Smokies Challenge goes down in Flames

This past Saturday 7 runners started climbing on the AT at Davenport Gap on the north boundary of Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Our goal was to continue southward to Fontana Dam, 70+ miles away over the crest of the Smokies. By the end of the adventure, only two runners made it past Newfound Gap. Adam Hill and Charlie Roberts both continued on and redefined the expectations for this adventure run. Until Saturday, 24 hours was the benchmark for a great run. Adam reached Fontana in around 17 hours and 28 minutes. Charlie reached Fontana in 19 hours 45 minutes. Both of them made it in under 20 hours, which I thought was narrowly possible for the best trained runner on a perfect day. The trail is so technical that there are limits to how fast one can run for large segments. The climbing is constant, and there is only one resupply point in the middle of the run. Nevertheless, a new standard has been set for SCAR and I expect this adventure run to get more attention as runners try to meet the challenge set anew this past weekend.