UTMR Blog - Ultra Tour Monte Rosa (2024)

Our friend Billi Bierling, mountaineer and journalist, came to the 2021 UTMR to volunteer and to race. Here’s what she has to say about it! Billi we are looking forward to welcoming you back and wish you good luck for your 2022 race! The COVID-19 pandemic was tough for runners all over the world. Even […]

Yet again the Europaweg changes its route! This time it’s been improved to make an easier climb towards the Europahütte with less time on the old Europaweg balcony routes, but still plenty of nice scenery. You can download the GPS track (and Google Earth KML file below).

The iRunFar introduction for David reads “David Laneywas born and raised in Oregon, and that just about covers it. David runs for Nike Trail and coaches withTrails and Tarmac. You can follow him from mountain tops to donut shops on hisInstagram account.” With numerous wins to his name, a 3rd (2015) and 4th (2016) place […]

Brennan is a trail and fell runner based in Keswick in the Lake District of the UK. He lives with his wife Kat and step daughter in the shadow of his local fell (small English mountain), Latrigg. He is currently studying Sports Science at Manchester Metropolitan University, and with his wife has a coaching business […]

We were set to welcome elite runner, Marián Priadka, from the Slovak Ultra Trail Team to the 2020 edition of the 170km Ultra Tour! We’re really happy that he’ll try again for 2021. We asked him some questions to get to know a little more about him…. Q. Can you remember how you first heard […]

We like also to heartily welcome back our loyal runners! Philippe Aurelle, La Capretta, will be participating for the 6th time at UTMR. Thank you Philippe & see you again in September! Philippe’s participation at UTMR: the 2016 edition 116 km Ultramarathon, the 170km Ultra Tour in 2017, 2018 & 2019, the Grächen Berglauf in […]

For the last few years we have partnered with Kikourou, an endurance sports community in France, to offer a competition for a free place for UTMR. This year Xavier Jacquel was the lucky winner and will be competing in the UTMR 100 km 3 Passes ultra. We asked him some questions to see how he […]

In 2020 we invited Julien Gilleron, a journalist “Trans-Versale” who writes for Wider Magazine and Alpinemag amongst others, as a media participant in UTMR. Of course with cancellation of the longer events we extended his invitation to our Grächen Berglauf, which ended up as a happy, sunny day of mountain running even while adhering to […]

We welcome Darcy Piceu to the 2021 Ultra Tour Monte Rosa to compete with Jasmin Paris, Roman Evarts, Tom Owens, Matthieu Girard and others! Darcy has been running ultramarathons for 20 years and has completed over 103 ultra races. Some of her notable accomplishments include 3 time Hardrock 100 winner, 3 time Wasatch Front 100 […]

Back in 2018, Roman Evarts was a UTMB Podium Finisher and then he chose the 2019 UTMR 100 mile ultra trail for his ‘next big challenge’. Of course in 2019 the weather gods intervened and the race was halted in Gressoney, around the halfway mark. He says he is ‘stoked’ to return and finally do […]

The 2018 winner of the 170 km Ultra Tour (32:59:33), Matthieu Girard, is returning for 2021! Here he gives his thoughts about UTMR and offers some insight for 2021 race competitors. Thank you Matthieu & best of luck, see you in September! N.B Matthieu is co-president ofTrail Verbier St-Bernarda beautiful set of races at the […]

We’re very happy to welcome Jasmin Paris as one of the elite women running the 170 km Ultra Tour in 2021! Jasmin is British and is extremely well known inGreat Britainas a fell runner, and became known on the international stage as asky runnerafter her victory in the2016 Skyrunner World Series(Sky Extreme) and bronze medal […]

Ultra Tour Monte Rosa, 10th May 2020. It is with great regret that we announce the cancellation of the 2020 edition of Ultra Tour Monte Rosa. We have carefully considered the current pandemic situation and the risk that holding a race like UTMR would present to our runners, volunteers and hosts. We take this decision […]

We’re delighted that Sacha will be an ambassador for UTMR on the trails and social media! Thank you Sacha & we look forward to welcoming you back in September 2020. You can find Sacha on facebook if you want to contact him! Sacha (Turbosnail) Mijatov Born: 1971 Hometown: Brussels, Belgium. About me: I have been […]

A big thank you to all of the children who stepped on to the start line for the 2019 Kinderrennen event at the UTMR in Grächen. It was 100% effort from the start to the finish as you might expect if you’ve ever seen a children’s running race. There were two distances, 2 km and […]

Our 2018 winner of the 170 km Ultra Tour, Matthieu Girard, is returning for 2020! Here’s what he thinks about UTMR. Thank you Matthieu & best of luck, see you in September! N.B Matthieu is co-president of Trail Verbier St-Bernard a beautiful set of races at the beginning of July at the other end of […]

Thanks to photographer Hervé Le Gac and Trails Endurance for taking the time and effort to cover Ultra Tour Monte Rosa 2019 and brave the unfortunate weather conditions we faced. We hope you will come back for more of the sunny days we more often expect!

We are happy to welcome an elite runner, Marián Priadka, from the Slovak Ultra Trail Team to the 170 km UTMR! Here’s what he has to say ….. I started with running as a training and alternative activity for MTB, which brought me to back sports after several years break. After my beginnings (doing some […]

One of our past UTMR competitors, David Byrne, has just published a book about ultra running that contains a chapter on the zero edition UTMR stage race in 2015. He says, “To me the 2015 edition was great as it was a chance to see a new location and to push myself which has since […]

We had some good news from the board of “Hardrock”! Finishers of our 170km race in 2020 will qualify for the 2021 Hardrock lottery. For anyone who hasn’t heard of Hardrock it is a 100 mile ultramarathon in the Southern Colorado’s San Juan Range, USA. Here is what one 5-time finisher of Hardrock, Jason Poole, […]

This route has again been updated and the new GPS track for the Europaweg 2021 is here. https://www.graechenberglauf.ch/europaweg/ The Europaweg from Grächen to Europahütte has changed since August 2018. A new route has been opened in June 2019. The new route has two variants, one harder, one easier. All of the following information is for […]

Ida Nilsson needs no introduction with a host of winning performances at some of the world’s most revered mountain ultras! The Swedish athlete had an outstanding 2018 season including her 3rd (straight) victory at Transvulcania (73km), a win at Maratòn Alpina Zegama-Aizkorri (42km) & a second place in the Golden Trail Series. She had […]

La Sportiva elite athlete, Christian Insam, is returning to finish unfinished business on the trails of Monte Rosa! Good luck, see you in September! After my withdrawal last year at km 120 my first thought was that I would definitely return to conclude the route around the Monte Rosa! Too strong was the […]

Dan Lawson is a GB international runner, in 2016 he won the IAU 24 Hour European Championships and holds a world record for the distance run on a treadmill in 7 days. He is fresh off an FKT on the Jordan Trail with Robbie Briton. Why is he turning to UTMR & the mountains? […]

We are happy to welcome an elite runner, Peter Brestovansky, from the Slovak Ultra Trail Team to the 170km UTMR! Here’s what he has to say ….. “In addition to climbing, ski alpinism and mountain biking, I also enjoy running. The long distances running. Ultra run. It came completely out of blue. At the time […]

We are happy to welcome two talented Nepali runners to the UTMR 4-stage race during their first visit outside Nepal! We look forward to hearing what they think of the trails around Monte Rosa! Good luck guys … Mahesh Thapa and Bikash Tamang are two talented young and enthusiastic ultra trail runners from Nepal. Speaking […]

UTMB Podium Finisher chooses the 2019 UTMR 100 mile course for his next big challenge in order to keep focused, and to keep slim. He joins top 5 UTMB finisher Damian Hall and 11th place Petter Restorp. After last year’s UTMB, finishing 6th, I fulfilled my sporty ambitions and it was about a time to […]

Here’s a nice insight into the 2018 4-day Stage Race from Rebeca Ehrnrooth, part owner of myRaceKit.A Swede living in the UK, she is an outdoor enthusiast and ultra-runner who travels the world for adventures and races. We look forward to welcoming you back in 2019 Rebeca! ——- In Lizzy Hawker’s book Runner there […]

Damian Hall, journalist and elite runner, is signed up for the 2019 170 km Ultra Tour. With an impressive 5th place at the 2018 UTMB in 22:35:13, and having recently set an FKT (fastest known time) for the Cape Wrath Trail with Beth Pascall, he is no stranger to the long and hard. We look […]

Petter Restorphas joined UTMR through our programme for elite runners… Restorp finished 11th in the UTMB this year in a very respectable 23:34:35 and is looking for a new challenge for 2019 as he explains below. —— I ended my 2018 season with a full month of rest. Instead of running I went climbing in […]

When people enter for the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa, the ultra trail race around the massif of Monte Rosa, we ask them to tell us why they entered, with this question. Of all the races in the world, why did you choose to race the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa? And here are the answers! Massimo […]

Some questions to Christian Insam, an Italian athlete on the team from La Sportiva, on why UTMR and what he is looking forward to. What you are looking forward to? I’ve been hearing about UTMR for a few years now. The idea of touring Monte Rosa has always fascinated me, as all wild, technical […]

“What is a good alternative to UTMB – Ultra Trail Mont Blanc?” The internet is a great place to prefix a great product’s name with “Alternative to” to find a way to either find something cheaper, simpler, as yet ‘undiscovered’ and quieter etc. Especially the case when the product in question is sold out! With […]

Guest post byNicky Spinks. Nicky is the current double Bob Graham Round record holder, two laps of a ~106 km mountain route in the Lake District in the UK. With entries closing in two weeks I thought I would remind everyone what a fantastic race this is and to say that I’m so looking forward […]

JASON POOLE : COLORADO, USA We’re delighted that Jason has offered to share his experience of the 2017 Ultra Tour Monte Rosa with anybody interested in learning more about the course from an American trail perspective. Here’s a little info about Jason and contact details. Jason became involved in endurance sports in 1987, primarily competing […]

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Lloyd Belcher, our photographer in 2015 and 2017, is coming back in 2018. This time he is leaving the cameras behind and this is why! Good luck Lloyd! “I’m very fortunate that I have a job that I enjoy and it takes me to some beautiful places around the world. But don’t be […]

So exciting! It’s a tough race, very difficult. Very difficult. It’s not a normal ultra race. If you finish this race [you’re] very tough, the very long climbs up and do – so big – also the altitude, and also the technical… it’s so technical my god! Unbelievable. It’s not just one or two sections. […]

While feedback is sometimes critical (and constructive) there is a lot of happy feedback from many race competitors. Here is a selection from 2017…. Basil Geoghegan “The UTMR was awesome. Putting together a race on this terrain is impressive. I loved it. I have never run a stage race before. Standing in an Alpine village […]

We have a new poster for 2017!

On 29th July 2016, Lizzy Hawker completed a full tour of Monte Rosa solo, to “test the course”. Here is what she wrote back then in answer to five questions about the route. You started at the same time as the race will start next year, so passed around the route as a mid pack […]

The route of the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa is challenging! Bold, beautiful and brutal …. There are two reasons why we ask for the experience we ask for – we want you to be safe and we want you to enjoy your race experience. It is a tough trail – high, wild and technical in […]

The Great Himalaya Trail is a vague concept, really a network of trails through the Himalayas. When you set foot on the trails, it’s anything but vague: it’s tough, wild, enormous, humbling. Lizzy Hawker, as you may know, has a passion for making long solo journeys across tough terrain. In 2011, a attempt to cross […]

Mark was standing below the Monte Moro pass on the Swiss side. Whilemonitoring the runners down the slope, he kept his camera busy. Mark wants to offer printed copies of his images to you for a reasonable price in order to collect money for Trail Running Nepal’s athlete fund. The athlete’s fund raises money for […]

Runners, with one week to go we would like to highlight the importance of the obligatory equipment. Mandatory equipment list. “There is no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing.” I have just attended an event that was hit by severe wind and rain for the full 5 day duration of the event. Most […]

“The terrain was rougher than we could possibly imagine. It was in stark contrast to the flowing trails that we’d encountered while racing the UTMB (Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc).” Ben Read andJames Noorkoiv’s account of a summer fastpack adventure on the Tour de Monte Rosa. The threat of a storm forces them to return […]

Lizzy Hawker runs training camps around Monte Rosa. These are part UTMR trail familiarisation trips, part running training camps, part trail running instruction from Lizzy, if you ask her nicely. Covering around 170km in four days with some 11,000m of elevation change is a fantastic boost to your training for trail. It’s great preparation for […]

UPDATE: Lizzy completed in 37 hours 10 minutes The climb is more than Everest from sea to summit, and fortunately the distance is much shorter than bay of Bengal to Everest’s top. But the comparatively short 169km on mountain trails with over 11,000m of climb and descent, all at an average altitude of around 2200m, […]

We’ve just held 2016’s first UTMR training camp– completing the full tour of Monte Rosa in four long days. A mix of running the downs and hiking the ups, to get familiar with the course and get long hours on our feet. It’s the kind of course that needs that. One of the participants, Fergus […]

The 2017 ultra will bea full tour of Monte Rosa, from Grächen toGrächen, witha 4-stage race along side. This nicely builds upon the experience from the stage race only zero edition, and 2016’s single stage ultra along side the stage race. 2017 thus adds the Europaweg from Grächen to Zermatt, and the crossing from Switzerland […]

True, Ultra Tour Monte Rosa is only in its second year as an organized running event, but the long-distance hiking route around the Monte Rosa massif has been trod by people for quite a while previous to this. Wild and high and ridiculously scenic as it is, it’s punctuated by signs of habitation—vestiges of […]

Words by Sarah Barker. I was rude and inquired the age of two finishers of the 2015 UTMR. Like most things, Roger and Bridget took my impertinence in stride, shared their experiences and gave some tips. Prepare to be blown away and inspired. In their own words… “Roger is 70 and I‘m 64. We have […]

Words by Sarah Barker. I’ve observed that runners read. This is strictly anecdotal, and scientific rigor could easily prove me wrong, but I find that when runners return from seven or eight hours of scissoring the pins, they like to have a knees up. Because they are obsessive multitaskers, reading ensues. Next day, they’ve got […]

Words by Sarah Barker As race volunteers go, you could do a lot worse than Keith Byrne. Super-chipper at dark-thirty in the morning? Eternal summer of the feet? Ah yes, that Keith Byrne. Byrne’s job at last year’s UTMR was to brief runners in the morning, then scurry quick to the finish line and get […]

Today isthe 1st June already but everything is still possible. Registrations are open until July 1st – sign up now! Register here! Words by Sarah Barker “All things seem possible in May.” I might have said that, after a few beers, but naturalist, photographer and writer Edwin Way Teale said it first. On the […]

Words by Sarah Barker So, the knee’s acting up again, or there was that frantic spot at work such that your training was reduced to the round-trip hike between desk and water cooler, and, well, you’re a bit unsure of your fitness. And particularly as it applies to the (ridiculously scenic) 116K of Ultra Tour […]

Words by Sarah Barker. Women’s runner upof last year’s zero edition, Krissy Moehl, has plenty of trail racing experience—multiple UTMB finishes and two Hardrocks to name a few. Here are some things that made UTMR special for her: “The route, when done as a single-stage ultra, will be more challenging than UTMB—more technical trails, burlier […]

We take pride in marking the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa course well with florescent markers suchthat nobody get lost. But everybody sometime gets into the zone of deep concentration, or deep conversation with a running partner and has missed that sharp right turn and continued down the trail. If you carry a smart phone with […]

Words by Sarah Barker Since I’ve been writing about ultras—not doing them, mind you, just hanging out in cow pastures shaking a bell and talking to people who actually carry themselves over nights and rocks—certain words have taken on a completely new meaning. Words like challenge, exposure, mountain, dinner. Fun. Take for example, mountain. Having […]

Say celebrity chef and author Anthony Bourdain opened a restaurant; you’d want to go, right? The guy’s eaten at and written about seemingly every famous restaurant on the planet. He’s an expert on dining. What would be on the menu? What would the atmosphere be like? If—didn’t happen, but if—guitar god Eric Clapton had put […]

Today is an exciting day! We start to tell the news and story of our race. Welcome to Ultra Tour Monte Rosa. We have been working hard on this new project to develop a beautiful trail race around Monte Rosa on the Swiss / Italian border. We will hold azero […]