Go Back to Summer Camp, You Trail Runner!

A roundup of a few trail running and ultramarathon camps for adults being held in 2010.

By on June 11, 2010 | Comments

Summer’s coming and we may soon find ourselves reminiscing of days spent at summer camp during our youth. No need to be nostalgic, get out there and attend a trail running camp for adults. They’re a ton of fun, a great place to meet new trail friends, and chances are you’ll learn something, too. You might think that you are limited to one or two options as word of camps doesn’t travel far or fast, but we’ve compiled a list of 19 trail running or ultrarunning specific camps being help in the next year. Take a look at that trail running and ultrarunning camp list.

Elinor FishWe’ll admit to being inspired to update our trail running camp list upon hearing about Elinor Fish’s new Trail Running and Wellness Retreat for Women. After all, it’s not every day that a Trail Running Magazine editor puts on running camp. Elinor’s camp will run (pardon the pun) from July 30 to August 1 and will be based on the Vagabond Ranch in Granby, Colorado.

Duncan CallahanOnce we started looking around, we noticed that a bunch of other intriguing camps had popped up this year. For instance, there’s the Gunnison UltraRunning Experience from July 28 through August 1 in Gunnison, Colorado. The UltraRunning Experience will be hosted by Scott Drum along with Duncan and Annie Callahan. We don’t know Scott, but Duncan and Annie a first rate people. As for Duncan (right), well, he’s also a good enough ultrarunner to have won the Leadville 100 in 2008. This liberal arts-style camp will feature trail running, sports testing, sports psychology, cooking classes, massages, recovery techniques, training plan development, and much more.

Dreamchasers logoOf course, we can’t talk trail running camps without mentioning the Dreamchaser Camps hosted by Jay Batchen and Lisa Smith-Batchen. Having seen a Dreamchaser camp firsthand last year, they are fun and informative for both beginners and seasoned trail runners. This year the Dreamchasers trail running camp will feature Karl Meltzer as the guest coach and will be held from October 5-10 on the Idaho side of the Teton Mountains.

Are any of you thinking about attending a trail running or ultrarunning camp this year? Enjoyed one in the past? Let us know!

Bryon Powell

Bryon Powell is the Founding Editor of iRunFar. He’s been writing about trail running, ultrarunning, and running gear for more than 15 years. Aside from iRunFar, he’s authored the books Relentless Forward Progress: A Guide to Running Ultramarathons and Where the Road Ends: A Guide to Trail Running, been a contributing editor at Trail Runner magazine, written for publications including Outside, Sierra, and Running Times, and coached ultrarunners of all abilities. Based in Silverton, Colorado, Bryon is an avid trail runner and ultrarunner who competes in events from the Hardrock 100 Mile just out his front door to races long and short around the world, that is, when he’s not fly fishing or tending to his garden.