Pete Kostelnick (born September 12, 1987) is an American ultramarathon runner most well known for his world record for fastest coast-to-coast crossing of the United States by foot, in 42 days, six hours and 30 minutes.
The previous record was 46 days, eight hours and 36 minutes, set in 1980 by Frank Giannino Jr. Giannino noted that he felt "nostalgic" watching Kostelnick break his record, and commented that he was impressed with how fast Kostelnick was running, nine and a half minutes per mile.
[6] Throughout Kostelnick's crossing, he gathered local runners to join him, promoting health and fitness.
[7][8][9][10][11] During his attempt he faced many hardships, including snowstorms, 35 mile per hour winds, and a major motor accident destroying his support vehicle (which provided food and hydration).
He also wore two GPS watches—in case one failed—and his team gathered witness signatures, took videos and photos, and assembled media reports daily.