Joe McConaughy is no stranger to pushing the pace in pursuit of major mileage, having established Fastest Known Times on the 2,660-mile Pacific Crest Trail in 2014, the 2,189-mile Appalachian Trail in 2017 and the 70-mile Wicklow Round in Ireland in 2018. Every day had big mileage on those efforts, including a grand 110.8-mile push in the final 37 hours on the Appalachian Trail that ended on a mountaintop in a hailstorm.
Still, for all of McConaughy’s endurance feats, he’d never raced a true 100-mile ultramarathon until July 21-22 when he took part in the 31st annual Vermont 100 in West Windsor, Vt. While the race itself was a new experience for McConaughy, the unforgiving conditions he endured during his FKT pursuits prepared him for the grueling weather he encountered on race day. The Vermont 100 is known for its heat – usually in the upper 80s by mid-afternoon – and sticky humidity, but the temperature reached 90 degrees by 11 a.m. on race morning and threatened triple digits by that afternoon. Continue reading McConaughy Handles the Heat, Places 2nd in 100-Mile Debut at VT100
