I’m deep into my training for the Amsterdam marathon in 6 weeks time and so I try to get my weekly long runs on the road and as flat as possible, which isn’t easy living in the Alps. Anyhow, I really miss proper trail running, and this Sunday saw there was a 32km trail race around the Massif de Céüse…
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Author: jamie
Race Report: 1er Trail des Cimes du Buech
The first edition of the Trail des Cimes du Buech took place on Sunday, and so I went along since at 17km and 950m +/- it was short and steep enough for me to feel like I could properly ‘race’ it, rather than just try to complete the distance. Since it took place in La Faurie, a village just 20…
Race Report: La Bombarde
On Sunday I ran my first ever competitive 10km road race – since getting into running about 6 years ago I’ve always been attracted to the longer distance events on trails, and can comfortably knock out a 45 minute 10km so I was keen to see how this would translate to an actual race. Since my main aim for this…
Race Report: 1er Trail Blanc de Dévoluy
It’s the depth of winter here in the French Alps and the snow is deep and for most people the race calendar is fairly empty as most people turn to skiing and snowboarding to pass their leisure time. The nearest big ski resort to me however, Super Dévoluy, was hosting a 10km trail race on the local cross country ski…
Product Review: YakTrax Pro
Product: Yak Trax Pro Price: €29,90 Pros: Light, fit most shoes (including hiking boots), no spikes but good grip so work across patches of tarmac/rocks. Cons: A little pricey for what they are, can be a bit awkward to fit The end of November saw the first heavy snowfall of the winter, with around 70cm of snow falling in 24…
Race Report: Ultra Trail du Vercors
On Saturday 7th September I ran the 86km Ultra Trail du Vercors – with 4000m of elevation, and some stunning scenery it was my longest run to date. I’m pleased to say I completed the course (280 out of 610 starters abandoned the race) in just over 16 hours. This was the second time I’d attempted the event, the first…
Atlanta
I just spent the week in Atlanta on business, and with the an 86km ultra marathon just over a week away, I had to make sure that I found the opportunity to run. I’m tapering down so the distance wasn’t going to be large, and actually not having access to trails might actually have been beneficial to sharpen me up.…
Pointe Feuillette Training Run
On Saturday I went for a long run, but took a new route for the first time and discovered a great trail that despite being on my doorstep, I had never ran. The panorama above shows the view from Pointe Feuillette, the high point of the run. It was a hot and sunny day, so as usual I ran 8km…
Pic de l’Aigle 360°
Pic de l’Aigle (the Eagle’s Peak) is a mountain that I can see right from my living room window. It’s my go-to climb whenever I want to go for a tougher than usual run, as a door-to-door loop takes just under two hours, is 13km and climbs about 650m. I ran it on Sunday, with a quick ‘warm up session’…
Race Report: L’Étape du Tour
I know this isn’t trail running, but I attempted the Etape du Tour last year and bonked at the bottom of the last climb so was keen to test myself again. Two friends from the UK, Neil and Billy were also keen to try so it gave me an excuse to ease off the running and try something different for…