ONCOL 65K

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• Steep 29% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• 693m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• 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 30.6km, then run your race pace.
• Start · 0.0km–2.1km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 2.1km–20.9km · Descent of 296m averaging 10%, climb of 629m. Plus 1 more climb. 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.
• Work · 20.9km–30.6km · Descent of 693m averaging 7%, high point 576m. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. This descent is hard on the legs: short steps, stay in control, poles if you have them.
• Fade · 30.6km–56.9km · Plus 1 more climb and 2 descents. 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. Hike the steepest pitches. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 56.9km–63.1km · 6.2km 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

The course climbs 2600m+. With 40m/km of climbing, this is a rolling, mostly runnable course. By gradient, 34% of the distance is uphill, 32% downhill and 33% flat. The longest climb runs 11.9km at an average 5.3% grade (629m of vertical). The longest descent runs 9.6km at an average 7.2% grade (693m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 29.3% over 0.6km. The steepest descent drops at 32.3% over 0.3km. Surface: 40% trail, 36% smooth, and 23% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 86.4 FlatKM.

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 4.6km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 28 of 100), with 55% of the load in the first half: 2 descents deserve a plan and a couple of downhill sessions before race day.

• Control your HR on the first mountain, save your quads on the descents until 30.6km, then run your race pace.
• #2 · 6.0–9.0 km · 296 m D−, -9.6% · 54.1 km ahead → control
• #1 · 20.9–30.6 km · 693 m D−, -7.2% · 32.5 km ahead → control
• 39.2–41.2 km · 295 m D−, -14.6% · 21.9 km ahead → your pace
• 50.6–56.9 km · 325 m D−, -5.2% · 6.2 km ahead → your pace

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 3°C to 11°C, with around 7°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 61%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 21% of days around this date.