26 km Trail

Race strategy

Start easy, build your effort, and go all out at the finish.

• Start easy and control your HR up to the aid station at 6.7km.
• The finish is runnable. Save your legs to run it all the way.
• Ease into the early runnable section, then run your race pace.
• Start · 0.0km–2.0km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.0km–6.5km · Plus 1 more climb. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Home · 6.5km–24.8km · 18.3km of runnable trail, high point 556m. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.

Course

The course climbs 634m+. With 24m/km of climbing, the course is predominantly runnable. By gradient, 16% of the distance is uphill, 29% downhill and 55% flat. The longest climb runs 1.2km at an average 10.7% grade (124m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 15.1% over 0.4km. Surface: 98% trail. Flat-equivalent effort: 31.1 FlatKM.

Poles

The course is runnable enough that trekking poles are not needed.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is low (index 9 of 100): a few descents worth noting, none of them decisive.

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 4°C to 12°C, with around 8°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 45%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 8% of days around this date.

Results

477 finishers completed the 2026 edition. Men's winner: Alex Harvey (Canada) in 1:59:52. Women's winner: Catherine Gauthier (Canada) in 2:35:05.