Mittenwald Trail

Race strategy

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

• 465m descent. Go easy, save your quads.
• Steep 26% wall. Control your pace and stay focused.
• Final 1311m descent. Save your legs to go all out on it.
• Ease into the early runnable section, save your quads on the descents until 18.5km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 29.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• Start · 0.0km–1.8km · Race-day nerves push your heart rate up: don't follow the crowd, find your own rhythm.
• Settle in · 1.8km–13.2km · 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. Running pays off here: run wherever you can.
• Work · 13.2km–29.8km · Descent of 465m averaging 9%, climb of 1252m, high point 2017m. This is where the race is built: steady, solid effort. 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 · 29.8km–43.0km · Descent of 1311m 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 2110m+. With 48m/km of climbing, this is a true mountain course with sustained climbs and descents. By gradient, 35% of the distance is uphill, 41% downhill and 25% flat. The longest climb runs 11.3km at an average 11.1% grade (1252m of vertical). The longest descent runs 13.2km at an average 9.9% grade (1311m of vertical). The steepest climb averages 28.5% over 0.4km. The steepest descent drops at 34.8% over 0.3km. Surface: 65% trail, 21% smooth, and 10% road. Flat-equivalent effort: 62.5 FlatKM.

Summits

The highest summit on the course is Wamberg (1307m), 13.2km from the start. The course also passes close to Osterfelderkopf (2060m) and Kreuzeck (1651m).

Poles

Poles bring little benefit here: only about 7.8km of pole-friendly terrain.

Quad damage

Quad damage risk is moderate (index 29 of 100), with 37% 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 18.5km, then run your race pace, and start the final descent from 29.8km under control, then go all out near the bottom.
• #1 · 13.2–18.5 km · 465 m D−, -8.8% · 24.5 km ahead → control
• 29.8–43.0 km · 1311 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 20°C, with around 14°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.