CSD 70K

Race strategy

Run hard on the first mountain, but save energy for the second.

• Steep 37% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• 694m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Final 542m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Long race. Control your HR and effort. Early mistakes cost the most.
• Control your HR on the first climb, save your quads on the descents until 29.0km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 63.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–1.9km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.9km–17.9km · Climb of 728m. 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. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Work · 17.9km–29.0km · Climb of 571m, high point 1152m, descent of 694m averaging 9%. 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. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Fade · 29.0km–63.8km · Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. 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 · 63.8km–70.4km · Descent of 542m averaging 8%. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end.

Course

The course climbs 3100m+. With 44m/km of climbing, this is a rolling, mostly runnable course. By gradient, 43% of the distance is uphill, 34% downhill and 23% flat. The longest climb runs 11.4km at an average 6.4% grade (728m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.3km at an average 9.5% grade (694m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 26.9% over 0.5km. The steepest descent drops at 37.5% over 0.5km. Surface: 59% trail and 30% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 97.8 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 9.7km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 38 of 100), with 52% 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 29.0km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 63.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 21.7–29.0 km · 694 m D−, -9.5% · 41.3 km ahead → control
• 63.8–70.4 km · 542 m D−, -8.3% · 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 13°C, with around 14°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 25%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 2% of days around this date.