In the last few years, several climbers have attempted to make Ama Dablam, one of autumn’s most popular commercial peaks, a little different by speeding up it. This season, Matheo Jacquemoud of France did a round trip run from Base Camp to Base Camp in an impressive 6 hours and 23 minutes on Oct. 20.
Jacquemoud, a professional guide, told The Himalayan Times that his is now the round trip FKT on Ama Dablam.
We have asked Jacquemoud for details and are waiting for a reply. We would like to check how long his ascent took from Base Camp to summit. Last year, Japanese-Canadian Toshiyuki Yamada made it to the top in 5 hours, 42 minutes, and needed a total of 9 hours, 32 minutes for the round trip. In 2021, Francois Cazzanelli took 5 hours, 32 minutes, and 6 seconds from BC to summit. During descent, however, he slowed down to wait for his partners and even helped in the rescue of a climber in trouble. He didn’t cite his round-trip time.
On the official Fastest Known Time website, Yamada’s was listed as the FKT on Ama Dablam.
Tyler Andrews of the U.S., who is also eyeing a FKT on Ama Dablam, told ExplorersWeb, “I met Matheo [Jacquemoud] on the mountain and was impressed by his time.”
Not in competition
But the American says he is not in competition with Jacquemoud because he is doing a different route.
“My plan is to attempt the longer FKT from Pangboche,” he said. “That’s more in my wheelhouse, as it is both longer and [involves] more running.”
Andrews has been up to Camp 3 on Ama Dablam, scouting the route and checking conditions. So far, he says, the weather has been excellent. He will attempt his FKT on Thursday, Oct. 26.
After Ama Dablam, he hopes to set FKTs on popular peaks such as Lobuche. He has already set an FKT on the 3 Cols Trek, finishing it in a day.
The idea of an FKT in the Himalaya is relatively new, although speed records have been around for some time. Currently, few mountains have times registered with the FKT website, which is still mainly for runners and trail runners.
