The Alpaca Race, live.

Mont Blanc's climbing, in a Gothenburg park

The Alpaca Race runs on 12 and 13 June 2027 in Hisingsparken, Gothenburg. Every distance is laps of the same 10.6 km loop with about 620 m of climbing, and runners choose 1, 3, 5 or 10 laps. The organiser promises exactly the same climbing per kilometre as the ultra trail around Mont Blanc.

The distances are 10 laps, 106 km and 6,200 m of climbing, 5 laps, 53 km and 3,100 m, 3 laps, 32 km and 1,860 m, and a single lap, 10.6 km and 620 m. The 10 lap race starts on Saturday 12 June at 19:00 and runners have 24 hours, so the night is run by headlamp. Start times for the shorter distances are not published yet. Every finisher gets a medal, and the organiser notes that only a handful of runners have ever completed the full distance.

The loop got its name from the Gothenburg ultrarunner Erik Billerby, who thought it looked like an alpaca. It has been rerouted a little since, and the most stubborn runners have named its climbs, Delfinbacken and Boliviabacken among them. The fastest lap is just over an hour, and many runners need up to two hours or more.

There is no aid station out on the loop. The depot at the start and finish at Kvillestugan in Tuve is passed every lap, with drinks, food, a barbecue, spectators and music. Each runner is handed bars and gels before the start according to distance. Mandatory kit is a hydration belt or vest, a fully charged phone, energy food and a headlamp at night. The organiser holds course recce runs about three times a year from IF Kville's club house, with parking at Tuve ice rink.

On Livebib, family and friends see the runner's position on the loop, the laps completed and a finish estimate. Entries go through EQ Timing from the organiser's site, alpacarace.se.