Leutasch Trail

Race strategy

Hold a steady pace and save energy for every section.

• 986m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 33% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 1310m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• 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 43.0km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 53.9km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• 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–14.5km · Climb of 940m, high point 2046m, descent of 986m averaging 15%. 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 · 14.5km–37.3km · Plus 1 more climb. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. Climb by heart rate or breathing, not pace. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Fade · 37.3km–53.9km · Descent of 479m averaging 8%, climb of 1266m. Your energy fades, and that's normal: hold a steady effort and stop counting the miles. 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. Your heart rate drifts down on its own: don't chase your early-race numbers, go by feel.
• Home · 53.9km–67.1km · Descent of 1310m averaging 10%. No heroics: settle back into your own effort and hold it to the line. Very long descent: first half under control, then even, let go only near the end.

Course

The course climbs 3100m+. With 45m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 31% of the distance is uphill, 36% downhill and 33% flat. The longest climb runs 10.9km at an average 11.6% grade (1266m of vertical). The longest descent runs 13.2km at an average 9.9% grade (1310m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 31.5% over 0.3km. The steepest descent drops at 48.1% over 0.3km. Surface: 56% trail, 24% smooth, 10% technical, and 10% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 96.7 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Wamberg (1307m), 37.3km from the start. The course also passes close to Osterfelderkopf (2060m) and Kreuzeck (1651m).

Poles

Trekking poles are worth taking: about 8.2km of the course favours them.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 41 of 100), with 40% 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 43.0km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 53.9km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 7.8–14.5 km · 986 m D−, -14.7% · 52.6 km ahead → control
• #2 · 37.3–43.0 km · 479 m D−, -8.5% · 24.2 km ahead → control
• 53.9–67.1 km · 1310 m D−, -9.9% · 0.0 km ahead → even, first half under control, let go at the end

Weather

On race day, start temperatures have historically ranged from 10°C to 23°C, with around 13°C at the highest point; the chance of precipitation is about 67%. Heavy rain of 10.0mm or more falls on about 17% of days around this date.