This is not the most elegant game etiquette, but this is how the 28-year-old traveled from Tobermory, Ont. to Niagara Falls (Niagara Falls) in a shocking 9 days, 3 hours and 27 minutes. ) On a track of nearly 900 kilometers, it broke the previously known fastest time by about 14 hours.

This is equivalent to approximately 2.5 marathons per day for 9 consecutive days.

“It’s certainly not perfect,” said Arlidge, a part-time biochemistry professor from Sandridge, Ontario, 70 kilometers south of North Bay. “I learned a lot in flying.”

Arlidge struggled with swollen joints and ankles, abrasions, severely blistered feet, and rain all day long, making his socks and shoes disturbingly wet. He started running, but as his body gradually weakened, his pace gradually slowed down, becoming more like a hike.

The game ended on June 27, but he was still a bit painful. He could barely walk for a few days after completion.

“The purpose of this is to find out the limits of my ability to recover from physical injuries and lack of sleep,” he said. “So I’m really happy to find these restrictions.”

‘Sleeping things become weird’

Arlidge is a member of a niche group of superendurance athletes in Ontario who have travelled great distances, some of whom are competing for record time.

When Arlidge was on foot against Bruce, the 25-year-old Theo Kelsey-Verdecchia tried to break the historical record he set last year on two huge cross-country bike routes called Butter Tart XL (BT XL).

This 1,126-kilometer route starts and ends in St. Jacobs, Ontario, 15 kilometers northwest of Kitchener, and follows dirt roads, farm roads, and forest trails through Lake Huron, Owen Sound, Collingwood, Ellora, Hamilton and Brantford.

Kelsey-Verdecchia completed the game in just three days, 12 hours and 17 minutes, surpassing his known fastest time of 7 hours.

This means only four hours of sleep in 3.5 days. He divided it into 15 to 30 minute naps, followed by a few hours of cycling.

“Sleep problems have become weird,” said Kelsey-Verdecchia, a bicycle mechanic in Toronto. “Your brain is really blurry. It’s hard to concentrate… When night falls, you start to have very strong hallucinations.”

On a section of the trail, he thought the leaves and boulders he passed by on his bike were frogs. He also mistaken the mailbox for a kangaroo.

“I know it’s ridiculous, but I still turned to try to avoid it because you didn’t think directly at the time.”

Arlidge experienced similar sleep problems. In the beginning, he had to spend five hours every night. But when he started to slow down and start to get hurt, he had to do more hiking instead of running, which meant reducing sleep time. In recent days, he has only slept 90 minutes a night.

For a few days after finishing, he will bump in the middle of the night.

“I’ll wake up in panic, thinking,’Oh my God, I have to run now. What am I doing? I can’t sleep,'” he said.

Desire to let others break records

When Kelsey-Verdecchia was riding alone, Arlidge had a support van driven by a friend. They will set up food and rest areas in advance and map out the next part of the trail. It allows Arlidge to focus on running.

Some accidents happened along the way: the key was locked in the support car, and once it was stuck on a small road and was rescued by a local farmer and his tractor.

Arlidge used to campaign for Queen’s University in Kingston. The team there has a tradition of running to the local McDonald’s. Before running back to campus, they have to eat a double-layer Big Mac, big fries and a large glass of Coke. Try not to threw up.

He and his support staff paid their respects at the midpoint of a run near Collingwood, eating exactly the same meals.

“It is difficult to be in a tempered state of mind for 9 consecutive days,” he said. “We tried…not to be too serious.”

Both have finished the game, and a few weeks have passed, and neither of them wants to go too far.

Kelsey-Verdecchia doesn’t really want to ride now, and Arlidge Yes I was upset and wanted to start running again, but promised to take a month off.

They know that others will be eager to break their new records. Arlidge even tried to cross the path with others while he was running. They stopped to chat briefly, but he finally failed to grasp Arlidge’s time.

“I really look forward to when this happens,” Arlidge said.

Both encourage others to break their own records and are willing to share tips, maps, and equipment recommendations. This gives them the motivation to go out again and do better.

“I’m really sure this is everything I want to do now,” Kelsey Vidkia said. “I feel best when I’m outside.”