Editor’s Note: A long-time competitive trail runner from San Rafael California, Victor Ballesteros ran Italy’s Tor Des Géants this past summer. “TDG” is, in many respects, beyond comprehension. The 330km race starts and finishes in Courmayeur, on the south side of Mont Blanc. It includes over 80,000 feet of climbing and descending. Victor is no stranger   Continue Reading →

Since its inception, Run the Alps has been a member of 1% for the Planet, a non-profit organization whose corporate members donate 1% of their gross proceeds each year to support environmental initiatives around the planet. Started in 2002 by Patagonia-founder Yvon Chouinard, the mission of 1% for the Planet is to “build, support and activate   Continue Reading →

It’s early morning in Chamonix, France, as I write this sentence. Outside, the streets are deserted. People like to say that Chamonix never stops, but when you live here, as I do now, you realize it stops twice a year, late fall and again in late spring. But especially now, when the nights are getting   Continue Reading →

For all intents and purposes, trail running season is fading away in Chamonix, as it is for much of the Alps. It starts in early summer with the Mont Blanc Marathon races, and slowly builds toward UTMB’s many events at the close of August. Then, as the first snows appear on the peaks above town,   Continue Reading →

Recently, US trail runner David Laney and I had a chance to visit with the organizing committee of Trail Verbier St-Bernard. “TVSB,” as it’s known, is one of the great trail races in the Alps. In fact, it’s not just one race but four, high in the beautiful Valais canton, often meandering along or near Switzerland’s   Continue Reading →

This summer, Run the Alps was pleased to help Hillary Allen as she trail ran around Mont Blanc, getting a sense of the route in advance of supporting Colorado’s Zach Miller during the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc. Here’s her story.  Have you ever been so lost in a moment, so lost in a space in   Continue Reading →

Editor’s Note: We’re psyched to share this great article from Salomon athlete Cat Bradley. Cat won the 2017 edition of the 100-mile long Western States Endurance Run, and in the fall she set a new Fastest Known Time for the highly sought-after Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim run. She lives and runs in Boulder, Colorado.  Sitting on   Continue Reading →

Home to hundreds of kilometers of single track trails, vertiginous climbs, cozy mountain huts, and Europe’s premier trail races, Chamonix, France really is the world’s trail running capital. But, what to do when you’re in town… but not racing? Run the Alps polled our guides, staff, and other trail running friends in the valley to   Continue Reading →

At some time unknown, the 31-km Alps trail race known as Sierre-Zinal slipped into my subconscious as a special event. It was one not to lose track of, a race to do one day, a bit like an exceptional mountain to climb. But I wasn’t really sure why. The race is located in the Southern   Continue Reading →

Yesterday, Run the Alps Senior Guide Simon Conroy and I ran from Courmayeur, Italy to Chamonix, France, along the second half of the Tour du Mont-Blanc. The route we chose was 85 km with about 4,300 meters of climbing. I’m getting ready for a certain trail race in a few weeks.  Here’s how I fueled:   Continue Reading →