3 days and 90k + 4500m elevation in High Tatras, Slovakia, where the mountains went from colorful autumn to a winter wonderland with 1m snow. It is my most favorite place on Earth for trail/sky running / mountaineering. This was my first time running in big mountains on snow, it has been equally ecstatic and humbling. I dnf’d three summits that I’ve previously done due to snow/wind conditions, not wanting to end up on the news like so many in these mountains.

I run in Norda 005 so while they performed greatlyon rocks and with added spikes on the snow and icy rocks, they were of course inevitably soaked wet like one hour into each run. Never been a winter trail person and having avoided goretex shoes, after learning how amazing snow running is, I want to invest into something more snow/winter-durable. Any of your current favorites are welcome; I’m considering Merrell Agility Peak 6 gtx.

I also want to give a massive shoutout to my new friend (colorful clothes in the pictures), a local in his 50s who turned out to be a very humble ex-trail racer who’s won lots of local trail races and scaled all 106 peaks in the mountain ridge. He took me up for a run from the foot of the mountain ridge at 7am for 14km and 1300m elevation without stopping at his “relaxed” pace. Mountain folks never cease to amaze me.

I ate a whole apple pie the night before and had so much fuel to burn

Hello! My name is Samantha! I am a 28 year old female that recently got into running 3 months ago. For the past 2 months I have been running a trail close to the house and found out I prefer trail running! Trail running built my endurance so QUICK! I went from not being able to run for a mile to running almost 5 miles.

I've been power walking hills. I'm not sure if that's correct or if I should run them. I'll even walk down hills if there's a ton of rocks or tree roots. I just want to be efficient in my training and not hold myself back. I also don't know if I should take my pace into consideration either. I went down 2 mins after starting. I take the same trails every time. I'm more impressed that I can run at a longer distance than pace honestly.

Thanks!

Tried searching the sub before asking. Is there anyone that uses soft flasks for food like potato mash? Or is it just all ziploc city? If so, any brands in Australia?

How do I find local trails? Is trail running safe? Do I need special shoes or gear? What do I do if I encounter some wildlife? What if I get lost? WHAT IF I HAVE TO POOP IN THE WOODS?

There are no dumb questions in this thread! If you are new to trail running or if you are a veteran who just wants to hear how other trail runners do things, ask away. If you have some ideas that can help your fellow trail runners and future trail runners, pitch in some answers.

No Dumb Question Day will be a regular, biweekly feature on the trailrunning sub.

**Thanks for participating!** Any questions, [please message your helpful mods](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Ftrailrunning).

I want to get more consistent with strength training, but trail running is still my main priority.

A home gym seems like a practical way to fit in shorter sessions without adding another trip to the gym. The tricky part is finding the right amount of work without ending up with heavy legs for the next run.

For those who combine trail running with strength training, what has actually helped with climbing, descending, or staying strong late in a long run?

Do you prefer one or two short home sessions a week, and which exercises have given you the best return without compromising recovery?

Why the running shoe industry keeps changing its mind on cushioned vs. minimalist

Sorry in advance, i know there is too many people asking, but i am desperate. Would love to know if anyone can share their experiences. I am looking for new trail shoes, coming from Hoka sg6. Main disappointment was tongue and midsole after doing 15 k run onwards. I was reading a lot about mount to coast and norda, but not sure if they are wide enough for me. Mostly i run 15-20-30 k runs on mix terrain, fire roads, rocks and meadows. Any advice would be highly appreciated.

Was on my local route which has a section with about 1700 ft of gain over 1.5 miles and is very rocky and got passed by a kid with NO SHOES who wasn't even breaking a sweat!!!

Ended up chatting with him on the descent bc I was so fascinated with him not wearing shoes or sweating. He tells me it's his first time with no shoes bc he "wanted to challenge himself" LOL.

He was prob 22 and I'm 30 yrs older but still - very humbling.

Stunning day running down Repack Fire Road in Marin County,
CA, where the sport of mountain biking was born back in the 1970s when a bunch of weirdos like Gary Fisher, Charlie Cunningham, and Otis Guy had the crazy idea to ride 1940s Schwinn beach cruisers with coaster brakes, dressed in Canadian tuxedos with gardening gloves.

Hi all. Full disclosure: I work at LECAMO, a small trail running brand, and we make our vests in our own factory. Not here to sell anything, there's no link. We have a design argument going on in the office and I'd like to hear from people who actually run in these things.

Our 8L vest comes with two front closures (photos attached):
Two horizontal elastic straps with clip buckles(white vest). Clip, unclip, slide them up or down.
A criss-cross elastic cord (black vest) One cord laced in an X across the chest, tightened with toggles. No buckles to clip.

Half the team says the two straps are simpler, especially with cold or sweaty hands at an aid station. The other half says the criss-cross spreads the pressure better and sits more comfortably across the chest, especially on long days.

So, for those of you who've run in both styles:

- Which one do you reach for, and why?
- Does one bounce less for you once the flasks are full?
- If you have a larger chest, which one is more comfortable?
- Ever stuffed a jacket under the front cords? Does the criss-cross actually help there?
- Anything about either style that drives you nuts mid-race?

Happy to answer questions about how we build them. Mostly I just want to know which one you'd pick.

I (61M) am quite new to trail running, but starting late in life.

On Saturday I did my first ever half marathon distance on trail or road (22.7k, 849m elevation) at Kinglake, just outside Melbourne Australia.

Then on Sunday I backed up with a local trail running group (my third and longest run with them) in the Dandenong Ranges in outer Melbourne (21.7k, 1116m elevation). This one was in the rain - it's so much fun being grown up and running through puddles again!

I guess you could say I'm pretty well hooked...

Some of you may recognize where this is

Dalmatian rock 2.5
Favorite rock jump 4.0
Grandma oak 7.0
Bear tree 13.5

And some fall pics because egads it’s beautiful outside!

Taken north of Colorado Springs today

Got a 3 day 100 mile run of the White Rim end of November 🤞🏜

Final block of training featured stacking weekends with back to backs or 3 long runs in a row through October

Three marathons and one 50k

Avg run legnth 21 miles

Totaling 173 miles across 8 runs, ~ 120 trail miles.

Finished with a 57 mile weekend.

Training my mind to wake up the next day, ready to do it all again was the goal.

Proud of this block regardless how it goes on the Rim

A quick afternoon run in Ketchum.

Explored a little bit the trails in Cernica forest today.

Seems like trail runs are usually just mixed in with the big ones (Active, RunSignup, etc). I know UltraSignup has a lot of trail runs but they're specifically ultra distances right?

Im somewhat new to running and trail running. I’ve signed up for a race in February which means most of my training will be done in the winter.

I live in a mountainous area that gets a fair bit of snow.

What advice or things do you recommend for trail running in winter?

I currently plan on doing a few shorter sessions in the gym in the treadmill and then 1 medium session on actual trails and then my 1 long run on actual trails.

I live in Helsinki and run after work in the evenings. With the recent DST my evening runs are now in the dark so I'm looking for a headlamp.
Im stuck between the Petzl Swift RL and the Lumonite Compass V7. I have likes and dislikes for both of them.
Petzl ->
Like: Weight, Light Sensor
Dislike: IPX4 rating.
Lumonite ->
Like: IP69 rating, more sturdy, made for colder temperatures
Dislike: Weight

Any advice would be appreciated

Its getting chillier here in the UK, and its not yet cold enough for more than a tshirt racing but I would like some arm sleeves to regulate temperature.

Doea anyone here use them, if so what type or brand do you recommend?

Is there anything I should look for when buying a pair?