Perpetua Coast 10K

Race strategy

Short race: go all out.

• Hold your race pace up to 3.8km, but stay in control.
• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 3.8km.
• Start · 0.0km–1.5km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Work · 1.5km–3.8km · Plus 1 more climb. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace.
• Home · 3.8km–11.1km · Descent of 303m averaging 4%, high point 300m. Kick for the line: give it everything you've got. Long descent: keep it even and let go only near the end.

Course

By gradient, 28% of the distance is uphill, 34% downhill and 37% flat. The longest climb runs 3.8km at an average 7.3% grade (274m of vertical). The longest descent runs 7.4km at an average 4.1% grade (303m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 15.7% over 1.1km. The steepest descent drops at 17.4% over 1.0km. Surface: 57% trail, 35% road, and 7% smooth.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 1.1km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

There is too little runnable descent to damage the quads: plan the race around climbing and fuelling.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, and go all out on the final descent from 3.8km.
• 3.8–11.1 km · 303 m D−, -4.1% · 0.0 km ahead → even, let go at the end