France\u2019s D\u2019haene, a four-time Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc champion and UTMB course record holder, had planned to spend time running in the San Juan Mountains to prepare for this year\u2019s Hardrock, and he still traveled to Southwest Colorado despite the race cancellation that was announced June 10.<\/p>\n \u201cFran\u00e7ois D\u2019haene, in my mind, is probably the best runner on the planet in terms of consistency and skill at ultra-running,\u201d Frost said. \u201cHe has so much experience. He had a baby boy and was coming for Hardrock and decided to still come anyway. He\u2019s pretty dedicated to his commitment to coming for Hardrock.\u201d<\/p>\n Garland has yet to meet D\u2019haene in person and is eager for him to join the Hardrock community this weekend.<\/p>\n \u201cIt does mean a lot when somebody of his stature and with his prestige in the ultra-running community says, you know what, it\u2019s worth it for me to not blow this thing off and rearrange my schedule, I\u2019m still going to enjoy the San Juan Mountains and still gonna be part of the Hardrock community,\u201d Garland said.<\/p>\n Durango\u2019s Jones also will be in attendance along with representatives from Salomon running. Frost said there will be several gear giveaways as well as a donation box to benefit the Silverton community and help mitigate the economic impact of there not being a race this year.<\/p>\n \u201cI know Salomon is doing a special work day on Monday, so they are giving back and being part of the community, which I think is really cool,\u201d Garland said.<\/p>\n The week of activities will shift Monday to Silverton with a focus around building the Hardrock community and providing events for the runners who are in town.<\/p>\n Part of the week is trail work, as teams will meet in front of the Silverton School at 7:30 a.m. each day with the goal of returning to town at 4 p.m. Course director James Varner is working to determine which areas crews can reach and what work needs to be done. Trail bosses will be assigned to instruct volunteers.<\/p>\n \u201cDoing trail maintenance and that kind of stuff and see if we can undo some of the stuff that Mother Nature did this winter,\u201d Garland said. \u201cAlso, do some things for the BLM and forest service that we know they aren\u2019t going to get to that will mutually benefit us. For example, avalanche debris in Cunningham Gulch that we know they\u2019re not going to have time to do.\u201d<\/p>\n On top of the volunteer work, there will still be the \u201cTrails in Motion\u201d film tour stop Wednesday night. Dr. Timothy Durkin will also hold a high-altitude medical symposium Thursday.<\/p>\n There will be community events within Silverton, field days for travel to the various towns involved in Hardrock and a chance for runners to get out to places within the San Juan Mountains that they don\u2019t usually travel to during a Hardrock week.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a chance for people to come together every day, every night,\u201d Garland said. \u201cCommunity gatherings, a community meal Saturday night (July 20) to wrap it up. We\u2019re going to try to bring people together because they are there and want to be part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n Those interested in participating in trail work can contact Garland at dale@hardrock100.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n