Breisgau Triathlon: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The race begins in the Müllersee at Riegel. The calm water offers good sighting; the middle distance swims two laps for a total of 1,900 metres, after which a short path leads into the first transition right on the lake shore.

The bike course is what defines the day. Three laps through Malterdingen and the surrounding villages of the northern Breisgau make up 80 kilometres and around 900 metres of climbing. Every lap contains the same long ascent: from about kilometre 10, a good 2.7 kilometres at 5.6 percent on average with ramps up to ten percent, the only categorised climb on the course. Roughly twelve kilometres later comes a second, shorter rise of 1.35 kilometres at just under four percent. In between, flowing sections alternate with fast descents and short rollers through the vineyard slopes; only around 44 percent of the bike course is flat.

The closing half marathon runs two laps around Malterdingen and, at roughly 90 metres of gain, is far tamer but not flat: each lap holds a short ramp of some 300 metres at nearly six percent after about seven kilometres, and it is clearly felt on tired legs. Almost 80 percent of the run is flat, and the finish is on the event ground of Sportverein Malterdingen.

Pacing Strategy

The day is metered out on the bike and settled on the run. Swim the two lake laps calmly and leave the water without going into the red; with almost 990 metres of climbing in the hours that follow, a fast swim split buys you very little.

The decisive section is the 2.7-kilometre forest climb you ride three times. At 5.6 percent it feels moderate the first time and no longer does the third. Ride it at the same clearly capped intensity every lap instead of chasing your first-lap time; the ramps up to ten percent are best taken in a smaller gear at higher cadence. On the fast descents and the 44 percent of flat road you take the time back without burning matches.

The main trap is the second rise of each lap: at just under four percent it is shallow enough to be pushed in the big ring, and long enough that doing so three times gets genuinely expensive. On the half marathon the trap is the short six-percent ramp after roughly seven kilometres of each lap; attack it with a shortened stride rather than trying to hold pace.

Training plan for Breisgau Triathlon: 12-week build

For the Breisgau middle distance, expect roughly five to seven hours of racing depending on your level. It is a long, largely aerobic effort well below threshold, but the three climbs give it a clear structure.

The demand is undulating rather than steady: on the bike you enter a longer tempo block on the hill three times for some 15 to 20 minutes, rolling over descents and flat sections in between. Insist on constant power and you either overcook the ten-percent ramps or give time away downhill.

The third pass of the forest climb at kilometre 58.6 decides the bike, and what follows decides the race: whether you can still run 21 rolling kilometres evenly. The short ramp on each run lap then tells you whether your rhythm is holding.

Training should therefore centre on long rides with repeated 10- to 20-minute climbs, ideally with most of the vertical in the second half of the session, because the course spreads its climbs evenly across the whole split. Add descending and aero-position work so the fast sections are not lost time. For the run, long brick sessions off those rides are indispensable, plus 60- to 90-second uphill repeats for the short ramp. Racing in the vineyards in August also argues for deliberate heat exposure and a fully rehearsed fuelling plan.