Back in July 2017, our Race Director Kris King set his eyes on a sight he was going to be seeing a lot of over the next 31 days. The back of Adam Kimble’s head. That ponytail bounced along ahead of Kris for the whole of the following month as the two of them ran from John O’Groats to Lands End, taking in the highest peak in Scotland, England and Wales on the way.
Their lasting friendship was sealed as they passed a month running over a thousand miles together, exploring mainland Britain, living on service station sausage rolls, and sleeping in a tent only just large enough to contain Adam’s substantial running shoes.
Very long runs like this are no stranger to Kris who has covered the whole British coast-line under his own steam before, but they are a near everyday thing for his American counter-part. Adam Kimble ran his first 5km race in 2009 which resulted in a second place in his age group, some painful cramps and the beginning of a life of running based adventure.
Since then he has progressed quickly. Among others his race CV includes coming third in the Yellowstone-Teton 100 in 2014, winning and setting a course record at the Gobi March 2015 and repeating that feat at Desert Ultra 2018 in Namibia where our local race team took to calling him ‘Volstruis’ – the Afrikaans word for Ostrich.
In 2016, Lake Tahoe resident Adam made an attempt at the trans-America world record. Injury, unfortunately, put a stop to his push for the record, but he continued on his way and successfully made it from one ocean to the other in 60 days.
Now he adds a new and exciting adventure to his growing list. Among his many other exciting projects, Adam will now be joining Beyond the Ultimate as a Race Director. He made his first appearance as part of our pit crew at this year’s Jungle Ultra in Peru, where he soon befriended runners and team-mates alike with his amazing ability to be unflappably positive at all times.
Adam’s extensive ultra-running and adventuring CV make him an excellent addition to our team, and we look forward to many years of him shattering our Strava segments, motivating us with his massive energy, and keeping us entertained with his outstanding Gollum impressions. Trust us, if you get the chance to do so, ask him about that.
Below you’ll find a link to Adam’s previous appearance on our Everything Endurance podcast where you can hear a little more about his history and hear Kris and Will offend the entire state of Idaho.
The BTU team will continue to grow over the next few years. Keep an eye on our social media channels for announcements about exciting new projects and positions we have coming up.
