Too Much of a Good Thing?

The Pro Trail Runners Association on Instagram:

As elite athletes it’s great to see the sport growing and have more and more people cheering us in the trails.

However, we would kindly like to remind you that we are not in a road or city, so we need to be careful with potentially hazardous items for the environment or attitudes that can harm the wildlife, like running outside the tracks.

We would also like to remind that we are competing and pushing to the very limit. Gathering too close to the athletes, touching them or running besides sometimes may feel oppressive, can lead to unexpected hits or can cause a fall.

Let’s cheer and celebrate our beautiful sport with common sense and prioritizing the environment and the health. Thanks! 

The images that were shared from the final kilometers of this year’s UTMB race were absolutely incredible with spectators lining the trail and cheering racers like never seen before, but the images did conjure up comparisons to the Tour de France. And while that’s not a bad thing and a sign of a growing sport, this could lead to some challenges, especially on uneven and possibly treacherous terrain. At the Tour de France rider injuries, do to overzealous fans aren’t that uncommon therefore it’s good to remind folks to be respectful, especially of runners who are on mile 98 of their race.