To describe Hélène Dumais as an ultra-runner, adventure racer or endurance athlete doesn’t quite cover it. An extreme mix of all three, she was the first (and only) woman to finish the brutal Survival Run Nicaragua (an extreme 50-mile race peppered with unique challenges) in 2016, which she followed two days later with its 100km Ultra Trail sister event to complete the Devil’s Double. In 2017, she came second lady in the 430km Montane Spine Race, and in the same year ran 738km as part of Infinitus888.

Here, the unstoppable Canadian reveals why the Montane Spine Race was her toughest event yet, and shares her accounts of disorientating fatigue and near-death running experiences.