Want to ace the famous UTMB, Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc? Or any other long distance trail running event? Here are the top 27 tips for training and racing from Damian Hall, 5th place in UTMB 2018.

UK journalist and hiker turned endurance runner Damian Hall came an incredible 5th place overall in Europe’s most popular endurance race, the Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc, UTMB 2018.

This was his 4th time running this famous 106 mile race with a thigh-busting 10,000m of ascent from Chamonix in France, through the mountains of Italy and Switzerland.

Damian was hoping for a top 10 finish, but while the elite field crumbled overnight, seeing drop outs from podium favourites Jim Wamsley, Kilian Jornet and Zach Miller, Damian stayed strong, inching up from 7th to 5th overall and first British male.

I caught up with Damian after his talk at Kendal Mountain Festival to steal no less than 27 of his inspiring, ‘normal person’ ultra running training and racing secrets, which you can put into practice on any long distance trail race.

And of course, he has since set a speed record on the Cape Wrath Trail in Scotland with UTMB 4th female finisher Beth Pascall, which is covered in the film Wrath by Summit Fever Media, link here: www.runnersworld.co.uk/fkt-on-cape-wrath-trail

I’ll be interviewing both of these astounding British runners on Wild Ginger Running soon during a live broadcast so make sure you tune in at 8:30pm every Wednesday for more. Here’s last week’s interview with Holly Page: youtu.be/T9o5do-nupA

Tell me which is your favourite tip from Damian in the YouTube comments. And don’t forget to subscribe if you haven’t already, and take a look at Wild Ginger Running on Patreon for entry into my exclusive competitions every month and to get your questions answered preferentially. www.patreon.com/WildGingerRunning

Enjoy these UTMB tips from Damian and I’ll see you on the trails.

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Music: Animal by Max Surla/Media Right Productions