Caballo Blanco 100M

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 1678m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 31% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• The finish is runnable. Save your legs to run it all the way.
• Long race. Control your HR and effort. Early mistakes cost the most.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 88.5km, then run your race pace.
• 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–13.1km · Climb of 875m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.
• Work · 13.1km–88.5km · Descent of 487m averaging 8%, descent of 351m averaging 7%, descent of 1678m averaging 7%. 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Fade · 88.5km–149km · Climb of 1854m. Plus 1 more descent. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. 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 · 149km–158km · 8.4km of runnable trail. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.

Course

By gradient, 38% of the distance is uphill, 41% downhill and 21% flat. The longest climb runs 22.8km at an average 8.1% grade (1854m of vertical). The longest descent runs 22.7km at an average 7.4% grade (1678m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 34.1% over 0.3km. The steepest descent drops at 33.1% over 0.3km. Surface: 74% smooth and 5% road.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 18.8km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is high (index 65 of 100), with 50% of the load in the first half: 4 critical descents, the last of them run on already damaged legs. Downhill-specific preparation and a controlled early pace pay off here.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 88.5km, then run your race pace.
• #2 · 13.1–19.1 km · 487 m D−, -8.1% · 138.7 km ahead → control
• #3 · 21.3–26.2 km · 338 m D−, -7.0% · 131.6 km ahead → control
• #4 · 51.3–56.0 km · 351 m D−, -7.5% · 101.8 km ahead → control
• #1 · 65.8–88.5 km · 1678 m D−, -7.4% · 69.3 km ahead → control
• 134.5–149.4 km · 1711 m D−, -11.5% · 8.4 km ahead → your pace