Ivanjica trail 23K

Race strategy

Run the downhill at race pace, but focus on the climb.

• 379m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 26% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 528m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Go easy on the first downhill, save your quads on the descents until 5.2km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 14.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–2.8km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.8km–14.8km · Descent of 379m averaging 7%, climb of 869m, high point 1478m. Ease in: hold back more than feels necessary. The race is still ahead. 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. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Home · 14.8km–22.9km · Descent of 528m averaging 7%. Build to the finish: leave whatever you have left out on the course. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end.

Course

The course climbs 950m+. With 41m/km of climbing, this is a rolling, mostly runnable course. By gradient, 37% of the distance is uphill, 53% downhill and 11% flat. The longest climb runs 9.6km at an average 9.1% grade (869m of vertical). The longest descent runs 8.1km at an average 6.5% grade (528m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 25.6% over 0.6km. The steepest descent drops at 15.8% over 0.3km. Surface: 50% smooth and 47% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 27.0 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Stragacinsko brdo (1026m), 9.4km from the start.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 1.5km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is low (index 15 of 100): a few descents worth noting, none of them decisive.

• Go easy on the first downhill, save your quads on the descents until 5.2km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 14.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 0.0–5.2 km · 379 m D−, -7.3% · 17.7 km ahead → control
• 14.8–22.9 km · 528 m D−, -6.5% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 9°C to 19°C, with around 14°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 53%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 8% of days around this date.