Trail 21K

Race strategy

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

• Final 1054m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Steep 28% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 16.1km.
• Start · 0.0km–1.7km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.7km–16.1km · Climb of 1342m, high point 2364m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.
• Home · 16.1km–23.9km · Descent of 1054m averaging 14%. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course. Long descent: keep it even and let go only near the end. Hike the steepest pitches.

Course

The course climbs 1750m+. With 83m/km of climbing, the course is exceptionally steep, with long hiking-grade sections. By gradient, 50% of the distance is uphill, 38% downhill and 13% flat. The longest climb runs 16.1km at an average 8.3% grade (1342m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.8km at an average 13.5% grade (1054m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 33.7% over 0.3km. The steepest descent drops at 27.6% over 2.1km. Surface: 61% trail, 34% smooth, and 6% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 37.7 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 3.4km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 20 of 100), with 15% of the load in the first half: 0 descents deserve a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 16.1km.
• 16.1–23.9 km · 1054 m D−, -13.6% · 0.0 km ahead → even, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 11°C to 22°C, with around 13°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 37%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 4% of days around this date.