Broke the Icelandic record skiing 238.9 km in 24 hours

Walked 238.9 km skiing in 24 hours

Andri Teitsson, a runner and skier, walked 238.9 kilometers skiing in one day, breaking the Icelandic record. For three years he had been thinking about trying out the record of 203 kilometers.

“I totally believed I could do this, but I was naturally a little nervous,” Teitsson tells mbl.is. He started at eleven o’clock on Thursday morning and had finished 238.9 kilometers a day later.

“The right season, the right skiing conditions and the right weather”

Teitsson says the idea came about three years ago during the coronavirus pandemic when Olympic swimmers Albert Jónsson and Snorri Einarsson walked two hundred miles.

“No competitions were held then, so people just went by themselves and a year ago Olympic tracker Einar Ólafsson improved his record and walked 203 kilometers.

I had been thinking all along that maybe I could do this as well and predict how it could be done. It has to be the right time of year, the right skiing conditions and the right weather, and now was the chance so I decided to do it.

One in the night in the dark and cold

Teitsson is in very good running shape and walked for 24 hours with few breaks.

“I took a break a couple of times, got into the hut to eat, but otherwise there were no breaks. It was very difficult, I was tired in my body and in my head, especially after being alone there all night walking in the dark and cold.”

Teitsson felt very comfortable when the walk ended, but he says he felt the fatigue.

“I had a pain in my arm and it had been bothering me that latter half of the walk, but otherwise I felt good and could even have gone on for a few hours more.”

Teitsson prepared well for the walk and had four pairs of skis and plenty of food. He says conditions were good and there was a slow wind all along.

“The first day was sunny and warm, and the flow was not good enough, which is unfortunate, but there was freezing temperatures during the night and a better flow, and it started to work better.”

"I was having second thoughts”

He says Thursday night was the hardest part of the walk.

“I’d been going for like ten hours and had been going downhill in rather difficult conditions.  I was tired and getting out of breath, and I was having second thoughts. Then I took a break and had a good meal and got back on track.”

Teitsson says he finally wants to thank everyone who visited him in the mountain during his walk. He has also received warm greetings on social media.

“There were an amazing number of people who came and showed interest, but I didn’t expect that. Many walked one kilometer with me and some who never go skiing still came to see me and encourage me.”