John Bauer Trail Run 18 km

John Bauer Trail Run 18 km

The 18 km is two laps of the 10 km loop, with the last 500 metres of the first lap and the first 1.5 kilometres of the second cut out. That means two passes through Ulvadalen, two crossings of the boggy ground and two climbs of Strutsabacken. The steep diagonal down Huskvarnaberget at the start loses almost 50 metres over 700 metres, and the climb back past the lift hut gains nearly 90 metres in a kilometre and a half. The organiser recommends trail shoes and hard-wearing clothes.

Aid stations with water and sports drink stand at about 2, 6, 10 and 14 km, and the later ones also have bananas. The course is marked with tape, sprayed arrows and kilometre signs throughout, and a marshal sweeps it behind the last runner. For the Bergatroll title the second climb of Strutsabacken counts — the very last one, with 17 kilometres in the legs. The distance shares its start with the 10 km, and the John Bauer races are capped at 500 participants.

Over two laps the runner passes the area around IKHP-stugan mid-race, which is where family have their chance to see them before the finish. On Livebib they follow the runner’s own link in a browser, with no account and no app: position on the course line, distance covered and a finish estimate that updates as the race goes. When the phone loses signal in the forest, the position is carried forward along the course and marked as estimated instead of freezing.