From Anchor Point, Alaska, to Key West, Fla., Pete Kostelnick ran diagonally across the U.S. He averaged more than 50 miles per day for his 5,384-mile run.
On November 5, Kostelnick reached the tropical blue waters of Key West, finishing one of the longest transcontinental runs in history.
Kostelnick began running on July 31 from Anchor Point, Alaska, the westernmost point on American highways. His route ended in the southernmost point in America, Key West.
This journey, what Kostelnick called the K2K (Kenai Peninsula to Key West), was more than 5,000 miles long and self-supported. You can see his GPS record here. Per his Instagram, Kostelnick ran 5,384 miles.
Think of it as a massive diagonal crossing of North America. He ran along U.S. and Canadian highways, averaging just over 50 miles per day for 98 days straight. Talk about endurance!
Prior to his race, Kostelnick stated he believed nobody had run from Alaska to Florida, nor had anyone run a self-supported FKT of 5,000-plus miles with an average pace of 50 or more miles per day.
K2K FKT: Pete Kostelnick Runs From Alaska to Florida
The HOKA ONE ONE athlete set the record across the U.S. in 2016 from San Fransisco to New York. For that record, he had a support team and averaged 72 miles per day.
Kostelnick wanted to challenge himself on another transcontinental run and do so self-supported. He ran the entire distance pushing a stroller with his gear. During the K2K, he was on his own and had to supply his own food, clothing, and maps.
Each day, Kostelnick woke up between 5:00 and 5:30 a.m., finishing by 4:00 or 5:00 p.m. after running an ultramarathon. Then, he would unwind and take care of some housekeeping before sleeping.
All that for 98 days straight.
He packed five outfits, some cold-weather gear, and a bright, reflective neon-yellow vest. His choice of footwear was the HOKA ONE ONE Bondi 6 and Clifton 5.
As if that wasn’t impressive enough, his pace was thrown off near the beginning because of a fire in Alaska. It forced him to take a day off — so he ran 90 miles the next day! After that, he continued to pace himself according to his plan without skipping a beat.
“It is a mental struggle,” Kostelnick said in a documentary of his accomplishment. “I always try to find ways to break up the day into smaller pieces. It’s looking at a map and saying, ‘All I care about right now is just getting to the next big curve in the road.'”
And now, surely it’s time for him to have some much-needed rest. Congrats to Kostelnick for once again running an astounding distance at a near-unbelievable pace.
