Sports
Why Trail Runners Seek Out Increasingly Difficult Races
Shubi Guimarães and Sidney Togumi discuss the appeal of extreme terrain and personal triumph in the mountains.
In an episode of XTREMMA Sports, Shubi Guimarães and Sidney Togumi discuss why mountain runners prioritize elevation gain and technical challenges over flat courses. The athlete also detailed the strategy that led her to the podium at La Misión at age 50.
With the growing popularity of endurance events like traditional marathons and Ironman races, the trail running world is seeing a clear trend: a relentless pursuit of extreme terrain. In an excerpt from episode 21 of the XTREMMA Sports podcast, which also explores the sport's regulatory landscape and evolution with Sidney Togumi, the athletes discussed how mountain runners have learned to value technical difficulty and cumulative elevation gain.
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The search for difficulty and moving away from flat terrain
For Sidney Togumi and Shubi Guimarães, the appeal of a mountain race is directly tied to the level of challenge it presents. Races with flatter courses or modest elevation gain, even when set in breathtaking locations outside the South-Southeast corridor, often struggle to attract out-of-town athletes simply because they do not offer the technical demands needed to justify the trip.
As Shubi often points out, 'the world isn't flat.' The visual reward and the sense of accomplishment in trail running depend directly on conquering the incline. The true impact of the scenery—that moment of quiet awe on the mountain—only happens when you earn the summit through genuine uphill effort.
The value of the journey beyond the medal
The conversation also touched on an athlete's emotional relationship with the podium. Race results and medals fade quickly from memory on the circuit, but the lessons and resilience built throughout training remain the true value of endurance sports.
This drive to push limits led Shubi to take on La Misión in the Serra Fina once again, one of the toughest routes on the national calendar. After struggling the previous year with widespread cramps and bonking during the final kilometers of the descent after Casa de Pedra, the runner devised a meticulous training plan to address every weakness.
Strategy, maturity, and a podium finish in Serra Fina
At 50 years old, her strategy for the 35 km race included daily visualization of every 500-meter section for a month, strict pace management on the climbs, and a far more aggressive in-race nutrition plan.
By managing her speed on the uphills—a strength where she previously tended to overexert—and tripling her caloric and fluid intake, Shubi saved her legs for the technical final descent. While her initial goal was simply to finish without muscle breakdown and aim for a top-10 finish, her steady execution earned her 5th place overall in the women's division.
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