When I first heard of the MAC I knew I had to give it a try. I knew that it would not be easy to get under 2 hours and 10 minutes and I would have to push my limits. I love these kind of challenges, you versus yourself. It's a mental game and that is what drew me to this challenge.
I got out of work early and decided to give it a go. I have summited Mount Adams many times before but never by the trails the MAC requires. I knew from previous hikes and runs that I would be pushing the 2:10 time limit to summit Adams. I would have to give it everything I had and then some.
I started off on the Valley Way with a light jog and once I got to Brookside that turned into a fast walk. Most of this hike I could not run, but rather just walk as fast as possible with some running done on the flat sections. Once I got to the Airline I knew I would be definitely be pushing 2:10 and I needed to step up my pace. I started pushing harder than I ever had before and was almost out of gas by the time I got to Lowe's Path for the last 0.2 miles.
I looked at my watch to see I had less than ten minutes till I would reach the time limit and started to question if I could make it or not. Rather than slowing on the grueling 29% grade of the Lowe's Path, I dug deep within myself and pushed even harder making it to the summit with less than 2 minutes to spare!
Myles Chouinard