Good morning trail friends…or shall we say bonjour? Yesterday in Chamonix, France, the week-long UTMB Mont Blanc festivities kicked off with 10,000 runners from 100 countries across 8 races all leading to the pinnacle 100-mile event on Friday.
Following the lead pack will be exciting, but our UTMB story is a father and son journey — how a second generation trail runner grew up watching his dad’s quest to circumnavigate Mont Blanc, eventually inspiring him to follow his father's footsteps to France.
And what do runners have in common with cyclists? The answer down in the DFL.
- Jenn Hughes & Matt Hart
THE WEEKEND COOL DOWN
The BIGGEST Trail Race in Canada
In British Columbia, Gary Robbins and his team have built the Squamish 50 into the biggest trail race in Canada. John Dean won the tenth edition of the 50-miler by pouring it on late and winning in 8 hours, 18 minutes. In an incredible debut, Priscilla Forgie (📸: 1) led the entire race to win in 8 hours, 44 minutes.
At the Leadville Trail 100, Clare Gallagher and Adrian Macdonald (📸: 2) both won for a second time — both by more than 2 hours over their second place rivals.
A father passes down many things to his children, but he never knows if they will share his interests or passions. As Ben Yardley travels to France this week for the iconic Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc — one thing he knows for sure is that he got his love of trail running and his motivation to be at this specific start line from his dad, Nick.
Inspired by his father, and a UTMB finish line photo that hung on their mantle, Ben is running in his dad's footsteps and Nick will be there to support him.
Doug Mayer profiles this father and son duo who grew up, and ultimately together, with outdoor adventures as their connective tissue.
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