Torlauf Dachstein Training Plan & Preparation

Course & Elevation

The Ultra at Torlauf Dachstein is a 72-kilometre loop around Ramsau am Dachstein with roughly 3,900 metres of climbing and the same amount of descent. The event has been held since 2017 and remains deliberately small, with 590 starters from eleven nations across all races in 2025.

The profile is genuinely alpine and almost never flat, barely seven percent of the route runs level. The climbing comes in waves. Between kilometres 11 and 35 six ascents stack up back to back, including the longest of the day from kilometre 16, 3.7 kilometres at an average of just over 14 percent for 528 metres of gain. After a calmer stretch, a short and brutally steep ramp near kilometre 46 averages almost 33 percent.

The race is decided late. From kilometre 58 the hardest climb of the loop begins, 2.7 kilometres at around 21 percent average gradient and 562 metres of gain, before the long drop back to Ramsau. More than half the distance is steep climbing or steep descending beneath the Dachstein massif, which rewards sure-footed legs and confident pole work far more than raw road speed.

Pacing Strategy

The loop returns to start elevation, but there are almost no flat metres — over half the distance is steeply up or down. Ration your effort across the two major climbs: the first, from kilometre 16, gains 528 metres and tempts you to overreach on fresh legs, so keep it deliberately controlled. The real test comes late — the climb from kilometre 58 averages over 20 percent and demands another 562 metres after nearly 4,000 already in your legs. Whoever still has reserves here settles the race.

The biggest trap, though, is the steep descent from the high point at kilometre 36: run it without control and your quads are gone for the final ramp. Move cleanly on the technical ground and consciously hold muscle back on the downhills.

12-Week Preparation

For 72 kilometres with around 3,900 metres of climbing, a typical age-group athlete should plan for ten to fourteen hours of effort. This is a long mountain day rather than a race you win on speed, so the foundation is months of aerobic volume on rolling to steep terrain.

The effort pattern shifts constantly rather than staying steady. More than half the course is steep up or steep down, separated by runnable sections. Train the transitions deliberately, strong uphill hiking with poles on ramps above 15 percent, then settling straight back into an economical running stride.

Two sections decide the race. The string of climbs between kilometres 11 and 35 invites you to overcook the first third, which calls for pacing discipline and a rehearsed fueling plan. The final climb from kilometre 58, 562 metres of gain at roughly 21 percent, arrives after more than 3,000 metres of accumulated vert, so practise hill work at the end of your long runs to prepare for climbing on tired legs.

Do not neglect the descents, about a quarter of the distance drops steeply. Eccentric leg strength, regular downhill running and core stability determine whether you can still run the second half. Schedule long efforts with your race pack and test your nutrition, because over this duration eating and drinking become a discipline of their own.