Sobrescobio Skyrace

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 559m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Final 748m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Steep 52% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the way down from it until 9.1km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 22.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–2.3km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.3km–14.2km · Climb of 643m, descent of 559m averaging 18%, climb of 710m, high point 1151m. 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. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Work · 14.2km–22.8km · Descent of 712m averaging 12%. Plus 1 more climb. 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.
• Home · 22.8km–30.4km · Descent of 748m averaging 10%. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end. Hike the steepest pitches.

Course

The course climbs 2100m+. With 66m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 49% of the distance is uphill, 43% downhill and 8% flat. The longest climb runs 6.1km at an average 10.6% grade (643m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.5km at an average 9.9% grade (748m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 27.7% over 0.5km. The steepest descent drops at 52.0% over 0.4km. Surface: 45% trail, 23% smooth, 11% technical, and 11% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 50.4 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Pico Cogollu (1144m), 14.1km from the start. Other named summits along the route: Pico Fresnos (1016m). The course also passes close to Pico la Piedra (967m).

Poles

Trekking poles are worth taking: about 5.0km of the course favours them.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 27 of 100), with 43% 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 way down from it until 9.1km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 22.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 6.1–9.1 km · 559 m D−, -18.3% · 21.2 km ahead → control
• #2 · 14.2–20.0 km · 712 m D−, -12.4% · 10.4 km ahead → your pace
• 22.8–30.4 km · 748 m D−, -9.9% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 7°C to 14°C, with around 10°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 43%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 5% of days around this date.

Results

495 finishers completed the 2026 edition. Men's winner: Frédéric TRANCHAND (France) in 2:39:14. Women's winner: Sara ALONSO (Spain) in 3:14:02.