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This last week, preregistration opened for the Ultra Mont Blanc (the UTMB), arguably the most famous trail race in the world.  The 168-km long course starts and finishes in Chamonix, France, and runs around Mont Blanc, through the mountain towns that surround the massif. Increasingly popular, there are now a series of four other races, held the

The 22K Trail des Glières in Haute Savoie, France, is a trail race with a lot of history. The Glières plateau is famous for being a hotbed of the resistance movement in World War II. The wilderness plateau, located at an elevation of about 2000m, saw the emergence of the maquis des Glières, the local

The Vertical KM race in Fully, Switzerland is considered to be the fastest vertical kilometer course in the world. The race, held on a former funicular route, is home to both the men’s and women’s world records. This past weekend, temperatures were too warm for a new world record. But, nonetheless, a great race was

Trail running here in the Alps is unlike anywhere else I’ve ever laced up my Salomons and headed out the door. One’s body simply needs time to adjust to the sheer verticality of it all— no matter what your pre-trip training back home. For me, a purely recreational runner, I notice a change at about three to four weeks. Like all

As trail running grows–some would say explodes in popularity–all manner of new ventures are taking shape. The ultra-famous, ultra-hard 166 km UTMB just announced yet one more event to its series—the OCC, Orsières-Champex-Chamonix. Running camps and personal trainers are showing up on the scene. In the states and throughout Europe, trail races are filling up in hours, sometimes minutes. Those of us