Vancouver VK Courses

General Information

• Courses will only open when conditions are safe for fast efforts. Courses may temporarily close during the year if poor weather impacts on safety or through other events such as closed trails. When our series closes a course, no times will be accepted.
• Participants are expected to have some experience in the North Shore mountains. VK racing is not recommended for absolute beginners or novices to the mountains or trail running.
• Please start early in the day on days with good weather if you don't have a great deal of experience. Always take a headlamp just in case you are delayed. Please leave a trip plan with a loved one if you are attempting any of the courses. A satellite safety device like a Garmin InReach is highly recommended since cell reception is sometimes not available in the north shore mountains.
• Snow conditions are constantly changing over winter. Unlike summer when the terrain is fixed, winter trails can be either soft pack, post-holey, slushy, hard park or icey at different times. Part of this challenge will be picking the right times and conditions to set your fastest times. Experience will count for a lot in this series, but you can also use this series to help build your experience too.
• Trail crampons are necessary in most situations for our winter courses, but what you wear will be up to you. There is nothing worse than hitting some ice without any traction. Even if you anticipate a lot of soft pack, we still recommend always carrying your crampons just in case. We highly recommend the Hillsound Trail Crampon Ultra. https://hillsound.ca/products/trail-crampon-ultra We recommend you stock up on a pair or two prior to winter as demand for these can be high once the trails get icey.
• Some of our courses begin up at the Cypress and Seymour ski resorts. There can be periods of limited parking and congestion (primarily on weekends), so plan your efforts accordingly. Please also ensure you have your winter tires on before attempting the drive up these mountain highways (required by law).
• Please be responsible and safe on your downhill efforts and please respect other users of the trails coming uphill. Call out ahead of time to alert other users of your presence and slow down if you are unable to clear a path through verbal requests. Please note that rocks, roots and other obstacles may lie out of sight below light layers of snow. The series is not responsible for any injuries or accidents you suffer - you must run within your own skill level and ability. Please take the learning of snow conditions into your own hands to measure your level of risk prior to any attempts at our downhill courses.
• IMPORTANT (18 Nov 2022): We are currently working to setup the Strava segments for all variations of the courses. In the meantime you're welcome to run the courses - and I can use your effort to setup the Strava segment for the course. Please email me your GPS file to support@verticalkm.ca if you run a course that is yet to have a Strava segment setup for it. Thank you!

Full Course Summary