Mini-Taur 10K

Race strategy

Short race: go all out.

• Steep 34% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Hold your race pace up to Bluff Mountain, but stay in control.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 5.1km.
• Start · 0.0km–1.6km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Work · 1.6km–5.1km · Climb of 842m, high point 2134m. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Home · 5.1km–9.8km · Descent of 883m averaging 19%. Kick for the line: give it everything you've got. Long descent: keep it even and let go only near the end. Hike the steepest pitches.

Course

The course climbs 950m+. With 90m/km of climbing, the course is exceptionally steep, with long hiking-grade sections. By gradient, 46% of the distance is uphill, 36% downhill and 18% flat. The longest climb runs 5.1km at an average 16.4% grade (842m of vertical). The longest descent runs 4.7km at an average 18.7% grade (883m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 38.9% over 0.6km. The steepest descent drops at 32.9% over 1.2km. Surface: 52% trail and 5% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 18.4 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Bluff Mountain (2145m), 5.1km from the start.

Poles

Trekking poles are strongly recommended: about 1.9km of the course is steep enough for them to pay off.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is low (index 12 of 100): a few descents worth noting, none of them decisive.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 5.1km.
• 5.1–9.8 km · 883 m D−, -18.7% · 0.0 km ahead → even, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 15°C to 26°C, with around 15°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 51%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 5% of days around this date.