There's nothing quite like arriving in Chamonix during UTMB week and getting absolutely swallowed by it. The streets pulse with a strange, wonderful energy — elite athletes in matching kit brushing shoulders with weekend warriors who've saved up years to toe one of these start lines. If you've ever wondered whether trail running has gone mainstream, spend 48 hours here and you'll have your answer. It has. Completely. But somehow, impossibly, the soul of the thing still feels intact.
Chamonix Dispatches: Five Things UTMB Week Taught Me About Trail Running's Future
One week in Chamonix delivered wild crowds, shoe lab revelations, and hard questions about where our sport is headed. Here's what stuck.
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