Tiroler Silberpfad Trophy Training Plan & Preparation

Course & Elevation

The TST 86K is the flagship distance of the Tiroler Silberpfad Trophy: an 86-kilometre loop with around 3,500 metres of climbing that starts and finishes at the parish church in the old town of Schwaz. The route circles through the mountains of the Karwendel silver region and spreads its climbing across the entire distance, averaging close to 42 metres of gain per kilometre.

The first major climb arrives at kilometre 3: 3.6 kilometres at nearly 13 percent average gradient for 467 metres of gain. Through the middle section, between kilometres 21 and 32, three climbs of roughly 200 metres each keep the legs working, before the hardest piece of the course begins at kilometre 53: 5.7 kilometres at just over 10 percent, climbing 582 metres in one sustained effort.

And the course is not done after that. Between kilometres 65 and 76 three more ascents of 250 to 280 metres each stack up, all of them deep into the race. Only about 11 percent of the distance is flat, and roughly half of it is steep climbing or steep descending. This is an ultra that gives nothing away and demands substance to the very end.

Pacing Strategy

At 41 metres of climb per kilometre, the TST 86K is the most runnable course of the Trophy — which is exactly what makes it treacherous. Its roughly 3,500 metres of vertical come in many moderate climbs, none brutal alone but costly in sum. The gentle early gradients invite overpacing.

The race is decided in the final third: the longest single ascent (5.7 km, 582 m) begins at km 53, followed by a dense cluster of climbs between km 65 and 76 up to the high point near 1,470 metres — all of it beyond the 50-kilometre mark. Run the first half well under what feels possible and keep deliberate reserve on the runnable climbs.

Past the summit at km 76 a long descent to 542 metres still waits, and it turns grim on tired legs. Eat regularly — the many small climbs add up to a genuine endurance load over many hours.

12-Week Preparation

Plan on 11 to 16 hours of effort for the 86 kilometres and 3,500 metres of climbing, a full day in the mountains for an age-group runner. The demand is classically ultra-distance and aerobic: no single section decides the race, but the accumulation of steep ups and equally steep downs, more than half the course, wears down unprepared legs.

The critical phases come late. The longest climb only begins at kilometre 53, nearly 600 metres of gain at just over 10 percent, and between kilometres 65 and 76 three further ascents of 250 to 280 metres each follow. Your training has to prepare you to still climb with purpose after eight or more hours on your feet.

Make long mountain sessions with high vertical gain the centrepiece of your preparation, ideally as run-hike combinations, because at 13 percent gradients efficient power hiking is faster and cheaper than running. Eccentric durability matters just as much: those 3,500 metres all come back down, almost a quarter of the course is steep descent, and your quads will set your pace in the final third. Train long downhill running on tired legs and back it up with lower-body strength work.

Layer the ultra fundamentals into your long sessions: a rehearsed fuelling strategy with steady energy and fluid intake, and every piece of race equipment, from shoes to headlamp, tested under realistic conditions well before race day.