Andrew Hamilton breaks speed record climbing Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks
Andrew Hamilton is a super-human mountaineer. And he’s got the record to prove it.
The 40-year-old dad of four early Thursday trotted down a rain-soaked Longs Peak, completing his inspiring quest for a speed record climbing all 58 points over 14,000 feet in Colorado at 2:21 a.m. — a total of nine days, 21 hours and 51 minutes. Hamilton has raced up and down the state’s highest peaks, setting a blistering pace that eclipsed all who went before him in the rarefied world of speed mountain climbing.
The Denver-based climber caught snippets of sleep in the last nine days, relentlessly jogging up and down peaks across the state.
– MAP: See where Hamilton went in Colorado
Amazingly, Hamilton adhered closely to a meticulously assembled plan that charted each trail, trailhead, ascent and road he would need to follow to make his record-setting time.
Monsoon rains and lingering snow conspired to thwart Hamilton, but his perseverance — plodding through oxygen-deprived sleeplessness on steep rocky trails — prevailed.
John Prater, left, assists Andrew Hamilton during a climb on Elbert. Photo by Charlie