THT 55K

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• Start easy and control your HR up to 18.5km.
• 474m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Hold your race pace up to 28.9km, but stay in control.
• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 25.5km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 48.3km.
• Start · 0.0km–2.2km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.2km–18.5km · Climb of 789m, 7.3km of runnable trail, high point 2313m. 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–28.9km · Descent of 474m averaging 7%. 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.
• Fade · 28.9km–48.3km · Plus 1 more climb and 1 descent. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Running pays off here: run wherever you can. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 48.3km–52.7km · Descent of 324m averaging 7%. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Long descent: keep it even and let go only near the end.

Course

The course climbs 2126m+. With 39m/km of climbing, this is a rolling, mostly runnable course. By gradient, 32% of the distance is uphill, 41% downhill and 27% flat. The longest climb runs 11.2km at an average 7.1% grade (789m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.0km at an average 6.7% grade (474m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 32.7% over 0.2km. The steepest descent drops at 26.9% over 0.3km. Flat-equivalent effort: 71.8 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 6.7km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 28 of 100), with 45% of the load in the first half: 1 descent deserves a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 25.5km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 48.3km.
• #1 · 18.5–25.5 km · 474 m D−, -6.7% · 27.2 km ahead → control
• 39.3–44.4 km · 461 m D−, -9.0% · 8.3 km ahead → your pace
• 48.3–52.7 km · 324 m D−, -7.2% · 0.0 km ahead → even, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 8°C to 13°C, with around 12°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 21%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 2% of days around this date.