The North Face Endurance Challenge makes Canadian debut

The North Face Endurance Challenge, a popular trail series south of the border, made its first stop in Canada over the weekend on July 12 and 13, hosting many different race distances at Blue Mountain in Collingwood, Ont.

The Saturday and Sunday saw seven different races run and about 1,000 runners showed up to compete with the 10K being the most popular distance. The 10K trail race had 230 entrants.

Dean Karnazes, one of the figures who helped popularize trail running in North America, was at the event meeting runners.

“I think running on natural surfaces is a unique experience, and I think it’s quite enjoyable,” said Karnazes before the race. “It’s a good, new experience for people. It’s not a super technical trail, as far as trail running goes. It’s very user friendly and it’s a really good event for your first experience on the trail.”

But the trail did turn out to be tougher than anticipated when overnight rains made some of the route — even the shorter distances — slippery and difficult to navigate.

The Endurance Challenge has been a popular series of events around the United States in recent years but did not host an event in Canada. The North Face until recently was the title sponsor of the Canadian Death Race in Alberta but the North Face logo has been absent from the event’s website since early in 2014.

July and August are the time of year when trail races are usually held, falling between the spring and fall road racing seasons. There are increasingly more options around the country for runners interested in giving a trail race a try. Events like the Endurance Challenge, which offer distances ranging from 5K to 80K, give those interested an opportunity to experience trail racing without the challenge of running an ultramarathon.