For the first time, the Tenerife Bluetrail will have all runners geolocated

The Tenerife Bluetrail, Spain’s highest mountain race, organized by the Tenerife Island Council (Cabildo) through the public company Ideco, the Sports Department, and Tenerife Tourism, will geolocate its athletes at all times on the race map via an application that will allow them to access their times and track their progress.

This will be one of the new features of the tenth edition of the Tenerife Bluetrail, which, for the first time in its history, will host the Spanish Ultra Championship for both individual and regional teams. The event kicks off tomorrow, Thursday the 3rd, with the Vertical Night Challenge, which will start in Los Realejos and finish in El Asomadero. The remaining races will take place next Saturday, the 5th, starting from different municipalities and concluding at the finish line located at Lago Martiánez in Puerto de la Cruz.

The President of the Island Council, Pedro Martín, stated that “being able to hold this event means returning to normality, recovering what we recently lost, and we can achieve this return by bringing hope and smiles to the faces of many people who have been waiting for it.” The President also pointed out that “this event, one of the most important held in the country, is an opportunity to showcase Tenerife as a leading destination for people from all over the world who choose a place to enjoy their leisure time.” Finally, Pedro Martin recalled that, from the perspective of the island’s society, this is a race that transcends its own boundaries because it is “a link between the South and the North of the island.”

The Councilor for Sports of the Tenerife Island Council, Concepción Rivero, highlighted “the great effort made by the island institution, after last year’s hiatus, to be able to hold this edition of a landmark event on the national sporting calendar.” She also noted that its celebration will generate a “multiplier effect on the appeal of those who choose destinations that promote active tourism.”

For her part, the Island Director of Sports, Laura Castro, emphasized the value “of this race in which inclusion is not just a word, but a fundamental factor upon which the Bluetrail is based.” In this regard, he highlighted the four inclusive race options as one of the main features of this great celebration of sport on the island.

Race director Fernando Ordoñez noted that more than 700 people work on organizing this event and, among the new features, pointed to the inclusion of a vertical race for the first time in the race’s ten-year history, the COVID-19 safety measures, the expanded start and finish areas, and the protocols at the aid stations.

The race, in which 2,200 runners from 29 countries participate, offers seven options in this tenth edition: the Ultra, 105 kilometers; the Trail, 74 kilometers, which also has a relay option; the Marathon, 42 kilometers; and the Half Marathon, 20 kilometers. The Bluetrail Challenge for people with disabilities includes three distances: 8, 3.7, and 1.2 kilometers, as well as a 3.1-kilometer nighttime vertical race. All events will be adapted to the anti-Covid protocols required by health authorities for this type of event.

The Tenerife Bluetrail is also the only mountain race with 24-hour live music, thanks to the involvement of the band Bloko del Valle. The percussion group will once again provide energy for the runners from the nighttime start of the Ultra race, throughout part of the course, and also at the finish line. This collaboration has become a hallmark of the Bluetrail spirit that makes the Tenerife race so special.

The race will traverse Teide National Park in both its Trail and Ultra versions, with the latter reaching an altitude of 3,555 meters at La Rambleta, making it the highest race in Spain and the second highest in Europe. Furthermore, the Tenerife Bluetrail is considered one of the most attractive races on the national and international scene, not only for its technical challenge but also for the diversity and uniqueness of the landscapes it traverses.

Race safety will be reinforced this year with the presence of two Red Cross rescue drones, joining the more than 700 people the organizers will mobilize to ensure the event runs smoothly. These include personnel from the Civil Guard, the Island Council’s Roads Department, the Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA), Civil Protection, the Red Cross, volunteers, and QRV Emergencias (QRV Emergency Services).