32.9km

Race strategy

Run easy on the first mountain, then go all out on the second.

• 356m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 27% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 518m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Ease into the early runnable section, save your quads on the descents until 17.3km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 20.7km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–2.0km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.0km–17.3km · Descent of 356m averaging 11%. Plus 1 more climb and 1 descent. 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Work · 17.3km–20.7km · Climb of 444m, high point 623m. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Hike the steepest pitches.
• Home · 20.7km–31.9km · Descent of 518m averaging 5%. 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 1626m+. With 49m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 41% of the distance is uphill, 40% downhill and 19% flat. The longest climb runs 7.0km at an average 6.8% grade (476m of vertical). The longest descent runs 11.2km at an average 4.6% grade (518m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 27.3% over 0.7km. The steepest descent drops at 24.1% over 0.4km. Surface: 60% trail, 25% technical, and 12% smooth. Flat-equivalent effort: 43.8 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Gudurički vrh (641m), 20.7km from the start. Other named summits along the route: Coka (601m) and Djakov vrh (449m).

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 3.9km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 23 of 100), with 57% of the load in the first half: 1 descent deserves a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Ease into the early runnable section, save your quads on the descents until 17.3km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 20.7km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 14.0–17.3 km · 356 m D−, -10.8% · 14.6 km ahead → control
• 20.7–31.9 km · 518 m D−, -4.6% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 3°C to 14°C, with around 11°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 32%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 2% of days around this date.