Activities - Fell and Trail Running
Fell running is the sport of running and racing, off road, over hills and mountains. The name comes from the origins of the English sport on the fells of northern Britain, especially those in the Lake District.
As the name 'fell' doesn't exist in the Alps, the same sport is known as trail running or mountain running.
This is a bit confusing as the name trail running in the UK implies short distance and generally flatter trails!
However, to put it into context, and remove any doubt that 'trail running' is in fact in the mountains.... the ultimate 'trail race' in Europe is the
Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc which takes in a complete tour of the Mont Blanc Massif, passing through 3 countries: France, Switzerland and Italy. It starts in Chamonix and is 166km with 9,500 metres of positive height gain. The maximum time to complete the race in is 46 hours with the first finishers doing it in 20 hours.
This is obviously only for serious and keen fell or trail runners and to even qualify you have to gather 5 points by competing in several other long distance trail races.
However, you don't have to be a mega runner to enjoy trail or fell running. You decide how long, how far and how high you want to go - there are no minimums and no maximums!
Running is a fantastic aerobic exercise. Couple it with being in the mountains, spectacular views, varied terrain and clean fresh air, and it's the ultimate feel good sensation! Beginners beware - it is very addictive!!
You use different muscles for running up, running on the flat, going downhill, and negotiating rugged terrain so your body is continually adjusting and no one muscle gets overtired! Personally I think this makes it easier to do long distances than road running on the flat. And there is no monotony!
The Southern French Alps is superb running territory with accessible mountain ridges where you can run with a view of snow capped mountains and valleys all day long! The other big advantage is the good weather with 300 days of sunshine per year!
We can help you to arrange a fell or trail running trip in the Alps, as a training week, to take in one of the trail races such as the Gapencimes or UltraChampsaur (which will also give you qualifying points for the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc) or just for fun or as part of an
alpine activity holiday.
We have partnered with the organisers of the
Gapencimes and the
UltraChampsaur to be able to provide holidays and packages around the race events 2012. These will be online soon. Please
contact us for information.
Have a read of my personal trail running experience doing the
Gapencimes in 2011 for an idea of what it is like!
