TRAIL RUNNING
Great Himalayan Adventure
This March trail runners Ryan Sandes and Ryno Griesel are heading to Nepal to take on the Great Himalaya Trail’ s fastest known time( FKT). There are apparently more people who have walked on the moon than those who have completed a run along this entire trail! – BY SEAN FALCONER
Nepal is best known for its mountains, with eight of the world’ s tallest peaks in Nepal or on its border with China, including Mount Everest and six other‘ eight-thousander’ peaks. The country is also know for its superb hiking trails, with the Great Himalaya Trail( GHT) that runs the length of the country being widely considered the Holy Grail of Mountain Trails – so no surprise that this has attracted trail runners from around the world.
The GHT is not a single trail, but rather a combination of trails in either the upper( GHT High Route) or middle( GHT Cultural route) districts of Nepal. The average time it takes hikers to cover this route is around five months, but in 2010 Englishman Sean Burch did it in 49 days, covering 2000km from East to West. In 2016, another Brit, Lizzy Hawker, went from East to West in 42 days, using a shorter route of approximately 1600km, but the current FKT is 28 days, 13 hours and 56 minutes for 1406km, set by South African Andrew Porter in 2016.
And that’ s what Ryan Sandes and Ryno Griesel will be taking on in March. They’ ve set themselves the goal of covering roughly the same route as Andrew, with 68,500m of ascent and 70,000m of descent, at altitudes of up to 5500m, in under 28 days and 14 hours, in order to beat his FKT. That means they will need to average 49km per day, and that’ s before rest days have been factored in!
This challenge follows on from Ryan and Ryno’ s successful 2014 Drakensberg Grand Traverse, and they say the much larger mountains and extreme conditions in the Himalaya is a natural progression for both of them to explore their limits. They will traverse the country from West to East, self-navigating the best possible route to link up the 12 required check-points as set by Andrew. Furthermore, though there will be limited points where they will meet their support crew to receive permits and basic kit exchange, Ryan and Ryno will rely on local hospitality for nutrition, water and a place to sleep.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Just a few weeks before they were due to leave for Nepal, we asked the two intrepid trail runners a few questions about the upcoming challenge.
MA: Where did you guys hear about this GHT challenge, and what made you decide to take it on?
Ryan:“ I guess I’ ve always known about the GHT, and discussed it with Ryno shortly after our Drakensberg Grand Traverse, so it was on our radar before Andrew did it, and after I won the Western States 100 Miler last year, I wanted to do a really big challenge and adventure. While I love racing, I don’ t want to be defined by it, because I really enjoy the adventure element of trail running. Well, this is going to be the biggest adventure I’ ve ever undertaken, and I’ m really stoked to be able to do it with somebody I know so well.”
Ryno:“ Ryan and I both love big mountains and adventure, and are equally intrigued by the challenge of an FKT. The concept developed over many banters during local mountain runs, as a natural progression of our previous projects, and there was a gap in our calendars for March 2018, so we decided to grab the opportunity.
“ This adventure is definitely not just about a record, but rather experiencing a life-changing adventure with a friend!”
MA: Have you spoken to Andrew to pick his brain about what to expect, advice for specific sections, or places to find food and shelter?
Ryno:“ Andrew has been super helpful, but true to the spirit of FKT’ s, he did not provide the specifics. He did provide us with the start and finish point and 10 check-points in between we must visit for our project to be recognised as a fair challenge to his record.”
Ryan:“ He’ s been really awesome and given us a lot of advice, and I’ ve got the utmost respect for him doing the whole thing solo.
MA: You can expect stupendous views of the world’ s tallest mountains, but will there be time to really take it all in?
Images: Kelvin Trautman & Sean Falconer
22 ISSUE 104 MARCH 2018 / www. modernathlete. co. za