TRAIL JOURNAL
CABIN FEVER Going hut-to-hut with RJ Thompson STORY
/ ROGER MURPHY / GORDON MILLER
PORTRAIT
Running through a dark forest in the rain by the light of a headlamp may not be your idea of fun, but for the Vermont Huts Association’s executive director, RJ Thompson, it’s part of the allure of his current goal—to break the Long Trail unsupported speed record of 6 days, 17 hours, and 25 minutes set in 2010 by Travis Wildeboer. The 272-mile Long Trail extends from the Massachusetts border to Canada, running the length of Vermont, and usually takes people three to four weeks to complete. For Thompson, a Stowe resident and longtime distance runner, speed is the draw, and it will take days of covering 35 to 45 miles to break that record. This involves months of training, remarkable mental strength, and a quest to stay injury-free. Weather and injuries are what have kept him from breaking the record the last two times he tried. The first time it rained incessantly, making the trail a dangerous, wet conglomeration of mud, roots, and rocks. The second time, a hamstring injury brought him off the trail, but Thompson plans on making another attempt in the near future. What makes this goal even more impressive is the unsupported nature of it—Thompson needs to carry all his own food and supplies and cannot receive assistance anywhere along the trail. These attempts are not purely to achieve the unsupported Long Trail FKT (“fastest known time” in speed hiking lingo), but also an opportunity to raise awareness for groups associated with youth and the outdoors. “My first attempt, I raised money for the Children and Nature Network,” he said. “It’s an international organization designed to ensure that youth have safe access to the outdoors.” >>
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SKI IN, SKI OUT RJ Thompson, director of the Vermont Huts Association.