Benoit Beaupré is a super versatile runner who has proved his skills in road and trail races, at both ultra and shorter distances. Well-known among trail runners in Quebec, he’s been making waves in the sport ever since the first trail races in Quebec began.
As a running coach, he shares his passion with other runners and feels rooted in the community, which he considers family. In fact, he always jumps at the occasion to help the race organizers, who he knows well, and it’s common to see him volunteering his time between his own races. First and foremost, he runs because he loves it, but that doesn’t keep him from pushing himself toward constant improvement as an athlete.
Fabrice d’Aletto is a 44-year-old athlete, married, with four children. This history and geography teacher became interested in ultra-trail running mainly for the chance to travel and discover new countries and scenery.
Although he likes to run alone, logging long hours in the mountains, he also likes to compete, because it helps him see what he’s capable of and push his limits.
Denis Clerc, aka the Zinzin (zany) Reporter, is a journalist and cameraman for France Télévisions. He’s also a well-known YouTuber whose videos have been viewed more than 1,000,600 times! He specializes in running and filming indoor races with his GoPro. At 54, Zinzin has already run over 30 ultras. His slogan? “Zinzin mais pas fou!” (Zany but not crazy!)
Zac has been a competitive trail and ultra marathon runner for 5 years. Coming from an obese non-athlete background, he has made himself known in the community as an advocate for healthy lifestyles that include both fitness and nutrition. Zac is also a professional coach and trainer for iFIT videos as well as a physical therapist.
Rachel Paquette, osteopath and The North Face sponsored athlete, is known as a true lioness on the trails, excelling in both obstacle and ultra-track races. She has dominated races ranging from 50 km to 80 km, and the brand new mother (she gave birth less than a year ago) will be on the starting line at Ultra-Trail Harricana’s 42km event this year. A return to racing that will not go unnoticed!
Donatello Rota is an Italian trail runner who has loved sports ever since he was a child. Now, he’s a trail-running addict. He loves to use trail running as a means of exploring the world and meeting lots of good people.
His popular Instagram page illustrates the importance of trail running in his life and is his means of influencing people to take up running or sports. A healthy lifestyle is so important! He has a feeling that 2019 will be one of the best years of his life.
Emily is a small-town farm girl from Zimbabwe, Africa. She is starting her second year of ultra-trail running with the Gauge 20 Running team, after a collegiate career at the College of Idaho in the USA. She had a fun 2018 season, finishing Top-10 in the Skyrunner World Series, raced mainly in Europe.
But also, she had success in some longer races, winning the American River 50miler in California, and the UTWT Ultra-Trail Cape Town 100km in South Africa. She is now looking forward to experiencing even more of the world, running more mountains and trails and exploring Canada!
During her younger years, 24-year-old athlete Anne Champagne trained in various sports including cross-country running, track and field and triathlons. Now an obstacle course champion, Anne is also an emerging trail running athlete. Following her impressive performance in the 55 km event at the Bromont Ultra in fall 2018 where she ranked first woman, she now hopes to advance in the discipline on an international level. Her goal for 2019 is to complete the 125 km UTHC event to then qualify for the UTMB.
Elliot sees long-distance running as one of the best ways to contemplate the beauty of nature. The sport enables him to explore vast areas that are otherwise difficult to get to. The most important things for this 25-year-old athlete are to be active, have fun with friends, be healthy and spend time outside!
Bromont is his main stomping ground where he’s covered an impressive number of kilometers and feet of elevation with his two loyal trail partners, Alister Gardner and Alexis Lussier. He hones his speed on the road and on trails, but the mountains are his favourite place to run. Elliot broke into the ultra-trail world in 2016 when he won the 55-km race at the Bromont Ultra in 5:41.
Although he is motivated by performance, he never wants that aspect to get in the way of his passion.
“I’ve always tried to push my limits. When I was young, that meant lots of time spent outdoors and hiking with my family. I started running with my brother when I was pretty young, at first trailing our father on our bikes as he trained for a marathon. But it was when I discovered trail running in 2014 that really tested the depth my abilities. Ever since then, I’ve been trying to push that limit by training with my brother, with the ultimate goal of running a 100-miler. I do whatever I can to share my passion for trail running with others!
“I’ve loved nature and hiking since I was a kid. I started ultra-running in 2014 on a dare from my sister and two of my cousins. My sister and I fell instantly in love with trail running and its ambiance, so it seemed like a logical next step in our quest to push ourselves. That’s how Team Cauchon was born! Since then, we’ve been training and running together, and that helps us balance family, passion and work. We’re constantly pushing each other to be the best we can be.”
David Kilgore (USA) David Kilgore is a runner of all terrain from mountainous ultras to the roads and track. Raised in and from the swamps of Palm Bay, Florida and is now based out of New York City. He works as a On Rep for NYC, NJ, and PA and as Cinematographer. He also Competes for On as an athlete. In his free time David loves outdoor activities, finding new trails, enjoying new food spots (especially doughnut shops), and being surrounded by his friends and family. Also exploring and hanging with his lady Molly.
David has been running ever since he was a kid. He hated taking the bus to school. When he started running, he challenged himself to get to school before the bus. He finally beat that bus many, many times!
“I ran my first marathon at 16. After 19 marathons, I decided to plunge into a new adventure: ultra-trail running and eventually the 125-km race at Harricana in 2018. I’m from Baie-Saint-Paul, and the locals call us runners “wolves.” It feels completely natural to take on this challenge on my turf, and I hope to do the pack proud!”, says David.
Mathieu Dubé has been an endurance-sport enthusiast for nearly 25 years. He started in triathlon, and from 1996 to 2010 won several triathlons in Quebec and competed in many other international competitions. Father of three, Mathieu decided to focus solely on running over the past few years, gradually transitioning to trail running where he quickly made a name for himself.
After several remarkable performances in the 50 and 65-km distances, he’s looking to challenge himself in the ultra distances, and this year he’s chosen to take on the UTHC 125k!
