All of the Above Trail Fest (AOTA) marked its fourth edition on 29 August 2026, powered by a collaboration between The Venture out Project (TVOP) and Beast Coast Trail Running. The event serves as a fundraiser for TVOP, an organisation that runs backpack outings and excursions for queer and trans people, with the goal of making outdoor spaces more welcoming and accessible.
The race took place with start and finish at the foot of Northfield Mountain, featuring a 20K route climbed twice during the event. The terrain featured 2,500 feet of elevation gain on rooted and rocky trails, typical of New England, all set in an environment where the idea was not just to “break” the finish line.
AOTA deliberately shifted the meaning of competition: there’s no finish banner and, more broadly, no podiums. In the 5K, there is “no time”, and the event instead offers a 20K “prediction run” and a non-timed 5K run and walk, as well as a kids’ fun run.
To defuse the importance of rankings, the winner of the 20K “prediction run” isn’t the person who crosses the line first: it’s the athlete whose predicted finish time is the most accurate. This is also reinforced by the absence of gender categories, as gender information was not collected at registration.
Inclusion also extends to registration design: the race relies on RunReg to prevent any collection of gender identity information. Amy Rusiecki explains that the goal was for people to not even have to state their gender identity when signing up, and says that RunReg ensured these details would not be collected.
Finally, the event highlights practices where the pace isn’t what you’d expect on a traditional race: in the 5K, Andrew and Tyler, who knit every year for AOTA, move along without trying to beat the clock. Their approach aims to show that going slowly and enjoying it is also part of the experience, favouring discovering the place, collecting stones and painting over performance.
