108km

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 545m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 28% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• The finish is runnable. Save your legs to run it all the way.
• Long race. Control your HR and effort. Early mistakes cost the most.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 38.8km, then run your race pace.
• Start · 0.0km–1.5km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.5km–16.0km · Descent of 261m averaging 12%. Plus 2 more climbs. 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Work · 16.0km–63.3km · Climb of 609m, high point 1016m, descent of 545m averaging 17%, descent of 555m averaging 6%. 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. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Fade · 63.3km–65.5km · Plus 1 more descent. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 65.5km–107km · 41.6km of runnable trail. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.

Course

The course climbs 4000m+. With 37m/km of climbing, this is a rolling, mostly runnable course. By gradient, 36% of the distance is uphill, 34% downhill and 30% flat. The longest climb runs 7.6km at an average 8.0% grade (609m of vertical). The longest descent runs 9.5km at an average 5.9% grade (555m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 24.8% over 0.5km. The steepest descent drops at 27.8% over 0.6km. Surface: 48% trail, 23% smooth, 21% road, and 8% technical. Flat-equivalent effort: 139.1 FlatKM.

Poles

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

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 43 of 100), with 59% 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 38.8km, then run your race pace.
• #3 · 4.1–6.2 km · 261 m D−, -11.9% · 100.9 km ahead → control
• #1 · 23.6–26.9 km · 545 m D−, -16.6% · 80.3 km ahead → control
• #2 · 29.3–38.8 km · 555 m D−, -5.9% · 68.4 km ahead → control

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 6°C to 14°C, with around 8°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 42%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 17% of days around this date.