When we launched the Trail Athlete Fund, the objective was straightforward: help more runners reach the start lines of trail races. It became our flagship and most established program, but its value has never been limited to the entries it funds. The work has kept us close to athletes and created conversations before races, after races, and throughout the process of finding a place in the sport. In those conversations, we began hearing a simple question: Do you know a coach of color I can work with? Our honest answer was that our list was far too short.
That gap changed how we understand access. A start line matters, but participation is only one part of belonging to a sport. We also have to ask who gets to develop expertise, build a practice, direct races, create the stories that shape trail culture, and make decisions about where the sport goes next. If trail running is going to grow in a way that reflects the community we value, people of color need meaningful paths into those roles. The Trail Coaching Fund is our first direct investment in one of them.
The program is for aspiring trail running coaches of color, including people who may already be doing parts of the work without using the title. They organize community miles, answer training questions, mentor newer runners, and help friends navigate unfamiliar parts of trail running. They are not beginning from nothing. What may be missing is a technical foundation, a recognized credential, and the opportunity to practice with support. Taking that step can be intimidating, especially when few people around you have taken it before. We built the Trail Coaching Fund to make the transition more supported and less solitary.
Selected coaches will receive the complete UESCA Ultrarunning Coach Certification. From September 8, 2026, through January 22, 2027, they will complete the self paced coursework as a cohort and meet for one hour every other week. Each coach will also work with two consenting Trail Athlete Fund runners, applying what they learn with feedback and support from the cohort. We designed the program this way because early coaching produces real questions about communication, planning, safety, adaptation, and professional scope. We want those questions discussed, not carried alone. We do not want to pay for a course, send a congratulatory message, and disappear.
We believe the Trail Coaching Fund could become one of Tierra Libre Run's most important programs. Not because one cohort will transform trail running, but because coaching works through relationships. More coaches of color can broaden who is recognized as an expert and give runners more people they can choose to trust. As the sport grows, representation across the roles shaping that growth needs to expand with it. That will require more than good intentions. We still care deeply about who gets to the start line.