Tarawera T21

Race strategy

Run the climb at race pace, build your speed on the downhill, and go all out at the finish.

• Start easy and control your HR up to 11.6km.
• Hold your race pace up to 14.9km, but stay in control.
• The finish is runnable. Save your legs to run it all the way.
• Ease into the early runnable section, then run your race pace.
• Start · 0.0km–2.4km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.4km–11.6km · Climb of 121m, high point 527m. 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 · 11.6km–14.9km · Plus 1 more descent. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort.
• Home · 14.9km–22.5km · 7.6km of runnable trail. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.

Course

The course climbs 400m+. With 17m/km of climbing, the course is predominantly runnable. By gradient, 10% of the distance is uphill, 20% downhill and 69% flat. The longest climb runs 1.0km at an average 12.0% grade (121m of vertical). The longest descent runs 3.3km at an average 6.8% grade (224m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 20.5% over 0.3km. The steepest descent drops at 21.0% over 0.2km. Flat-equivalent effort: 27.0 FlatKM.

Poles

The course is runnable enough that trekking poles are not needed.

Quad damage

There is too little runnable descent to damage the quads: plan the race around climbing and fuelling.

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 16°C to 22°C, with around 20°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 37%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 9% of days around this date.