Are the “off” challenges “the Grail and the future” of ultra-trail running?

• Like all sports, the trail is strongly affected by the health crisis of the Covid-19, the competition not resuming until August 1.
• In the meantime, many ultra-traileurs have embarked on exciting “off” projects, like Xavier GRévenard's GR20 record attempt this week in Corsica.
• 20 Minutes interviewed several players in the trail running world to try to determine whether these challenges, on the sidelines of classic races, are not the outcome of the discipline.

“Xavier Thévenard was not going to be sitting on his couch all summer long. "Faced with the Covid-19 health crisis, Thomas Michaud, manager of the triple winner of the Mont-Blanc Ultra-Trail, set out with him in search of a challenge off to compensate for the cancellation of the Hardrock 100 and the UTMB. Like these two reference races, the calendar of the trail season is turned upside down like never before and since deconfinement, it pushes runners to think outside the box.

Not a day goes by without discovering François d'Haene and Thibaut Baronian enjoying themselves on the Grande Traversée Salomon as a relay between Alsace and Nice (1,000 km and 41,600 m elevation gain), Xavier Thévenard to go at the end of himself to try, in vain, to conquer the GR20 record in Corsica (180 km and 14,000 m of D + in 32h32), or Pau Capell soon to aim for the best time on a UTMB performed solo.  Is this summer boom of off projects just a passing trend in order to make up for the total absence of races until the end of the month?

"We did not expect such a family spirit"

"Even if surpassing oneself is superior in the races, the notion of shared pleasure largely compensates for that in an off , estimates the ultra-traileur Martin Kern, '' on a little cloud '' since Sunday and his record on the GR5 between Chamonix and Briançon (202 km and 12,500 m of D + in 31:45), conquered with Grégoire Curmer and Baptiste Robin. It's a bit of a Grail for any trail runner to be able to put their foot on such a project, which we could only consider because of the confinement. "

No record but "a joke thing" for Xavier Thévenard on the GR20 https://t.co/AdT1qAkD0l

There are many levers of pleasure on such a formula, between the adrenaline of making history via a beaten record, the quest for a total escape or the sharing of a "human adventure" with fellow travelers, such as Xavier Thévenard just experienced it on the GR20. “It was above all a big project of mutual aid with all these Corsican runners who came to lend a hand, appreciates Thomas Michaud. We did not expect such a family spirit and it will remain much more in us than this unbeaten record. "

"Brands want visibility on strong events"

Finally, why does the flagship trail runner of Team Asics not participate more often in this type of challenge? "Brands want visibility above all on strong events," says the manager of the 32-year-old Jurassic. They never force Xavier to take part in races but it suits them very well when he enters the Hardrock 100 and the UTMB as was the case this season, before the cancellations. Without the Covid-19 crisis, there would certainly not have been this GR20 record attempt this season. "

A job at Disneyland Paris, 10,000 terminals run in 2019, success on the @tordesgeants (450 km and 32,000 m of elevation gain) in 134 hours, @ 20Minutes presents "the bulimic of the ultra" Luca Papi. #trail #ultratrail https://t.co/d3kjSxfV8g

Are sponsors systematically a brake on the desires of projects off the elite runners? "No, the WAA Team is betting a lot on the adventure dimension so when I prepare to cross the Canary Islands, it's a bit of a Grail for them," says Italian Luca Papi, notably winner of the Tor des Glaciers (450 km and 32,000 m of D +) last summer. Especially since I planned this project for the end of November, when there are few major races. "

François D'Haene's American challenges

“Sometimes there can be pressure from sponsors, nuance Martin Kern, but we still have more freedom in trail running than in other sports. Personally, my Arc'teryx team encourages me to launch a big off project per year. It's great but no one in the trail can live with the off . For several seasons, François D'Haene (Salomon), the main icon of ultra-trail in France, has also had the freedom to plan with his loved ones adventures like the GR20, the John Muir Trail or the Pacific Crest Trail ( United States).

Lesser-known runners also didn't wait for the coronavirus to build their own challenges. Accountant in the Paris region in the civil, Guillaume Arthus thus finds few races in phase with his desires of very (very) long distance. “On an ultra race [beyond 80 km], I am at the end of the first third of the runners. But if we start on an effort of more than 10 days without assistance, I may be in the Top 10 worldwide. Going on an adventure with my backpack is my specialty. "

"You can create the event you want"

So that before launching last Sunday on the 930 km (55,000 m of D +) of the GR10 in the Pyrenees, that he hopes to complete in less than 12 days to offer the record, the Nantes ultra-trail runner Erik Clavery contacted him at length. Guillaume Arthus, for his part, targeted a new challenge never attempted: to cover the entire Deux-Mers canal (585 km from Lacanau), the usual bicycle spot, in five days.

“Some people dream of a week's vacation at La Grande Motte, I prefer to celebrate my 30th birthday with this solo challenge. You should know that if you leave without assistance or film crew, the budget is never insane. There, I will have a maximum of 400 euros, between transport and food. As you can see, Guillaume Arthus is addicted to this type of XXL challenge.

For me, this is clearly the future of this sport. Apart from the elite runners who will quickly jump on the big races as soon as they return, those of the peloton will get a taste for the off. The confinement had the effect of making people want to test their limits without going through a race organization. It's another approach to our discipline and it's much more rewarding to complete your own project than a race. You can create the event you want so you are bound to find it. "

"I have seen many more ibex than men"

For five years, this athlete sponsored by Adidas has prepared the challenge of a lifetime, the Via Alpina between Slovenia and Monaco, concluded in October 2019 with… 2.650 km and 150,000 m of D +! "The record was 60 days and I put 44," he says. I encountered many more ibexes than men during this adventure and that is what I was looking for: being alone in the great outdoors. "Capable of having fun by swallowing 250 GR1 terminals around Paris on a whim, and in less than 46 hours, the amazing Luca Papi is also a fervent lover of projects off " when the adventures we dream of do not are not available in racing format ”.

Guillaume Arthus, here in the Dolomites (Italy), during his incredible record on the Via Alpina last year, with 2,650 km covered in 44 days. - Vertical Combed

This is particularly the case of his next big challenge, imagined even before confinement: to chain with his friend Philippe Verdier the 650 km that represent the seven major islands of the Canaries. “Seeing so many elite runners going off this season will inevitably make people want to dare to take the plunge, launches the ultra-traileur of Team WAA. But I am sure that the big races will always be sold out. "

"It feels good to take a bib and not worry about anything"

Because most of these champions of the extreme remain unparalleled competitors and these exciting off projects are rarely easy. “It is a fairly heavy organization, between marking the paths, the food to be programmed in the absence of supplies, list Martin Kern. Before we even left on the GR5 on Saturday morning, we were already really tired. It feels good to take a bib and not worry about anything. ”

A ritual that Xavier Thévenard will also find in the coming months, reluctant to chain solo solo projects. "He will probably still be content to cross the double crossing of the Jura on cross-country skis (376 km and a record at 11:22 pm in February 2016) to bring home a Morteau sausage," smiles Thomas Michaud. Ultra-traileurs definitely have a taste for the little pleasures of life.

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