I don't think so at the beginning of this year he had set a goal of accumulating one million feet vert. What I think is he ran TGC for which he might have prepared as it was very heavy race and he has also told in one of the podcasts that he doesn't like much WSER kind of races even though he won that race. He loves steep grades & climbing high country mountains as well. And then he had run World Champs & GPT 100 miler as well which were also vert focused. He kept pursuing what he loves throughout the whole year and the accumulation of vert was just a by product of what he loves to do the whole year. And around November it might seem to him that he can hit the goal of 1 million vert, so why not? It is like if one athlete hasn't ever run 10000 KM in a calendar year and around first week of December he/she is around 9500 KM mark, the to some people it straight away comes why not try to hit 10000 KM as this hasn't been done ever by that particular athlete & to some athletes even 9900 KM would work, they have no purpose in hitting the mark of 10000 KM mark. And I also totally understand your point from where you are saying Puppi brother. Was this the case Caleb brother?
But what is the benefit of accumulating vert? Really I don’t see much on my end, especially if it’s done for the sake of it. And I have done maybe half of the vert you did in 2025… I guess it’s an evergreen debate 😅 Curious to see what you think!
I think that's like asking what's the benefit of accumulating kilometers/miles, or the benefit of going for an FKT. No real performance-enhancing benefit if it's only for the purpose of hitting a certain number, but if it fits the way that you train anyway it can be a fun way to motivate yourself. I was over 90% of the way there without really paying any attention to that goal, and finishing the last bit has been keeping me excited to be in the mountains lately. I also think everyone responds differently to different kinds of training and vert seems to work well for me and the type of racing I like, but I'm definitely not trying to tell anyone else they need to do this.
I think it depends a lot on the background of the athlete. For me vert is a training load element to consider, it's not primarily organic load but more muscular/strength related, and has a different weight for different athletes, training blocks, etc. I think there is a benefit in periodizing strength and having days where the muscular load is minimized and intentionally kept low or zero. But of course this is all very general and has to be adapted to the individual athlete situation. I definitely see your point, especially when you say that everyone responds differently to different kids of training and vert seems to work well for you
That makes sense to me. It seems like you also tend to do a lot more cycling and threshold work than I do, it's cool how in trail running there are so many different ways to train at a high level for similar goals
My question was training related, it doesn't mean we all love spending time in the mountains. We absolutely do. But there's a difference between spending time in the mountains and training
I don't think so at the beginning of this year he had set a goal of accumulating one million feet vert. What I think is he ran TGC for which he might have prepared as it was very heavy race and he has also told in one of the podcasts that he doesn't like much WSER kind of races even though he won that race. He loves steep grades & climbing high country mountains as well. And then he had run World Champs & GPT 100 miler as well which were also vert focused. He kept pursuing what he loves throughout the whole year and the accumulation of vert was just a by product of what he loves to do the whole year. And around November it might seem to him that he can hit the goal of 1 million vert, so why not? It is like if one athlete hasn't ever run 10000 KM in a calendar year and around first week of December he/she is around 9500 KM mark, the to some people it straight away comes why not try to hit 10000 KM as this hasn't been done ever by that particular athlete & to some athletes even 9900 KM would work, they have no purpose in hitting the mark of 10000 KM mark. And I also totally understand your point from where you are saying Puppi brother. Was this the case Caleb brother?
You’re a machine
I don't think so at the beginning of this year he had set a goal of accumulating one million feet vert. What I think is he ran TGC for which he might have prepared as it was very heavy race and he has also told in one of the podcasts that he doesn't like much WSER kind of races even though he won that race. He loves steep grades & climbing high country mountains as well. And then he had run World Champs & GPT 100 miler as well which were also vert focused. He kept pursuing what he loves throughout the whole year and the accumulation of vert was just a by product of what he loves to do the whole year. And around November it might seem to him that he can hit the goal of 1 million vert, so why not? It is like if one athlete hasn't ever run 10000 KM in a calendar year and around first week of December he/she is around 9500 KM mark, the to some people it straight away comes why not try to hit 10000 KM as this hasn't been done ever by that particular athlete & to some athletes even 9900 KM would work, they have no purpose in hitting the mark of 10000 KM mark. And I also totally understand your point from where you are saying Puppi brother. Was this the case Caleb brother?
That is an absolute monster amount of elevation, kudos to you!
I feel a little baited by the title
Congrats on the accomplishment! Hope you caught my joke I accidentally posted the comment a little undercooked
Haha thanks, good one
I also read it in Dr. Evil’s voice
Love this!
But what is the benefit of accumulating vert? Really I don’t see much on my end, especially if it’s done for the sake of it. And I have done maybe half of the vert you did in 2025… I guess it’s an evergreen debate 😅 Curious to see what you think!
I think that's like asking what's the benefit of accumulating kilometers/miles, or the benefit of going for an FKT. No real performance-enhancing benefit if it's only for the purpose of hitting a certain number, but if it fits the way that you train anyway it can be a fun way to motivate yourself. I was over 90% of the way there without really paying any attention to that goal, and finishing the last bit has been keeping me excited to be in the mountains lately. I also think everyone responds differently to different kinds of training and vert seems to work well for me and the type of racing I like, but I'm definitely not trying to tell anyone else they need to do this.
I think it depends a lot on the background of the athlete. For me vert is a training load element to consider, it's not primarily organic load but more muscular/strength related, and has a different weight for different athletes, training blocks, etc. I think there is a benefit in periodizing strength and having days where the muscular load is minimized and intentionally kept low or zero. But of course this is all very general and has to be adapted to the individual athlete situation. I definitely see your point, especially when you say that everyone responds differently to different kids of training and vert seems to work well for you
That makes sense to me. It seems like you also tend to do a lot more cycling and threshold work than I do, it's cool how in trail running there are so many different ways to train at a high level for similar goals
What a strange question one trail runner could ask the other. I thought we all love spend time in mountains and vert is just part of it
My question was training related, it doesn't mean we all love spending time in the mountains. We absolutely do. But there's a difference between spending time in the mountains and training
I don't think so at the beginning of this year he had set a goal of accumulating one million feet vert. What I think is he ran TGC for which he might have prepared as it was very heavy race and he has also told in one of the podcasts that he doesn't like much WSER kind of races even though he won that race. He loves steep grades & climbing high country mountains as well. And then he had run World Champs & GPT 100 miler as well which were also vert focused. He kept pursuing what he loves throughout the whole year and the accumulation of vert was just a by product of what he loves to do the whole year. And around November it might seem to him that he can hit the goal of 1 million vert, so why not? It is like if one athlete hasn't ever run 10000 KM in a calendar year and around first week of December he/she is around 9500 KM mark, the to some people it straight away comes why not try to hit 10000 KM as this hasn't been done ever by that particular athlete & to some athletes even 9900 KM would work, they have no purpose in hitting the mark of 10000 KM mark. And I also totally understand your point from where you are saying Puppi brother. Was this the case Caleb brother?
The way I RAN to the comments after Finn's podcast clip lol