Red 62k

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 482m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 32% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 526m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 42.2km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 53.7km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–2.0km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.0km–18.5km · Climb of 963m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Work · 18.5km–34.0km · Climb of 240m, high point 2079m, descent of 482m averaging 14%. Plus 2 more climbs and 1 descent. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. 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.
• Fade · 34.0km–53.7km · Descent of 809m averaging 10%, climb of 633m. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can. Hike the steepest pitches. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 53.7km–60.0km · Descent of 526m averaging 8%. 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.

Course

The course climbs 4070m+ and descends 4070m−. With 66m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 34% of the distance is uphill, 43% downhill and 23% flat. The longest climb runs 8.9km at an average 10.8% grade (963m of vertical). The longest descent runs 8.2km at an average 9.9% grade (809m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 33.6% over 0.4km. The steepest descent drops at 32.5% over 0.8km. Surface: 79% trail, 16% smooth, and 5% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 86.3 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Velika Miljevača (1930m), 9.0km from the start. The course also passes close to Zekova glava (2122m) and Borova glava (1909m).