Neusiedler See Radmarathon Training Plan & Preparation

Course & Elevation

Few road races in Austria open the season like the Neusiedler See Radmarathon, a 125-kilometre counterclockwise loop around Lake Neusiedl from Mörbisch that includes a short excursion into Hungary. The route crosses a UNESCO World Heritage landscape, passing the Seewinkel National Park and the vineyards of Burgenland on its way around the lake.

The day starts with its only real climb: straight out of Mörbisch the road rises for about one and a half kilometres at an average of 6.4 percent, touching nearly 12 percent, an immediate selection in a fresh field. Rolling terrain continues to roughly kilometre 26, then the course flattens almost completely; more than 60 percent of the distance is level and the total gain of around 600 metres is spread thin across the lap. What shapes the race instead is the wind, which traditionally blows hard across the open lake basin and can split the field more decisively than any gradient. A final rise at kilometre 116 offers a launchpad for late attacks before the run back into Mörbisch.

The 2026 edition is the 34th running of the event, which opens the Austria Top Tour series and forms part of the UCI Gran Fondo World Series, drawing a competitive amateur field alongside recreational riders out to enjoy the scenery.

Pacing Strategy

The Hauptbewerb demands two completely different skills. Right after the start a Category-4 ramp of up to twelve percent hits cold legs – resist riding it flat out from a standstill, because all the climbing sits in the first 26 kilometres. Ride that hilly phase under control and keep something back. From around kilometre 28 the course turns flat and open; from here it's almost entirely about staying in a group and sharing the work against the often strong wind on the plain.

Riding alone off the front costs disproportionately on this section. A final short rise at kilometre 116 (up to ten percent) can still split a group. The classic trap is taking the early hills too hot and then losing the wheels in the flat finale.

12-Week Preparation

Plan for roughly three to four and a half hours of racing over the 125 kilometres, depending on the wind and on which group you end up in. Despite the flat profile, the effort is anything but steady. Wind and big groups turn the race into a sequence of surges: fighting for position, closing gaps, holding a wheel in a crosswind. You need the aerobic base to push for several hours and the snap to repeat short anaerobic efforts on top of it.

Three moments deserve specific preparation. The climb out of Mörbisch comes straight off the start line, so warm up properly and expect to ride above a comfortable intensity from the first minute. The exposed flat sections after kilometre 26 are where echelon skills decide the day; if you cannot read the wind and hold your place in a rotating line, you lose the group and ride home alone. And the rise at kilometre 116 is the obvious springboard for late attacks on tired legs.

Build your training around long endurance rides of three to four hours, regular race-pace work in your aero position, and short intervals of 30 seconds to 2 minutes that mimic accelerations and gap-closing. Group rides with frequent changes of pace replicate the demands far better than solo steady-state sessions. And rather than avoiding windy days, seek them out: riding confidently in the wind is the single most course-specific skill this race rewards.