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The world knows Chamonix for some of the most impressive trail races on the globe: the Marathon du Mont-Blanc, the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, and the nearly dozen other races associated with these two overarching events. But, as September winds down, there’s a race that captures the attention of Chamonix—one that’s a favorite among valley locals: Trail des

To help you get around, we’ve pulled together this explainer, and pro tips, for traveling on SBB CFF FFS, the Swiss federal rail system.

Editor’s note: This season, we welcomed Simon Conroy to our crew of trail running guides. Simon’s tremendous depth and breadth of experience has been a great asset. And, his irreverent sense of humor and pleasure in all things alpine has been a joy to be around. Thanks, Simon, for a great season! Well… Having just

“I watched the sky a long time, concluding that such beauty was reserved for distant, dangerous places, and that nature has good reason for exacting her own special sacrifices from those determined to witness them.”—Admiral Richard Byrd, Alone. The sound is unmistakable. Someone… something…. is breathing. And whatever it is, is very close to me.

On the eve of the 43rd annual race, Run the Alps’ Doug Mayer visited with Sierre-Zinal founder and Race Director for 40 years, Jean-Claude Pont. At age 75, he’ll be toeing the start line tomorrow morning at 5:00 am. “Last year, I had a little accident and fell, but finished around 6:40. This year, I’m

“We will do it in the Spanish way!” I have no idea what he means, but the race director at the first edition of the Courmayeur Mont Blanc Vertical Kilometer (K1000) is smiling and exuberant, as he explains the course during the race briefing. Only five minutes of the 30-minute gathering is in English, the

cham·ois ǀ noun ǀ \ sham-ˈwä \ : a small animal that looks like a goat and that lives on mountains in Europe Finding yourself in Switzerland’s Bernese Oberland, with a few hours to spare? The car-free mountain village of Wengen has a suggestion for you—one that’s 6.0 kilometers long, with 1,068 meters of climbing. Run

This weekend is one of the biggest trail races in the Alps, the Eiger Ultra, which each year draws thousands of runners to the Bernese Oberland village of Grindelwald. Though just in its fourth year, the race already has captured the imagination of runners from around the world. Much of the race course includes dramatic

The 2016 Alps trail running season is well underway! One of the race highlights each year is the legendary Sierre-Zinal, which will take place this year on Sunday, August 14. Run the Alps had the chance to catch up with Vincent Theytaz, in his second year as Race Director. With his inaugural year behind him,

Italian trail race directors seem to love the technical. They have a penchant for daring routes along ridges and twisty-turny vertical climbs that sneak around rock bands, requiring both hands– and a mind that’s not swayed by the abyss in your peripheral vision. This, after all, is the country that brought us Skyrunning—and with it, highly