that? Loopy. That second was actually highly effective, it completely modified my life … I turned obsessive about Nolan’s and, later that summer season and the following, scouted the course a very good quantity and did a boatload of coaching within the mountains, large off-trail link-ups day after day.”
This previous weekend, the seed that was sewn all these years in the past grew to fruition, with Hedges setting an outstanding males’s supported FKT on the route meaning a lot to him. About his build-up, he recounted:
“I drove over right here, stayed with Alex and Maddy for a few days, after which received to coaching firstly of June. I camped below the Sawatch Mountains for 5 weeks beginning the primary Monday of June. Since [Ultra-Trail] Snowdonia [by UTMB 100 Mile] was simply eight weeks in the past, I didn’t must do any lengthy, lengthy runs. So, I did largely half days and simply a few practically full days out on the route. I educated a month of 30 to 35 hours transferring time up there, getting on the road all however sooner or later once I simply ran up the 13ers close to Hope Cross. It was chilly and stormy the primary half of the month and there was a number of snow. I attempted to hit all the pieces at the least twice this time round, although I didn’t fairly cowl each single mile in coaching.”
Hedges settled on the date of July 14 for the try, however with the Hardrock 100 additionally happening in Colorado the identical weekend and taking from his pool of attainable pacers and helpers, he spent a lot of the week earlier than attempting to scrape collectively a crew. Fortuitously, buddies and native runners got here good ultimately. Hedges mentioned:
“I ran seven peaks alone, nearly all of it timewise alone. Henry [Harris] joined me for Mounts Yale, Columbia, and Harvard. I met Sean [Van Horn] on the high of Mount Oxford and we ran up Mount Belford collectively. After which Jack [Kuenzle] did Elbert Peak and Mount Huge with me. I used to be crewed at Alpine, Avalanche Trailhead, Winfield (received my stuff out of Jack’s truck as he was sleeping within the again, haha), and Colorado Freeway 82.”
David Hedges (left) appears to be like comfortable and relieved after setting a males’s supported quickest identified time on Colorado’s Nolan’s 14 line, along with his crew and pacer Jack Kuenzle. Picture: Nikki LaRochelle
Apart from some foot points, Hedges had a comparatively clean run, saying:
“I stayed pretty even keeled the entire time. I ran out of meals and fluids on Mount Princeton and received very overheated there. I struggled my means up Mount Yale consequently, however was in a position to revive myself with Henry’s assist. I had a number of points with footwear … my ft had been destroyed by the point I received to Winfield. La Plata Peak may’ve gone quicker if I wasn’t hobbling round with obliterated trotters.”
Concerning the spotlight of the entire journey, he mentioned:
“Essentially the most particular second was summiting Mount Huge with Jack and Nikki [LaRochelle.] We had been greeted by a pack of goats, and it was stunning. We jogged down in excessive spirits and although I didn’t break 39 hours, I did get a pleasant stride happening these last path miles to the Fish Hatchery Trailhead. There, Nikki’s mother greeted us with a heat smile, bubbly waters, and an 18-ounce clamshell of blueberries. She drove Jack and I again to Freeway 82 the place we picked up his truck and went to Excessive Mountain Pies in Leadville, the place we each loved giant pizzas and a few banter.”
David Hedges (proper) throughout his Nolan’s 14 FKT effort with Jack Kuenzle and Nikki LaRochelle. Picture: Jack Kuenzle
