It’s fall in the Alps. The green pastures of a Switzerland summer have turned shades of brown and red. US trail runners have, for the most part, packed up their Salomons, Hokas, and Sportivas and headed for their homes in the New World. With the internationally-flavored alphabet soup of races like UTMB, CCC, and OCC
It’s been a great season. Looking back, it feels like a crazy whirlwind of gorgeous alp trail running, huts, friends new and old, croissants, cafe au lait, wine, mud, cows, alp horns, trail races, glaciers… it’s all a blur. In the meantime, we already have some news to report: our 2015 summer schedule is here! Doug
So… what just happened? That was the thought Troy Haines and I had last week, after spending 24 hours with Holimites, on their last trail running tour of the season in Italy’s Dolomites. We had headed from our respective corners of Switzerland to Igor Tavella’s village of Badia, to talk about a partnership between Holimites and Run
As 2014’s Matterhorn Ultraks comes to a close, it’s worth taking a look back at a remarkable story behind the scenes from last year, involving Jim Maddock from Run the Alps. We thought you’d enjoy this story of what happens when you have one of those days, when everything falls beautifully in to place. This is a story about a friend from my town
Smooth and easy going, with no shortage of sheer lusciousness, punctuated by moments that demand the participant’s attention. Generally goes down easy and leaves one with a poignant memory. Best sampled with fine company, on a fair day. Admission: I don’t know wines. At all. Connoisseur is never a word that would be applied to me,
Years ago, I saw a photo of a high alp mountain hotel. It looked like it had welcomed guests to its corner of the Alps for a century or more. Weather beaten pine boards showed the consequences of facing mountain storms over many years. In reality, the look wasn’t all that unusual for the Swiss
It’s 4:30 in the morning, and I am lost, wandering through a construction zone in the middle of Grindelwald, Switzerland. I am surrounded by concrete and rebar. Across Dorfstrasse, the latest watches from Tissot and Breitling are expertly arranged, ready to catch the eye of cash-burdened tourists arriving daily from London to Dubai. I am
Last year, I went to Montreux to see Leonard Cohen at the city’s famous jazz festival. This year, I decided to visit this picturesque city again, but this time to race up a huge mountain overlooking what’s commonly referred to as the “Swiss Riviera.” What was I thinking? Intro to Trail Running Since moving to
I’ve observed over the years that Euro trail runners tend to be quite a bit more fashionable on the trails, than my American trail running pals. Well, I finally have some good news on that front. We’re catching up! (I know you’re all greatly relieved.) Okay, maybe I’m overstating the case here, but I am
Editor’s note: As we head into another summer season of trail running and trail racing in the Alps, Run the Alps’ Thom Fresneau takes a look back at a winter filled with some great trail running. In the Alps, races continue throughout the year, with some unique events during the wintery months. Here’s an overview of several