Athlete
John Kelly combines ultrarunning and mountain adventures with data-science work. He writes Random Forest Runner, where his first-person race reports and reflections explore training, long-distance projects and the experience of moving through mountains.
23 TUM reports · Published coverage below
Publication history
21 editorial issues
Distinct issues per publication month. Each issue counts once.
Monthly editorial issue counts: Jul 2024: 0; Aug 2024: 0; Sep 2024: 0; Oct 2024: 2; Nov 2024: 0; Dec 2024: 0; Jan 2025: 1; Feb 2025: 0; Mar 2025: 2; Apr 2025: 1; May 2025: 1; Jun 2025: 2; Jul 2025: 1; Aug 2025: 2; Sep 2025: 0; Oct 2025: 0; Nov 2025: 0; Dec 2025: 0; Jan 2026: 0; Feb 2026: 0; Mar 2026: 0; Apr 2026: 0; May 2026: 2; Jun 2026: 2; Jul 2026: 1; Aug 2026: 3; Sep 2026: 0; Oct 2026: 1; Nov 2026: 0.
Sponsor mentions, repeated links and polls are excluded. Credits within editorial items may count. Read the supporting timeline ↓
Newest first
John Kelly reported completing the 287-mile Benton MacKaye Trail fully unsupported in 4d 5h 48m. The account’s eight-day delay does not establish an exact finish date; his separate stopped Appalachian Trail attempt is not a BMT result.
TUM linked the separate decisions to stop, with Kelly describing family priorities and Scott describing his own risk boundary.
TUM linked Kelly’s report that he and Flynn had reached the White Mountains, noting delayed cell service.
TUM reported Kelly’s start and early tracker checkpoint, with his prior attempt as historical context. The new attempt’s outcome was still unknown.
Reported a possible explanation and treatment for the leg problem that curtailed his 2025 Appalachian Trail attempt; the outcome was uncertain.
John Kelly was among the runners discussed in Ultra Uncovered’s Western States preview.
John Kelly: Winner · 1:22:54; Tune-up before Western States.
John Kelly reported fourth at Garda Trentino Trail 62K and described it as a positive Western States rehearsal. His first-person fitness reflections are dated context, not a later race result.
TUM linked his reflection comparing the performance’s significance with Paris at Barkley.
TUM linked Kelly’s discussion with Garmire after Kelly stopped his own AT attempt.
TUM reported John Kelly reflecting after stopping his 2025 AT attempt and considering Tor des Géants. This is a dated account, not a new completed result or present health assessment.
TUM reported John Kelly ending his 2025 Appalachian Trail attempt after 1,882 miles. His earlier 1,700-mile progress snapshot is history; no completed FKT or confirmed diagnosis is inferred.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: July 4, 2025
TUM reported John Kelly beyond 1,700 miles in June 2025, with Sean Cate comparing his pace to Tara Dower’s benchmark. The later 1,882-mile stopped attempt qualifies this progress snapshot.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: June 24, 2025
Kelly’s 15:44:49 winning time from the 2024 Old Dominion 100 served as a benchmark for Simpson’s faster 2025 performance.
Event date: 2024 · TUM publication: June 13, 2025
TUM’s June 2025 checkpoint placed Kelly near Pennsylvania during his ongoing Appalachian Trail record attempt.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: June 13, 2025
Threshold of Pain showed Kelly beyond 1,000 miles during his ongoing 2025 Appalachian Trail attempt.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: June 13, 2025
Announced a May 2025 Appalachian Trail FKT start plan and linked a recovery fundraiser and tracker.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: May 23, 2025
Announced a supported northbound Appalachian Trail FKT attempt for 2025 and discussed that year’s Barkley Fun Run.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: April 9, 2025
John Kelly shared details of the difficult three-loop Fun Run, including hydration trouble, wildlife encounters and gear problems.
Earned the lone three-loop Fun Run at Barkley 2025 in 39:50:27.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: March 20, 2025
Lucy Gossage won the 2025 Montane Winter Spine women’s race in 87:41:38 and placed fourth overall. John Kelly crossed alongside her but was fifth overall after a 13-minute safety-diversion penalty; a shared physical crossing does not imply tied official places.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: January 16, 2025
TUM announced Sally McRae, Anton Krupicka, Hailey Moore and John Kelly for the December 7, 2024 Old Fort Strong Endurance Festival, supporting Hurricane Helene recovery. The announcement also offered a virtual option.
Event date: December 7, 2024 · TUM publication: October 15, 2024
TUM linked John Kelly’s reflection on agency and how his family was helping after Hurricane Helene.
TUM repeated John Kelly’s fourth-place Garda Trentino Trail 62K account as a most-viewed link.
The issue relinked the previous week’s report of no five-loop Barkley finishers and John Kelly’s lone three-loop Fun Run.
Event date: 2025 · TUM publication: March 28, 2025
Explained ending the 2026 attempt
TUM linked the separate decisions to stop, with Kelly describing family priorities and Scott describing his own risk boundary.
SourceCredited their Western States conversation for prompting another test
John Kelly — Credited their Western States conversation for prompting another test. Reported 2026-07-15.
SourceWinner · 1:22:54
John Kelly won Ridge to Rails Half Marathon in Old Fort in 1:22:54, then reflected on the tune-up ahead of Western States. The half-marathon result is distinct from the later ultra.
SourceReports fully unsupported completion in 4d 5h 48m
John Kelly reported completing the 287-mile Benton MacKaye Trail fully unsupported in 4d 5h 48m. The account’s eight-day delay does not establish an exact finish date; his separate stopped Appalachian Trail attempt is not a BMT result.
SourcePublication dates distinguish plans, claims, results and later corrections.
Reported 2026-06-12
Won Ridge to Rails Half Marathon in 1:22:54 ahead of planned Western States participation. This is a separate short race, not an Appalachian Trail result.
TUM · Jun 12, 2026Reported 2026-05-18
John Kelly reported fourth at Garda Trentino Trail 62K and described it as a positive Western States rehearsal. His first-person fitness reflections are dated context, not a later race result.
TUM · May 18, 2026Facts above link directly to their sources. Published TUM dates and public-source check dates describe different things.
Public background sources checked October 20, 2026. The selection contains 127 published issues.
Career context from one original public source. TUM’s dated reporting appears below.
This is a limited career snapshot, checked October 20, 2026. Source publication dates and event dates are shown separately.
Published article, 2026-08-24T20:48:45Z. Archived published text is pinned to canonical main 032eba22cd61.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-08-14T18:44:21Z. Archived published text is pinned to canonical main 032eba22cd61.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-08-11T17:16:05Z. Archived published text is pinned to canonical main 032eba22cd61.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-07-15T15:13:28Z. Archived published text is pinned to canonical main 002146376c24.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-06-17T13:19:50.355Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-20T23:50:57.968Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-06-12T16:00:05.047Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-21T03:28:54.859Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-05-19T05:41:39.084Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-25T00:14:26.843Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-05-18T04:00:06.649Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-25T00:14:26.842Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Published article, 2026-05-12T04:23:34.876Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-27T16:49:12.860Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-08-08T17:53:54.883Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-27T22:18:13.833Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-08-02T11:26:18.233Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-27T22:18:13.835Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-07-04T22:54:14.327Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T00:38:38.585Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-06-24T18:54:50.570Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T00:38:38.580Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-06-13T22:47:31.260Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T02:39:04.234Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-05-23T14:54:23.342Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T02:39:04.246Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-04-09T14:49:53.810Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T23:18:25.986Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-03-28T12:27:27.418Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T23:18:25.979Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2025-03-20T15:01:36.632Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-28T23:18:26.052Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Published article, 2025-01-16T02:43:50.465Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-30T05:55:43.642Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2024-10-15T22:43:20.739Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-30T12:48:05.879Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2024-10-08T22:58:58.707Z. Public original captured at 2026-10-30T12:48:05.868Z and projected to reviewed article text; no publishing-repository text pin is claimed.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
Published article, 2026-10-30T22:01:29.120Z. Archived published text is pinned to canonical main 8452bc5c1159.
Exact public destination in the published item. The archived TUM issue establishes the historical attribution; this is not a fresh verification of the destination’s current content.
