Thursday, March 22, 2012

2012 Rim to Rim to Rim by the numbers

March 9, 2012

On Friday, March 9, 2012, I ran across the Grand Canyon. And back. As hikers descend into the canyon, danger signs are in place that warn people "DO NOT attempt to hike from the canyon rim to the river and back in one day. Each year hikers suffer from serious illness or death from exhaustion." The round trip distance that this warning describes is 13 miles. Along with my friend Timothy Pitts, we not only ran from the south rim on the South Kaibab trail to the Colorado River, but then through the entire canyon and up the North Kaibab Trail to the north rim for a distance of 20.9 miles in five hours and 31 minutes. After taking seven minutes to rest and take pictures, we turned around and did it again making it a true "rim to rim to rim" as it is commonly known. Ironically, we covered the return distance in an equal amount of time, five hours and 31 minutes. At the end of the day, we had run 41.8 miles with 21,200' of elevation change in 11 hours and 9 minutes, meeting our goal of finishing the route in under 12 hours.

Pictures are here 



Nutrition
QuantityFuelCalories/ServingCalories TotalCarbs/ServingCarbs Total
2 bottles
First Endurance EFS Liquid Shot
400
800
100
200
2 bottles
Vanilla High Protein Boost
240
480
33
66
1 bar
Honey Stinger 20g protein Peanut Butta pro bar
350
350
36
36
3 bars
Honey Stinger Apple Cinnamon Bar
180
540
28
84
1 pie
Oatmeal crème pie
170
170
26
26
1 pack
Jack Link's Peppered Beef Jerky
80
80
4
4
Total


2420

416

QuantityHydrationCalories/ServingCalories TotalCarbs/ServingCarbs Total
70 ounces
Hammer Strawberry HEED
100
875
26
228
90 ounces
First Endurance EFS Energy Drink Mild Grape
96
432
24
108
20 ounces
Lemmy's Lemonade
100
250
25
63
20 ounces
Water
0
0
0
0
Total


1557

399


Total Nutrition
Total CaloriesTotal Carbs
3977815

Mileage/Elevation/Time/Duration
Distance (mi)Elv (ft)LocationGain/LossGradeTimeDuration
07250South Rim00.00%5:00:00 AM0:00:00
0.756450Oh Ahh Point-800-20.20%
1.56300Cedar Ridge-150-3.79%
2.55700O'Neill Butte-600-11.36%
35200Skeleton Point-500-18.94%
4.34000Tonto Trail Junction-1200-17.48%
4.53850The Tipoff-150-14.20%
53550Panorama Point-300-11.36%
62500Kaibib Bridge-1050-19.89%6:22:00 AM1:22:00
6.22450River confluence-50-4.73%
6.42450Bright Angel Campground00.00%
6.92550Phantom Ranch1003.79%
8.92950The Box4003.79%
12.53750Ribbon Falls8004.21%
144000Cottonwood Campground2503.16%8:04:00 AM3:04:00
15.24850Pumphouse85013.42%
16.25200Roaring Springs3506.63%
17.15900The Needle70014.73%
18.96800Supai Tunnel9009.47%9:48:00 AM4:48:00
20.157600Coconino Overlook80012.12%
20.98250North Rim65016.41%10:31:00 AM5:31:00
08250Leave North Rim00.00%10:28:00 AM5:28:00
21.657600Coconino Overlook-650-16.41%
22.96800Supai Tunnel-800-12.12%11:01:00 AM6:01:00
24.75900The Needle-900-9.47%
25.65200Roaring Springs-700-14.73%
26.64850Pumphouse-350-6.63%11:46:00 AM6:46:00
27.84000Cottonwood Campground-850-13.42%12:04:00 PM7:04:00
29.33750Ribbon Falls-250-3.16%
32.92950The Box-800-4.21%
34.92550Phantom Ranch-400-3.79%1:29:00 PM8:29:00
35.42450Bright Angel Campground-100-3.79%
35.62450River confluence00.00%
35.82500Kaibib Bridge504.73%1:54:00 PM8:54:00
36.83550Panorama Point105019.89%
37.33850The Tipoff30011.36%
37.54000Tonto Trail Junction15014.20%
38.85200Skeleton Point120017.48%
39.35700O'Neill Butte50018.94%
40.36300Cedar Ridge60011.36%
41.056450Oh Ahh Point1503.79%
41.87250South Rim80020.20%4:09:58 PM11:09:58

Total Climbing
FeetMiles
Total Ascent106002.007575758
Total Decent106002.007575758
Total Elevation Change212004.015151515

Notes 
  • The descent from the South Rim to the River was slower than anticipated due to carrying so much gear, being overdressed, stopping to change clothes, running in the dark, the trail having drainage that lead to half steps in between the ties.
  • Stopped to talk to almost every person we came across
  • We stopped for 5 minutes just after Phantom Ranch to ditch some of our gear/clothes that we wouldn't need for the ascent up to the North Rim and back
  • There were no water sources turned on anywhere but Phantom Ranch, so we mostly filled up our hydration bladders out of Bright Angel Creek
  • We spent 7 minutes at the North Rim taking pictures, changing clothes
  • It took awhile for the sun to be high enough in the sky to hit the canyon
  • We made great time from Supai Tunnel back to Phantom Ranch, holding a steady pace and taking less pictures
  • We stopped at Phantom Ranch on the way back for about 15 minutes to take pictures, get lemonade, fill up our packs, etc
  • Ascending the South Rim after 35 miles and baking in the hot sun was clearly the most grueling part. Eric went through 70oz of water in the first 3 miles of the climb and ran out.
  • We estimated that at a slow hiking pace, we would need 3 hours to complete the last 6 miles from the bridge to the rim but with a late push of power hiking, we made it in 2 hours 15 minutes
Having a great time vs having a great time

This epic adventure was all about the experience; it was my first ever trip to the Grand Canyon, my first time ultra running at this elevation and most climbing I have ever done in a run.  We enjoyed every minute of the run and took our time.  I would speculate that given knowledge of the Canyon now, that I could probably traverse it and back rim to rim to rim in under 10 hours.  Maybe someday... For now I just feel blessed to have been given the ability to run, to take in one of God's most amazing creations and maybe along the way inspire a few.