New Denali Speed Record Beats Kilian Jornet’s

The Ecuadorian/Swiss climber Karl Egloff climbed to the top of Denali via the West Buttress in seven hours and 40 minutes and returned to the base in 11 hours and 44 minutes. His time is now the fastest up and down North America’s highest peak, beating Kilian Jornet’s by two minutes.

Egloff descended on foot, without using skis, unlike Jornet. Jornet took to Twitter to congratulate Egloff on his accomplishment. Egloff also holds speed records on Aconcagua, Kilimanjaro, Elbrus and others.

“It felt like I was running on water,” Egloff, 38, told Gordy Megroz for outsideonline.com when they talked by phone. “From Camp I to Camp III [6,400 feet of climbing], I used crampons attached to running shoes but it was still very slippery.”

Congrats @karlmtb ???!! https://t.co/Uxwltf28wJ

— kilian jornet (@kilianj) June 21, 2019

Egloff now plans to head to Puncak Jaya in Indonesia, the highest peak on the Australian continent. Then he’ll head to Vinson in Antarctica and one days he’ll go for Everest, which he wants to climb up and down in 22 hours.

For those wondering about any rivalry between Egloff and Jornet, the two are in fact friends and motivate each others. “Our sport is a gentleman’s sport,” Egloff said to Megroz.

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DENALI 6190m, Norteamérica. 7h40min de ascenso desde campo base a cumbre y total con descenso 11h44min sin skis. 4to de los 7 Summits, mi proyecto y sueño personal. Muchos sentimientos que debo digerir, alegría y satisfacción! El 2018 conocimos la magnitud de esta imponente y salvaje montaña. Las condiciones climáticas no fueron las mejores pero aprendimos y regresamos este año con más preparación. Fueron 8 días de carpa con luz casi las 24h, nieve y fuertes vientos esperando la ventana. El 20 de Junio, Denali nos regaló un día maravilloso. También tuvo su carácter, con -30 C y ráfagas de 40-50km/h que nos pusieron a prueba. El ascenso fue desde campo base a cumbre en 7h40min. El descenso fue muy duro por la nieve húmeda. El resultado es la punta del iceberg. Detrás hay trabajo en equipo intenso y horas de preparación en alta montaña. Gratitud, respeto y eterna amistad con el mejor @nicolasmiranda360 . Gracias a mi equipo en casa como también a mis auspiciantes por creer en mí. Mi más profundo respeto y admiración a @kilianjornet por ser una leyenda. Por su caballerosidad y camaradería.- – DENALI 6190m/ 20’310 ft North America 7h40min ascent and 11hr44 roundtrip, no skis. 4th of the 7 Summits, my dream and personal project. There are a lot of feelings that I still need to digest. So much happiness and satisfaction. Last year we acknowledged this impressive and savage mountain. The weather conditions weren’t ideal but we learned and came back this year with more preparation. 8 days in the camp awaiting for the ideal conditions with almost 24h of daylight, snow and strong winds. On June 20th, Denali gave us an amazing day. The mountain showed character with temperatures around -30 C and strong winds of 40-50km/h. The ascent was from base camp to summit in 7h40min. The descent was hard due to soft snow conditions for running. The result is the tip of the iceberg. There is a hardworking team behind and hours of preparation in high altitude. Gratitude, respect and friendship with the best Nico Miranda. Thank you to my team back home and sponsors who believe in me. Deep respect and admiration to Kilian for being a legend and his sportmanship.

A post shared by Karl Egloff (@karl.egloff) on Jun 22, 2019 at 6:56pm PDT