Q-and-A with Aaron Heidt, Canada’s top UTMB runner

The North Face’s Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc is a 166K ultra race that follows a loop through the Alps, starting in Chamonix, France, crossing into Italy, Switzerland and back to Chamonix. It is one of the most popular and prestigious ultramarathons in the world, climbing a combined 9,600m of elevation. Between the marquee event and four other ultra distance events, participation reaches nearly 10,000.

Aaron Heidt this year was Canada’s top finisher in the race, coming in 15th place with a time of 23:43:58. In 2013, he won the Canadian Death Race. He lives with his wife, their six-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter in Vernon, B.C. Between working as an environmental planner and doing “odd home renovations,” he runs up and down the local ski hill. He also spends time scrambling, climbing, racing cyclocross and keeps in shape Nordic skiing during the winter.

We talked with Heidt about the race and where his outdoor pastimes overlap.

Had you run UTMB before? What made you want to give it a shot?

I’ve never raced UTMB before but I’ve wanted to race it for years. It is an iconic hundred-miler. With one of the most competitive ultra fields in the world, a community and culture that really get behind the race and a natural loop course that combines tough mountain trails with European villages, it seemed like the ideal ultra. I don’t see myself as someone who will run 100-milers with any regularity, so I want to tackle the most inspiring courses in the few opportunities I have.

What is the atmosphere at events like this?

Europeans love endurance sport and the communities around Mont Blanc really get behind the race. There was a really hard downpour at the start of this year’s race and, despite this, there were still thousands of people lining the first 5km of the course, chanting and ringing cow bells. Each community after had hundreds of spectators and this continued well into the night. When you finish, back in Chamonix, the course routes you through town for about 3km, and again there are thousands of people cheering and encouraging you on. I’ve never experienced anything like it.

In my only other hundred-miler, the time keeper, my wife and my two children were the only people at the finish when I crossed.

I believe you also are a climber and scrambler, correct? What transferable skills do those bring to your running?

I really enjoy both scrambling and climbing, but with a family and a job and living in the Okanagan, I only get out to do either once or twice a year now.

What sorts of skills does the running bring to the climbing and scrambling?

The ability to suffer and put in long hours on the trail, I guess. For me, introducing scrambling when I did and getting into the mountains with more experienced individuals taught me to read technical terrain better and has helped me become a better technical mountain runner.

Did one lead to the other? If so, which led to which? Or were they both separate activities that seem to have, at least somewhat, converged in mountain running?

I think trail running, climbing and scrambling each reflect my desire to get out in the mountains and explore wild places. I’m happiest when I’m outside on a mountain peak, and how I get there doesn’t really matter, as long as I did it on my own two feet and I’m exhausted at the end of the day.