From the inspiring to the tragic, this is GearJunkie’s wrap on exploration and adventure news of the week. Here’s what you missed and a few things to look forward to.
Ultrarunning is back in full swing.
Distance runner Aleksandr Sorokin continues to smash world records. On April 23, the Lithuanian broke the 100k speed record in 6:05:40 at the Centurion Running Track in Bedford, U.K. “To put Sorokin’s run into perspective, that’s 5:53 per mile or 3:39 per kilometer pace for 62.2 miles/100 kilometers,” reported iRunFar’s Bryon Powell.
Sorokin also owns the current speed records for the 100-mile distance (completed in 11:14:56), 12-hour period (105.83 miles), and 24-hour period (192.25 miles).
Aleksandr Sorokin sets a new 100k World Record of 6:05:40 at the Centurion Running Track 100. https://t.co/lV5AOfKmj9
— iRunFar (@iRunFar) April 23, 2022
That same day, Americans Courtney Dauwalter and Jim Walmsley swept the Maderia Island Ultra-Trail (MIUT) and set two all-time event records. Walmsley claimed the race’s overall fastest time, running all 72 miles in 12:58:27. Just under 2 hours later, Dauwalter broke the MIUT’s women’s fastest time with 14:40:35 on the clock. See the full results here.
French climber Nolwen Berthier recently joined sport climbing’s most elite ranks by sending “Super Crackinette” (5.15a/9a+). At 28 years old, she is just the sixth woman in the world to climb at that level. According to ExplorersWeb, she had projected the route for more than a year before sinking the redpoint on April 19.
Alex Megos was the first person to send “Super Crackinette,” which resides in Saint-Léger-du-Ventoux, France.
The third U.S. Adventure Racing Association’s (USARA) regional championship of the 2022 season drew together more than 300 racers for 24 hours of mountain biking, river paddling, trail running, and map-and-compass navigation through the beautiful and burly Virginia Appalachians.
Team Rootstock Racing eked out a win at the 10th Shenandoah Epic and earned free entry to the 2022 National Championship. It is the fourth year in a row that Rootstock has taken home the trophy, which goes to the top team in the premiere mixed-gender division.
The overall winners of the event were Richard Sparks and Jesse Spangler, racing as the “Sparks Spangler Banner.” It was Spangler’s second overall title in a row.
President Biden signed an executive order to protect old-growth forests during an Earth Day visit to Seattle. The order requires the Departments of Agriculture and Interior to catalog data about America’s oldest forests and generate new policies to preserve them.
Notably, the order does not eliminate the logging of old-growth trees on federal lands. Per NPR, several environmental groups stated that in addition to reducing greenhouse emissions, “conserving our remaining older forests and trees on federal public lands is one of the country’s most straightforward, impactful and cost-effective climate solutions.”
Fires are raging through the American southwest this week. With 20 active wildfires burning in 33 counties, New Mexico seems disproportionately affected. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed emergency declarations on April 24 as 20 wildfires ripped through 33 of the state’s counties.
In Arizona, a fire burned at least 20 homes near Flagstaff. But the evacuation orders there were officially lifted Sunday morning.
10 Barrel Brewing Co. and Copper Mountain Resort in Colorado hosted the “Hella Hectic” skier and boardercross this past weekend. The course consisted of banked slaloms, step-downs, and a pond skim to finish it off. Hella Hectic went big this year — awarding $35,000 in prizes to men’s, women’s, and adaptive participants, both in individual and team competition heats.
The new competition replaces Hella Big Air with a more approachable course and more inclusive format (skiers, snowboarders, adaptive athletes — all are welcome!).
Chaco is preparing to wrap up this year’s “Fit for Adventure” road tour. The tour features the brand’s ReChaco Roving Repairs bus, where customers can drop off their used Z sandals for repairs and create new custom sandals at the bus’s design bar.
Chaco’s last stop will be at the multiday outdoor festival Tuck Fest in Charlotte, North Carolina, April 29-May 1.
This article is sponsored by Toyota. Find out more about the 2022 Toyota Tundra here.
