Five days after Swedish runner Ida Nilsson ran a fastest known time听(FKT) for the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim-to-rim (R2R2R), a new record has already taken its place. On November 21, shaved three minutes off Nilsson鈥檚 time, completing the south-north-south double crossing in 7 hours, 25 minutes, 58 seconds.
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Even if you鈥檙e an ultrarunning fan, you鈥檝e likely never heard Nowlin鈥檚 name before, because the unsponsored 26-year-old is a relative newcomer to competitive trail running. Originally from Portland, Oregon, Nowlin was a steeplechaser at the Oregon State University (鈥淚 was good,鈥 she says, 鈥渂ut never a huge standout.鈥) before moving to Crested Butte, Colorado, in 2014, where she met mountain-running pro , who encouraged her to start running trails. A few years of casual racing evolved into more disciplined training this year.
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And it鈥檚 clearly paid off. In the past ten months, she鈥檚 made quick work of notching podium finishes at major races like the Lake Sonoma 50-miler and the Speedgoat 50K.
Earlier this month, 听Nowlin was gearing up for the North Face Endurance Challenge Championships 50-miler, which was scheduled to take place in mid-November. When California wildfires led to the race鈥檚 last-minute cancellation, she found herself with pent-up fitness to burn. The Grand Canyon double crossing鈥攔oughly 42 miles听with 20,000 feet of total elevation change, and located just a 90-minute drive from her home in Flagstaff, Arizona鈥攚as the perfect outlet.
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If this all sounds familiar, that鈥檚 because it鈥檚 the very same situation that led Nilsson to take a swing at the record days before Nowlin鈥檚 attempt. And two days after Nilsson set the record, pro runner (who also trained for TNF 50) put down a time just three minutes shy of Nilsson鈥檚听and 20 minutes under Cat Bradley鈥檚 2017 record.听This was the most activity the canyon had seen from fast women since 2011, when the last record before Bradley鈥檚 was set by ultrarunner听.
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Nowlin wasn鈥檛 deterred by the company. 鈥淔KTs are a really cool way to compete against other people who you may not have had the chance to toe the line with in a traditional race,鈥 she says. 鈥淭his was an opportunity for me to measure myself against some incredible names in ultrarunning that I鈥檝e never raced against.鈥 The day before her attempt, Nowlin researched Nilsson鈥檚 and Nypaver鈥檚 split times online. , her coach and boyfriend, enlisted a couple of local friends to crew at the North Rim. Then it was go time.
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The morning of November 21听was cold and overcast, with temperatures hovering around freezing. Nowlin took off from the South Rim just after 6 A.M.听at a pace that she hoped would put her back at the South Rim in seven hours. 听
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The cold turned out to be the biggest obstacle that Nowlin faced all day. 鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to move quickly and get to things in your pack when it鈥檚 freezing and you鈥檙e in split shorts,鈥 she says. To make matters worse, Nowlin suffers blurry vision in cold weather. Halfway down the descent from the North Rim, her sight grew fuzzy. Within a few miles, she couldn鈥檛 read the numbers on her watch.
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Unable to check her time鈥攁nd convinced she was behind record pace鈥攕he committed to simply running the final 15 miles as fast as she could. But mixed in with the panic was a sense of relief: freed from the stress of splits and pace goals, Nowlin says she 鈥渏ust accepted that if it was going to happen, it would happen.鈥
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When she topped out the South Rim, she had no idea whether she had set the record. A friend had to read her the time on her watch.听When she knew the FKT was hers, relief and excitement weren鈥檛 the first emotions she experienced. 鈥淚 think I felt how most people do after running 42 miles,鈥 she says. 鈥淗ungry for popsicles and desperate for a shower.鈥
Looking back, Nowlin says she thinks her attempt was far from perfect. But from the outset, it was about more than speed. 鈥淲omen in trail running have incredible momentum right now,鈥 she says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a culture of encouraging one another to go hard on race day or go after FKTs. Challenging the R2R2R FKT was my way of contributing to that momentum.鈥 Nowlin听says she hopes her record will inspire other women to put down even faster times.听
On a great day, with the right combination of fitness, technical skill, and luck, she thinks it鈥檚 possible for the women鈥檚 canyon record to go under seven hours. 鈥淚f the men鈥檚 record is in the five-hour range,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 see no reason why the women鈥檚 record can鈥檛 be in the six-hour range.鈥 With so many women chasing after the mark, that may not be too far off.