Behobia - San Sebastián: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The start sits at sea level on the Bidasoa in Behobia, the border village beside Irun. The road kicks up briefly after barely a kilometre, and from there the course follows the old corridor west through the valleys. At kilometre 6.6 the Gaintxurizketa begins: 800 metres averaging 6.6 per cent with ramps to eleven, the longest sustained climb of the day. Over the top it rolls downhill and undulating through Errenteria and past the harbour inlet at Pasaia.

The second test comes late. At kilometre 16.2 the Alto de Miracruz arrives, only 350 metres long but averaging 7.1 per cent and touching 12.7 – on tired legs, at exactly the point where a race begun too fast comes apart. Then the Avenida de Ategorrieta drops into the city, and the last kilometre and a half runs flat to the finish on the Alameda del Boulevard beside the old town.

This is not a picture-postcard route. It runs through border traffic, industrial valleys and the working port of Pasaia before Donostia finally opens out in all its elegance at the end, and that contrast is much of its reputation. The race was first run on 30 March 1919 and has been a mass event since 1979; today a November Sunday fills it with 30,000 people, and the recovery area on Plaza Okendo is closer to a street party than a finish enclosure. The official cut-off is 2:35.

Pacing Strategy

Split this race into two halves with different rules. Up to kilometre seven, deliberately hold back. The start is at sea level, the opening kilometres are fast and the field is enormous – the classic error is riding the gradient and the pull of 30,000 people and arriving at the foot of Gaintxurizketa already in the red.

Run Gaintxurizketa by effort, not by split; 800 metres at over six per cent will cost you time, and that is fine. The payback comes afterwards: the long rolling descent toward Errenteria and Pasaia can be run very economically if your quads are still fresh. Overcook the climb and you lose twice on exactly that stretch.

The race is decided at the Alto de Miracruz at kilometre 16.2. It is short, but at up to 12.7 per cent it is steep enough to expose whatever you have left after 16 kilometres. Plan it as its own effort and ease off for roughly half a kilometre before it. And do not attack the Ategorrieta descent that follows – you still need your legs for the flat final kilometre to the Boulevard.

Training plan for Behobia - San Sebastián: 12-week build

As an age-group runner, expect roughly 1:20 to 2:20 for the 20 kilometres; the cut-off is 2:35 from your start. The effort is largely aerobic but not uniform: about a quarter of the course climbs, almost 30 per cent descends, and only 44 per cent sits in the flat band. Across 196 metres of gain and a similar loss, that means constant changes of rhythm rather than one held pace.

The first training priority is climbing strength endurance. Prepare for Gaintxurizketa with six-to-ten-minute climbs at five to seven per cent run at threshold, and for Miracruz with short, steep 60-to-90-second repeats on a double-digit gradient. The order matters most: put those short steep efforts at the end of a long run, so your body learns to handle them with 16 kilometres already in the legs.

Second, train the downhills. A long stretch after Gaintxurizketa runs downhill, and Ategorrieta drops sharply again just before the finish. Build brisk descending segments into your long runs to condition your quads for the eccentric load – this is what decides whether you can still run the flat final kilometre or merely survive it.

Finally, rehearse the logistics. The foot race does not set off until 10:00, and with 30,000 starters you will spend a long time in the start area beforehand: practise the late breakfast and the wait on your longest training day. Early November on the Basque coast also means changeable, damp weather – test your kit and your shoes on wet tarmac before you race in them.