Mud, sweat and cameras – Irish trail and mountain running vlogging

Abstract

This article investigates the rise in participant-based running video blogs (vlogs), where audiences are brought on runs from the point-of-view of the runner. Examining Irish YouTube channels that create content around trail and mountain running, it focuses on a number of themes, including emotionality, place, and sociability in storytelling. In doing so, it questions the ways in which the activity of filming encapsulates the act of off-road running and the quest for vertiginous experiences. It explores the motivations of content creators, potential tensions with the ethos of alternative sports, and interactivity between producers and viewers. It positions this coverage as unique within the sports media space, providing first-hand, dizzying accounts of a niche sporting activity.

Keywords:

• Trail running
• mountain running
• participatory media
• vlogging

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 The International Trail Running Association (ITRA) specifies that in order for a race to be determined a trail race, no more than 20% of the route can consist of paved roads.

2 Many mountain races in Ireland do not feature marked/signposted courses, and the use of GPS technology is prohibited. Instead, the runner is reliant on a mixture of local knowledge and navigational skills through the usage of map and compass.

3 While listenership numbers tend to fluctuate, Liveline remains one of the most popular radio shows in Ireland, with the most recent figures indicating that the programme has 321,000 daily listeners (De Brun 2022).

4 The Wicklow Round is a 24-hour mountain challenge whereby runners must reach 26 different mountain peaks in the Wicklow Mountains. Atkinson describes rounds as events that “place people in the ‘raw’ contexts of culturally undetermined terrain” (Atkinson 2011, 103).