Tromsø Mountain Challenge

The course

The bus drops you at Snarbyeidet (130 m), a pass on the mainland north-east of the city. The first 25 km are the easiest running of the day: a gentle climb on fell paths to about 660 m, then a long traverse of the plateau past the hikers' cabins at Trollvassbu (5 km), Nonsbu (13.5 km), Blåkollkoia (19 km) and Skarvassbu (25 km), each a control where you register and can fill bottles. Expect bog, rock and reindeer fences rather than built trail; it is an active herding area.

The course then drops to the Tromsdalselva river (about 330 m) at the foot of Tromsdalstinden, the 32 km control and the only hard cut-off. From there it climbs through Dypdalen to the top of Bønntuva, 760 m, the highest point and the place where tired legs show. The descent down Fløyfjellet to Fjellstua (420 m, the top of the cable car) is long and rough, and the final leg contours into Tromsdalen under Svarthammaren before turning back along the valley trails to TUIL Arena at 10 m.

The 25 km starts from TUIL Arena at 12:00 and joins the ultra course at the river, so it gets the Bønntuva climb and the Fløyfjellet descent, about 1 000 m of climb in total. Drink stations serve water and sports drink at every cabin, with bananas, cola and gel at Tromsdalselva, Fjellheisen (40 km) and Dalheim (46 km). Outside those stations you may use only what you carry; private support and pacers are not allowed. Chip timing is by EQ Timing, with a live results page and the bag drop, showers and food at the arena.

How to enter

Entry is online through EQ Timing from the organiser's registration page. The 2027 edition opened on 1 October 2026 and stays open until the day before the race as long as places remain: 250 in the ultra, 400 in the 25 km and 150 each in Dalheim Rundt and the Ekstremløpet. The 2026 ultra took 188 entries, so a place is realistic until summer, though the organiser notes the number is limited. The 50 km and 25 km are for runners aged 18 or over in the year of the race; there is no qualifying time.

The 50 km costs 1 240 kr (about €105) and the 25 km 690 kr for 2027 at the opening price in October 2026; the site does not show later price steps, so check before you assume the price holds. The fee includes the one-event Norwegian Athletics licence (a holder of an annual licence can claim it back from the federation), a race T-shirt for ultra runners, a course map, the bus to the start and the foil blanket. Entries are binding and not refunded; with a doctor's note and a 150 kr fee you can move your entry to the next year, provided the note reaches the organiser within a week of the race.

How to train for it

Train to run the flat and walk the steep

Most of the first 25 km is gently rolling plateau where the field runs; the winner averages under 5 min/km there. Then comes one real climb of about 430 m from Tromsdalselva to Bønntuva. Practise switching from steady running on soft, uneven ground to a hard hike, and do not let the easy first half tempt you into a pace you cannot hold after 32 km.

Get used to bog, rock and wet feet

The plateau is fell terrain with boggy sections, stream crossings and loose rock rather than groomed trail. Long runs on open moorland or mountain heath in shoes with real lugs prepare you better than forest paths. There are rivers to fill bottles along the way, and your feet will be wet for most of the day.

Rehearse a long technical descent on tired legs

The drop from Bønntuva down Fløyfjellet to Fjellstua and on into Tromsdalen comes after six or more hours for most of the field and is where quads give out. Put a 400 to 700 m descent at the end of your long sessions and practise it at the speed you can sustain, not the speed you can hit fresh.

Pace for the 32 km control

The 5 h 30 min limit at Tromsdalselva is generous for a runner who keeps moving (the median finisher passes well inside it), but anyone over it must leave the course and walk straight down to the finish. Work out your plateau pace in training and build in a margin for weather: wind and rain on the top slow the fell sections a lot.

Run with the full pack

The kit list adds a few kilos: windproof top and bottom, hat, gloves, 150 g of food that must still be in the pack at the finish, a bottle, map, compass or GPS watch, phone and whistle. Do your key long runs with the same pack so the straps, the weight and reaching the bottle on the move are no surprise.

What you need

• Mandatory for the 50 km (checked at the finish, 15 minutes added per missing item): the race T-shirt, the organiser's map, a compass or handheld GPS or a watch with the GPX loaded, at least 150 g of food still in the pack at the finish, a windproof jacket, windproof trousers, hat or headband, gloves, a whistle, a mobile phone, a drink bottle and the foil blanket handed out at bib pick-up
• Nothing is mandatory for the 25 km but the organiser recommends a phone; experienced runners carry the same wind layer and gloves because the 25 km goes over the same 760 m summit
• A running pack of 5 to 10 litres with a bottle or flask you can refill in the streams and at the cabins
• Trail shoes with deep lugs; the plateau is bog and wet rock and the descent is rooty
• Poles are not mentioned in the rules; the climb to Bønntuva is the one place they help
• A dry change of clothes in the bag you leave at TUIL Arena; the finish is at sea level in Tromsdalen with showers in the arena

Getting there and staying

Tromsø Airport Langnes has direct flights from Oslo and other Norwegian cities and some summer routes from abroad; the airport bus and city buses take you to the centre on the island. The race hub, TUIL Arena II at Arthur Arntzens veg 34, is on the mainland in Tromsdalen under the cable car: city bus 20 or 24 from the centre to the stop Kraftforsyninga, then about ten minutes on foot. Bib pick-up is at the arena at the times in the programme, which the organiser publishes in winter.

Ultra runners take the organiser's bus from TUIL Arena at 07:45 on Saturday to the start at Snarbyeidet, or get a lift there themselves. Spare clothes from the start go back on the bus if they are labelled with your bib number, and there is a bag store at the arena at your own risk. The 25 km, Dalheim Rundt and the Sunday Ekstremløpet all start at the arena, so a hotel on the island near the bridge or anywhere in Tromsdalen keeps everything within a bus ride. Tromsø is a tourist city in August; book accommodation when you enter rather than in the summer.

History

The weekend grew out of a trio of mountain races the Midnight Sun Marathon foundation has run since at least 2012: the Tromsø Mountain Ultra and HalvUltra, the Ekstremløpet up the stairs to the cable car and a summit race on Tromsdalstinden (1 238 m), combined as the Trippelen. The results archive on msm.no runs from 2012; the Tindløpet to the summit last ran in 2023, and the 2023 ultra doubled as the Norwegian trail ultra championship. Course records stand at 3 h 55 min for men (2023) and 4 h 43 min for women (2016) in the 50 km.

Where to find out more

• Tromsø Mountain Challenge, official page (opens in a new tab): The organiser's event page in Norwegian with course maps, GPX files, rules, programme and results links; an English version is one click away.
• Entry on EQ Timing (opens in a new tab): Where you enter the 2027 races and see the current price per distance.
• 2026 results (opens in a new tab): Full results per distance and class from the 2026 edition, with splits at the control points.
• Visit Tromsø on the race (opens in a new tab): The tourist board's listing with links to travel and accommodation in Tromsø.