Whalers Great Route Ultra-Trail®

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 1421m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 28% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Long race. Control your HR and effort. Early mistakes cost the most.
• Ease into the early runnable section, save your quads on the descents until 57.4km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 92.7km.
• Start · 0.0km–1.6km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.6km–13.6km · Climb of 907m. 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 · 13.6km–50.8km · Descent of 1421m averaging 7%, high point 1018m. Plus 2 more climbs. 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.
• Fade · 50.8km–92.7km · Descent of 382m averaging 6%, climb of 638m. Plus 1 more climb and 2 descents. 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 · 92.7km–101km · Descent of 474m averaging 6%. 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 4722m+ and descends 4722m−. With 47m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 37% of the distance is uphill, 39% downhill and 24% flat. The longest climb runs 6.8km at an average 13.4% grade (907m of vertical). The longest descent runs 20.4km at an average 7.0% grade (1421m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 33.6% over 0.4km. The steepest descent drops at 40.0% over 0.2km. Surface: 52% smooth, 28% trail, and 16% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 142.5 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 13.1km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 49 of 100), with 46% of the load in the first half: 2 descents deserve a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Ease into the early runnable section, save your quads on the descents until 57.4km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 92.7km.
• #1 · 22.3–42.8 km · 1421 m D−, -7.0% · 58.5 km ahead → control
• #2 · 50.8–57.4 km · 382 m D−, -5.8% · 43.8 km ahead → control
• 63.3–71.1 km · 411 m D−, -5.3% · 30.1 km ahead → your pace
• 92.6–101.2 km · 474 m D−, -5.5% · 0.0 km ahead → even, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 14°C to 17°C, with around 10°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 33%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 4% of days around this date.

Results

63 finishers completed the 2026 edition. Men's winner: ANTON FAULI (Sweden) in 11:52:18. Women's winner: EMILY KEDDIE (United States) in 14:21:51.