Trail Running · Haute-Savoie

🇫🇷MCC 40 km:
Course Analysis & Race Readiness

38 km with 2201 m of gain and 1664 m of loss, front-loaded by a 12.9 km climb of 1626 m to a 2235 m high point before technical descents dominate the back half.

CourseRecon scores your own training against the descending and durability demands that define MCC 40 km — the sample analysis below shows exactly how.

38.0 km

Distance

+2,190 m

Vertical Gain

−1,650 m

Total Descent

Aug 24, 2026

Next Edition · 37 days out

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The Course · GPS-Measured

What 38.0 km / 23.6 mi and 2,190 m / 7,170 ft of vertical gain actually look like

Measured from the GPS track: 38.0 km / 23.6 mi and 2,190 m / 7,170 ft of vertical gain. This is the terrain you're signing up for: read it before it reads you.

Course Profile

Segments

Daylight

Terrain summary

Claimed vs GPS-Measured

Claimed · Organizer

38.0km

Distance

+2,200m

Gain

+0.0 km−10 m

GPS-Measured

38.0km

Distance

+2,190m

Gain

Climb & Gradient

+2,190 mTotal Gain

−1,650 mTotal Loss

Gradient Distribution

31%

Flat

≤3% grade

26%

Run-Climb

3–15% up

13%

Steep Climb

>15% up

30%

Descent

downhill

Steepest Sustained Sections

Descent

KM 20.3–23.7 · −587 m

-17.2%

ClimbCRUX

KM 0.0–12.9 · +1,626 m

+12.6%

Descent

KM 24.8–27.3 · −276 m

-11.3%

Descent

KM 32.7–36.8 · −281 m

-6.9%

Finish & Cutoff Times

What it takes to finish

Reference finish times from past results — use them to set a realistic goal pace.

3h 40m

Winning time

3h 47m

Top 5

3h 57m

Top 10

5h 28m

Median finisher

10h 00m

Back of pack

What This Race Demands

Four things this course asks of your body

Every course weights the four pillars of mountain-ultra fitness differently. Descending carries 42% of the scoring weight on this course — the terrain makes that the deciding factor.

Weighting shows where readiness is won or lost at this distance — not whether you need each pillar. An aerobic base is a given for a race this long, so it carries little deciding weight even though it's essential — the gaps open on the climbs, descents and the back half.

AerobicSustained engine

Foundational

Sustained aerobic output across 38 km with 2201 m of climbing.

ClimbingVertical power

26%

12.9 km opening climb gaining 1626 m at 12.6% average.

DescendingEccentric / braking

42%

1664 m of loss with steep, sustained descents up to 17.2%.

DurabilityLate-race resilience

32%

Legs must survive a huge climb then absorb repeated hard descents.

The Profile in One Line

One massive opening climb to 2235 m, then relentless steep descending across the remaining kilometers.

Aerobic FoundationalClimbing 26%Descending 42%Durability 32%

Here's how CourseRecon reads a course and an athlete

Sample Readiness Analysis

What a readiness result looks like for this course

This is a worked example for a representative strong mountain-ultra athlete — not your score. Connect your own training and the same analysis runs on you.

Sample

OUT OF 100

READY

For a representative strong mountain-ultra athlete

This is a sample — connect your Strava to see your own result.

Pillar Breakdown

Aerobic

The 38 km distance with 2201 m of gain demands steady aerobic capacity, though the medium duration keeps this from being the dominant limiter.

Climbing

A single 12.9 km climb gaining 1626 m at 12.6% average defines the front half; 34% of the course is steeper than 10% up, requiring strong sustained climbing power.

Descending

With 34% of the course descending and 1664 m of total loss, including a 587 m drop at -17.2%, controlled fast descending on steep grades is the most heavily weighted demand.

Durability

After topping out at 2235 m, the back half strings together multiple steep descents, punishing quads that already carried a 1626 m climb.

KM 0–12.9

The Opening Ascent

From the start the course climbs 12.9 km and 1626 m at a 12.6% average to the 2235 m high point. Pacing this single sustained effort sets up everything that follows.

KM 20.3–23.7

The Big Plunge

A 587 m drop over 3.4 km at -17.2% is the steepest descent on course. It arrives on tired legs and demands technical control to avoid quad blowout.

KM 24.8–36.8

The Descending Finish

Back-to-back descents of 276 m at -11.3% and 281 m at -6.9% close out the race. Durability under repeated braking determines who holds pace to the line.

That was a sample