Камена Баба Треил

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 515m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Start easy and control your HR up to 17.5km.
• Hold your race pace up to 35.0km, but stay in control.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 24.6km, then run your race pace.
• Start · 0.0km–1.4km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.4km–17.5km · Climb of 541m, descent of 333m averaging 16%, descent of 515m averaging 12%. 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.
• Work · 17.5km–35.0km · Climb of 533m, high point 1276m, descent of 431m averaging 16%. 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Home · 35.0km–39.5km · Climb of 173m. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.

Course

The course climbs 2300m+. With 58m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 42% of the distance is uphill, 42% downhill and 17% flat. The longest climb runs 6.6km at an average 8.2% grade (541m of vertical). The longest descent runs 4.3km at an average 12.0% grade (515m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 29.3% over 0.4km. The steepest descent drops at 26.6% over 0.2km. Surface: 74% trail and 10% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 60.6 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 8.8km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 30 of 100), with 49% of the load in the first half: 3 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 24.6km, then run your race pace.
• #2 · 6.6–8.7 km · 333 m D−, -15.8% · 30.8 km ahead → control
• #1 · 13.2–17.5 km · 515 m D−, -12.0% · 22.0 km ahead → control
• #3 · 21.9–24.6 km · 431 m D−, -15.8% · 14.9 km ahead → control

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 0°C to 12°C, with around 5°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 34%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 5% of days around this date.