Until August 2025, the standing record for the fastest time to circle the full 6,000 miles of the Great Loop was an amazing 19 days and 19 hours. It was set by Captain Red Flowers in a high-powered 28-foot center console. No one thought the record would ever be broken.
But last year, Robert Youens, 71, thought differently and his feat Is nothing short of astonishing for several reasons. First, he was not a young man and weeks of high-speed running is hard work. Second, he was making his record attempt in a 16-foot aluminum Jon Boat. And third, his boat was powered by a smallish 60-horsepower outboard.
Yet, somehow, Youens pressed hard and managed both his fuel and navigating through more than 40 locks. The route, as readers know, circles the eastern third of the U.S. and includes the Intracoastal Waterway, the Great lakes, the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers and the Gulf Coast waterway.
In the final hours, Youens had the pedal to the metal for the last 200 miles and crossed his outbound line in 19 days, 13 hours and one minute. Record secured.
But, he admits that the size of his boat and his rookie season on the Loop meant that he left plenty of time on the table, This year, with a new and bigger boat and a 120-horsepower engine, he is shooting to reduce his time to 12 days or roughly two thirds of the existing record. He also plans to take along a crewmember to ease the fatigue and stress of high-speed waterway running.
Most loopers tackle the adventure in 30 to 50-foot cruising boats that have comfortable accommodations –including an enclosed head. The routine time it takes to complete a cruising exploration of the loop is 10 to 16 months.
