Long Distance

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• Big early climb with 1010m gain. Hold your pace, save your legs for later.
• 1089m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the way down from it until 20.9km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 26.1km.
• Start · 0.0km–2.2km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.2km–10.3km · Climb of 1009m, high point 1109m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.
• Work · 10.3km–26.1km · Descent of 1089m averaging 10%. Plus 2 more climbs and 1 descent. 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.
• Home · 26.1km–32.4km · Descent of 368m averaging 6%. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course.

Course

The course climbs 1800m+. With 51m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 42% of the distance is uphill, 44% downhill and 14% flat. The longest climb runs 10.3km at an average 9.8% grade (1009m of vertical). The longest descent runs 10.6km at an average 10.2% grade (1089m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 40.4% over 0.2km. The steepest descent drops at 30.2% over 0.3km. Surface: 63% trail, 17% smooth, and 13% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 48.3 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Almeces (1124m), 10.3km from the start.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 3.1km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 24 of 100), with 53% 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 mountain, save your quads on the way down from it until 20.9km, then run your race pace, and go all out on the final descent from 26.1km.
• #1 · 10.3–20.9 km · 1089 m D−, -10.2% · 11.5 km ahead → control
• 26.1–32.4 km · 368 m D−, -5.8% · 0.0 km ahead → free

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 11°C to 17°C, with around 13°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 19%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 3% of days around this date.