🏆 Fast Marine just set NEW Great Loop records. Martin Bysiewicz, on a Sea-Doo RXT-X 325, crossed his wake back under the Sunshine Skyway at 12:37 p.m. Sep 4 — alone — closing the Loop in 18 days, 5 hours, 23 minutes (5,255 GPS miles, ~12 mph). That beats Robert Youens' 19d 13h 1m solo/single-engine mark by 1d 7h 38m and David Fries' Guinness 22d 5h 40m PWC record by 4d 0h 17m. Teammate Steven Fulladosa rode alongside on a second ski for most of the Loop but didn't make the final leg, so Martin finished solo — one rider, one ski, the whole way. Does it count as a "solo" record? Vote below. Also home this season: Red Flowers crossed his wake at the Jacksonville inlet Aug 29 (7,162-mi charity Loop for pediatric cancer); Freedom Fighter crossed theirs Aug 22 (~4,880 mi despite a back injury); Liberty Looper ended Aug 12 (struck by a jumping fish); Bandit closed his solo Loop Aug 4 (4,884 mi in 25d 8h 39m); and Youens & Hernden ended at Erie, PA on July 20. Every run's story is in Record Watch below.
Crossed his wake! Martin Bysiewicz closed the Loop back under the Sunshine Skyway at 12:37 p.m. Sep 4 — riding the last leg alone after teammate Steven Fulladosa dropped out — 18d 5h 23m from their 7:14 a.m. Aug 17 restart. New solo / single-engine mark (beat Youens' 19d 13h 1m by 1d 7h 38m) and new PWC mark (beat the Guinness 22d 5h 40m by 4d 0h 17m).
Crossed his wake! The 2024 record-setter closed his Great Loop Challenge 2.0 at the Jacksonville inlet on Aug 29 — 7,162 miles on a custom charity route for pediatric cancer.
Crossed their wake! Closed the Great Loop on Aug 22 — about 4,880 miles in ~28 days. A back injury had ended their record bid early, but the two Special Ops veterans finished the entire Loop for veteran-suicide awareness.
Crossed his wake! Closed the Great Loop solo on Aug 4 at St. Marks, FL — didn't run down the 19d 13h 1m solo record, but finished one epic solo run in a jon boat.
"Wow, what an epic adventure. I crossed my wake at 1526 eastern time (I think, close enough) — 4,884 miles in 25 days, 8 hours, 39 min." — David Barber, "Bandit"
Ended Aug 12. Struck by a jumping fish and taken to urgent care; he called the attempt there. A gutsy solo run at the 19d 13h 1m record. Track stays on the map.
Set the 2025 solo & single-engine record (19d 13h 1m, completely alone) that stood until Fast Marine's Sep 4 run. His 2026 outright bid ended July 20 at Erie, PA after cracked hull welds. His track stays on the map below.
Live estimates are fan-made, computed from each crew's GPS. Pace dials compare miles covered along the record's own route against where the record-holder's real pace had reached at the same elapsed time; odds lean toward a coin-flip early and firm up as a run progresses. Red Flowers (charity, custom route) has no mile-for-mile ghost; Fast Marine's dials are frozen at their Sep 4 finish, measured against Youens' actual 2025 run. Not official.
Fast Marine's Martin Bysiewicz rode one jet ski the entire Loop — with teammate Steven Fulladosa alongside on a second ski for most of it, though Steven didn't make the last leg and Martin crossed the line alone. Robert Youens set the 19d 13h 1m solo record completely alone, start to finish. Fast Marine just beat it — 18d 5h 23m. Should that count as a "solo" record?
Anonymous — no login, one vote each (you can change it anytime). Fast Marine beat the mark on Sep 4 — the results will help decide how we frame the record.
That's every 2026 Great Loop record attempt we know about — the active runs are up top in Record Watch. Know of another crew heading out? Send a tip ↓ and we'll add them to the map.
📖 Browse the full record book — every category, every holder →
Bandit closed his Loop Aug 4; Liberty ended Aug 12; Youens & Hernden ended July 20 with hull damage. Read the full story →
The Great Loop is commonly described as a ~6,000-mile circumnavigation of the eastern U.S. and parts of Canada via the Gulf, Atlantic ICW, Great Lakes, and inland rivers — though a tightly planned speed route runs far shorter: Youens covered about 4,800 miles setting the 2025 record, and is running roughly 4,500 this year. Robert Youens set the solo/single-engine record of 19 days, 13 hours, 1 minute in 2025 in a 16-foot jon boat. This year he's back with a bigger boat, a second driver, and a 24/7 schedule — aiming to finish in under 10 days and take down the outright record too. Both boats are tracked live above via Garmin inReach satellite.
| Category | Time | Holder | Vessel | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outright any vessel, any crew |
12d 18h 10m | Peter Hajaswith Peter Hajas Jr., Eric Hajas & Kevin Selchow | Lady Lor40′ Contender 40 Express · triple Yamaha 350s | Jul 9–21, 2025Islamorada, FL |
| Solo also single-engine |
19d 13h 1m | Robert Youens"The Ageless Wanderer," age 71 | 16′ aluminum jon boat60 hp Tohatsu | Jul 12–31, 2025Pensacola, FL |
| Personal watercraft Guinness World Record |
22d 5h 40m | David Frieschase support: Brent "Squirrel" Perry | Jet ski (PWC)Annapolis, MD start & finish | Jun 15 – Jul 7, 2024 |
| Previous outright record before Lady Lor |
19d 19h 50m | Capt. Scott "Red" Flowersraising funds for pediatric cancer research | 28′ center consoleCanyon Bay 28h · Mercury V10 400 | Jun–Jul 2024~$500k for pediatric cancer research |
| Previous mark | 28 days | Steve Hernden"Tortuga Steve" — later Youens' 2026 co-driver | 26′ Glacier Bay 2685power catamaran · 5,401 mi · 73 locks | May 15 – Jun 11, 2022 |
Apart from the Guinness-ratified PWC record, Great Loop times are self-documented — there's no official sanctioning body. Times and details are compiled from crews' own trackers and published reporting. Spot something wrong, or know a record we've missed? Tell us below. See the full record book with sources →
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