Misurina Sky Marathon

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 723m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• High point at 2555m. Control your HR at altitude.
• Final 1131m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Steep 29% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 19.6km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 28.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–1.8km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.8km–19.6km · Descent of 432m averaging 16%, climb of 861m, descent of 723m averaging 18%. Plus 1 more climb. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. This descent is hard on the legs: short steps, stay in control, poles if you have them. At altitude your pace drops, and that's fine. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Work · 19.6km–28.8km · Climb of 902m, high point 2555m. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. At altitude your pace drops, and that's fine.
• Home · 28.8km–41.7km · Descent of 1131m averaging 9%. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end. At altitude your pace drops, and that's fine. Hike the steepest pitches.

Course

The course climbs 2600m+. With 62m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 48% of the distance is uphill, 44% downhill and 8% flat. The longest climb runs 9.2km at an average 9.8% grade (902m of vertical). The longest descent runs 12.9km at an average 8.8% grade (1131m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 35.3% over 0.3km. The steepest descent drops at 29.4% over 0.5km. Surface: 87% trail and 8% technical. Flat-equivalent effort: 72.8 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Cima Cadin del Deserto (2467m), 15.3km from the start. The course also passes close to Torre Caldart (2452m) and Frankfurter Würstel - Salsiccia di Francoforte (2386m).

Poles

Trekking poles are worth taking: about 6.2km of the course favours them.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 35 of 100), with 50% of the load in the first half: 2 descents deserve a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 19.6km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 28.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #2 · 4.4–7.1 km · 432 m D−, -16.2% · 34.6 km ahead → control
• #1 · 15.5–19.6 km · 723 m D−, -17.7% · 22.0 km ahead → control
• 28.8–41.7 km · 1131 m D−, -8.8% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 0°C to 10°C, with around 8°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 52%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 12% of days around this date.