LILA LOGISTIK Charity Bike Cup: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The course is a lap of just over 19 kilometres through the Heckengäu and the Strudelbach valley, with start and finish on Weissacher Straße by the Heimerdingen sports ground. The first lap is neutralised and rolls the field out together; the flying start for the three racing laps comes only after it.

The profile is rolling, with no single long climb. Each lap has two places that matter: after roughly 14 kilometres the road rises for a little over a kilometre at around four percent on average, with short pitches near nine percent. The last two kilometres then climb up to Heimerdingen, gentler but long enough to string the field out before the line. Over four laps that adds up to a little over 850 metres of climbing.

The cup is held in early October and closes the road season for many riders. The roads are fully closed to traffic, there is feeding on course, and entry fees go to projects for sick, disabled and socially disadvantaged children in the region. The LILA RACE is the event's timed race, with a team classification and a minimum age of 16.

Pacing Strategy

Use the neutralised lap to learn the course: by the end of it you know where the ramp at 14 kilometres starts and how the final climb feels, without having spent anything. From the flying start the race is a bunch race on a rolling lap. On the flat and the descents you save energy in the draft; the work comes on the two climbs of each lap.

The race is decided on the climb up to Heimerdingen on the last lap. It is not steep, but after three hard laps and with the finish in sight it is ridden at close to sprint pace. If you can still push above threshold there, you will be near the front.

The usual trap is to follow every surge on the ramp at 14 kilometres to keep a wheel. Ride it firmly but under control, and give up a few places rather than arriving at the final climb with nothing left.

Training plan for LILA LOGISTIK Charity Bike Cup: 12-week build

Expect roughly one and a half to just over two hours at race pace for the three racing laps, depending on the field, plus the neutralised lap. The load is typical of a circuit race: long spells in the draft, broken by short, hard efforts on the climbs, out of corners and in the finale.

What decides the race is the repeated climbs of one to two kilometres that you have to ride above threshold several times in a row. Train for them with three- to six-minute intervals just above threshold on short recoveries, and place some of these blocks late in a longer ride so the last climb is not your weakest.

Add short 15 to 30 second surges from rolling speed and, where you can, group rides to practise riding in a tight bunch. Your endurance base needs to cover a little over 75 kilometres; more than that is not required.

Early October mornings can be cool and damp. Plan your clothing for the 10 am start and the neutralised lap so that you are warm at the flying start without overheating once the racing begins.