KronplatzKing MTB Marathon: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The race starts at 1,205 metres in San Vigilio and goes up immediately. From kilometre 2 there are two ramps of nearly three kilometres each at an average of over ten per cent, with the Piz de Plaies feed zone sitting in the middle of them. After the high point at kilometre 8 comes the steepest section of the day at kilometre 10: 1.7 kilometres averaging thirteen per cent with pitches over twenty. The course then descends for a long stretch, running south across the valley to the Tamersc tech zone.

From kilometre 42 the part that decides the race begins. Three climbs of two to three and a half kilometres, each around ten per cent, lead over the Furkel pass to the first crossing of the Kronplatz summit. A descent follows, then two more climbs from kilometres 59 and 61 back up to 2,275 metres. The course touches the summit twice, and only the second approach is the finish.

The surface changes constantly. The organiser counts eight kilometres of freeride descent and nine kilometres of singletrack, and under six per cent of the distance is flat at all: you spend almost sixty per cent of the race either climbing steeply or descending steeply. The Dolomite walls of the Fanes massif stand all around; the finish is on the cable-car-served Plan de Corones plateau, where the winner is proclaimed King of the Fanes realm after the Ladin legend the race is named for.

Pacing Strategy

This course puts its climbing at both ends. The first eleven kilometres already cost around 850 metres of ascent, and because they come straight after the eight o'clock start, almost everybody rides them too hard. Over 2,100 metres of climbing then remain, nearly all of it in the second half. Ride the opening on feeling rather than on power or heart rate and you pay for it from kilometre 42.

That block is where the race is decided: over 900 metres of ascent in three climbs from the tech zone over the Furkel to the first summit crossing, and then, after a descent, a further 400-odd metres from kilometre 59 with pitches up to 21 per cent. The first contact with the summit feels like the finish and is not, and that is this course's real trap.

The second trap is the descending. Eighteen per cent of the distance is steep descent on freeride and trail surfaces, and arms and hands spent there are not available on the last climb. Plan the three zones at Piz de Plaies, Tamersc and Furkel firmly into the day: July in the valley can be hot, while the summit at 2,275 metres is markedly cooler and windier.

Training plan for KronplatzKing MTB Marathon: 12-week build

For 64 kilometres with a good 3,000 metres of climbing, expect three to five and a half hours depending on your level. The fastest reach the top around eleven in the morning, most of the field considerably later. The demand is not steady: with under six per cent of the course flat, you alternate constantly between long threshold climbing and technical descending, with short, very steep ramps above twenty per cent in between that have to be ridden anaerobically.

The decisive phases come late. Everything from kilometre 42 is tackled with roughly 2,000 metres of climbing already in the legs, and the final climb to the summit starts after 61 kilometres. That is what training has to mirror: long rides whose elevation sits at the back end, and climbs you start after three hours of riding rather than fresh.

Then there is the technical side. Eight kilometres of freeride descent and nine kilometres of singletrack are about a quarter of the course, not a sideshow, and they are ridden tired. Handling under pre-fatigue, upper-body and grip strength, and confident descending on loose ground all pay straight into the finishing time.

Finally the conditions: a July race starting at 1,205 metres and finishing at 2,275 asks for heat tolerance low down and an altitude and clothing decision up top. If you live at low elevation, get in at least a few multi-hour sessions at comparable altitude beforehand.