When Jamieson Hatt set the inaugural unsupported Bruce Path FKT (quickest identified time) in 2022, he knew his benchmark wouldn’t stand endlessly. His mark of 14 days, 5 hours and 20 minutes on the gruelling 900-kilometre trek from Tobermory to Queenston, Ont., was lowered a yr and a half later by Canadian ultrarunner Cody Taylor, who shaved off 5 hours.
Hatt was proud to see the file progress, however the thought of getting it again by no means absolutely left his thoughts. “There was part of me that knew I may do loads higher,” Hatt informed Canadian Working. “My aim [in 2022] was simply to complete.”
He deliberate a second try for early Might 2025, however two days earlier than his begin date, his father, Ken, died instantly. “It got here as a shock—I believed my dad was in excellent well being,” says Hatt. “I knew I needed to put the Bruce Path away for some time and help my household.”
Within the weeks that adopted, the 45-year-old stepped away from the game. However with time, he realized what his dad would have wished. “There’s nothing he would’ve wished greater than for me to be on the market coaching and doing the factor I like to do,” Hatt displays. “A couple of weeks later, after finishing a yard extremely, I knew what I needed to do.”
The second try
With Hatt’s window narrowing, he selected to tackle the Bruce once more in late August. “There are professionals and cons to doing it this late,” he says. “The warmth and vegetation are powerful: numerous tall grass, morning dew, every little thing continuously soaked. However the upside was that I may pack mild. My base weight was simply 6.25 lb. (2.8 kg), and I didn’t want a lot cold-weather gear.”
If you’re working and mountain climbing for greater than per week, battle is inevitable. On the second day, it drizzled nonstop, leaving Hatt’s toes soaked. “By the third evening, I questioned if I’d even have the ability to proceed. I referred to as my spouse, and he or she informed me, ‘You by no means decide at evening.’”
The subsequent morning, he pushed ahead, leaning on his easy mantra: maintain exhibiting up. “That was the turning level,” he says.
Reaching the file
On Aug. 30, Hatt reached the southern terminus in Queenston, Ont., in 12 days, 11 hours and 38 minutes, smashing Taylor’s unsupported Bruce Path FKT by a day and a half.
“It’s cool to get a very good time, however what I’m most happy with is overcoming adversity and making it by means of,” Hatt says. Whereas he imagined the feelings of ending, he stated he by no means let himself get too far forward of himself. With greater than 60 FKTs now to his title, he is aware of these challenges may be 50/50 at greatest—one clip of a rock, or root, and it could possibly be over.
The unsupported model is taken into account the purest (and sometimes most revered) type of FKTing: athletes should carry every little thing from the beginning, with no resupply or exterior assist, relying solely on pure water sources.
Hatt says he’s uncertain what problem lies forward, or whether or not he’ll deal with the Bruce Path once more, however the factor that’s saved him working for the previous 27 years is the drive to take one step additional.
