FKT's, or, fastest known times, have been a thing in ultrarunning and other sports for decades now, becoming more popular in recent years. It seems that recently, especially since COVID took hold, mountain bikers have joined the ranks, competing to complete feats of endurance in record times.
The bikes being ridden in these feats are purpose-built for the specific attempt, and Rab Wardell's Santa Cruz Blur is no exception. The bike is made to be both an XC race machine and an endurance hammer at the same time, and it's what he used to snag the
FKT of The West Highland Way, a 95 mile trail with over 10,000 feet of vertical.
The frame is the top tier CC model, size large. It has RockShox suspension and SRAM's XX1 AXS Eagle drivetrain. Santa Cruz Reserve rims, Industry 9 hubs, and Continental tires along with CushCore XC inserts keep things rolling.
| The goal of this bike build was to strike the perfect balance of being fast and lightweight, yet robust and capable. The West Highland Way is 95 miles of rough terrain, technical climbs, and gnarly descents. Every part of this bike was carefully considered for the demands of the route.—Rab Wardell |
Rab has his bars cut to 680mm. He has ridden wider bars over the years, but as a smaller rider he doesn't feel any benefit in going wider.
Quarq Power meter paired to a Wahoo ROAM were paramount to helping Rab pace his effort to make the most of his energy reserves over 9 hours of riding.
Rab sets his bike up based on what helps him feel more confident, and usually run things a little bit harder than recommended. For nutrition, he used Secret Training Energy products during his record attempt.
CushCore tire inserts were one of the items which add weight to the build, but Rab feels being able to run the tire at lower pressures is worth it. He's confident that although they add a little weight, this set up is definitely faster than running without. They also saved him when riding into Kinlochleven on a flat!
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Asking for my mum. Lol
Blowed the ring right off the shock and bottomed out the fork anyway.
That record is pretty insane though!
On another note, rock climbing also has this, and there's a major debate on it because on the upper end of the sport it has caused accidents, and doesn't conform to some people's climbing philosophies. The whole style nowdays is about speed, everyone wants to do the Nose in a day, not 3 days. Fast and light is also the style in mountaineering overall, alpine's always better than a siege. It makes sense because the number of unclimbed routes has decreased and techniques have kinda plateaued. Styles come and go, I wonder when it will change. Personally I don't care about style, I just want to get to the top.
Oh wait...
2. I wasn't even specifically referring to Rab or this effort, I was talking about FKTs in general - I don't know or particularly care about the WHW as it's not so famous that I'd ever heard of it before.
3. If you care to actually read what I wrote, I was quite clear that I was not commenting on his athletic prowess or this particular effort.
4. No shit, it's called "racing". At least, that's what it's called when more than one person enters.
5. Depends who you ask, because sponsoring a rider I've never heard of, to perform a particular feat I've never heard of, and beating nobody I've ever heard of in the process, means absolutely zero to me personally. Doesn't mean it was easy, doesn't mean Rab isn't an animal on a bike (I don't know the guy or mean him any ill will), but it does mean I have no interest in people winning "competitions" that basically nobody else took part in.
I love head-to-head racing, but they were all cancelled for me this year. It's been a while, but I've raced World Cup XC and other big races in the past. I know I'm not the best rider, and I know people can and will beat me at stuff.
I'm proud of how this ride/film/project turned out. In my opinion, the WHW is a cool trail worth celebrating, and it shows off Scotland. I'm happy that the majority of people seem to have enjoyed this film. There's been a lot of feedback that it makes people want to get outside and ride, and that's what I hoped to do.