FED UP WITH FLAT? BORED OF THE ROAD? BROADEN YOUR RUNNING HORIZONS AND TAKE YOUR FITNESS TO NEW HEIGHTS WITH THE LATEST VERTICAL RUNNING CHALLENGES

WORDS: KATIE CAMPBELL SPYRKA

VERTICAL RUNNING

The only way is up: running/scrambling up a ski jump

© JURE MAKOVEC / RED BULL CONTENT POOL

In the running world right now, the only way is up – literally. Welcome to the vertical running scene, where races are shorter than your average parkrun but feature a single, intense, lactic acid-flooding uphill ascent. Your legs will jellify, your throat will burn and your fitness will skyrocket. Here’s everything you need to know.

REACH FOR THE STARS

Out-of season ski jumps, near-vertical mountain summits and cool urban skyscrapers might not spring to mind as typical race-day destinations, but that’s all changing, with the growth of vertical running events, where the sole aim is to ascend a short, uphill distance as quickly as you can. When we say uphill, we mean it. The average gradient of the Red Bull 400 events, where competitors race up a 400-metre ski jump, is around 75 per cent.

It’s not just hills, either. Tower running, where runners scale skyscrapers running up to 104 floors in one go, has its own Vertical World Circuit (verticalworldcircuit. com). Comprising nine races all over the world, the series draws in more than 100,000 competitors each year, including individual runners and sponsored teams. The top finishers from each race then compete for the World Champion title (and prize money) at the VWC final.