The average climber does Mont Blanc in two days, using a cable car from Chamonix to the Aiguille de Midi. They then spend a night in a hut and then another 10-14 hours to summit. Yesterday, Benjamin Vedrines set off from the church in Chamonix and made it back to town in less than five hours.
His return trip took exactly 4 hours, 54 minutes, and 41 seconds and edged the previous speed record, set by Kilian Jornet in 2013, of 4:57:40. The challenge involved nearly 3,800 vertical meters of gain between Chamonix, located 1,000m above sea level, and the 4,806m summit.
“I honestly didn’t believe it was possible,” Vedrines admitted.
Neither did this writer. But we are starting to get used to the French prodigy redefining what is possible in mountaineering speed. It doesn’t matter whether it’s the roof of Europe or K2, the roof of Pakistan, which he climbed in 11 hours without supplementary oxygen or porters.
Vedrines used skis at some point during the ascent and supposedly paraglided down. He mentioned an intense experience that included broken ankles, frozen eyes, and snapped poles, but he withheld further details in order to share a complete report in the next few days.
