Feeling Alive - Hammer Trail Tales

“Feeling alive” - that was the sensation we all experienced when we were running along hidden trails, traversing beautiful meadows, scrambling up steep rock sections, descending through lush forests, crossing creeks, and sandy beaches. Constantly going up and down, never knowing what was around the next corner.

These were just some of the scenes surrounding this year’s edition of Hammer Trail, one of the most iconic trail races in Denmark - and for a handful of SAYSKY city dwellers, this was quite the spectacle to take in.

The Veteran and Trail Rookies

Kim is a vetted ultra runner, with numerous races and miles to his name, including several Hammer Trails. However, it was a very first for both Nicklas and Simon.

Bornholm, the location of Hammer Trail, is one of the most stunning islands in Denmark, with mother nature serving up a variety of gorgeous sceneries and plenty of elevation gains - especially for a largely pancake flat country such as Denmark.

It’s also a couple of hours drive from Copenhagen, which requires you hopping on the ferry. So, we decided to take the Friday off, in order to arrive early and get settled in for the early Saturday morning race takeoff.

Race Day Jitters

Having never really competed in any proper trail races before, both Nicklas and Simon were obviously quite excited and equally nervous about how their debut 25km / 1000m elevation course would turn out.

However, with proper guidance and assurances from sensei Kim, we took off, really not knowing what to expect or how our bodies would cope with both distance, terrain and altitude gains.

Trail Fever

Sore feet and tired legs. But mind blown and a state of running euphoria. This was such an amazing sensation of just feeling alive on the trails. Not really thinking about time and place, but just wishing that you could keep running forever, while taking in the beauty and awe of everything you come across.

On a side note, it’s worth mentioning that we also brought home two times gold medals, as Kim won the 50km race and Nicklas the 25km. Even though quite frankly, it didn’t feel like racing. It was more about the experience and having a good time together with your friends.

If this is trail running, consider us hooked.