Trail Running · New Zealand

🇳🇿WAI2K 25km:
Course Analysis & Race Readiness

25km with 983m of gain and 970m of loss, defined by one 7km, 692m climb and a punishing 606m plunge to the finish. A course that rewards climbers who can still hammer descents.

CourseRecon scores your own training against the descending and durability demands that define WAI2K 25km — the sample analysis below shows exactly how.

25.0 km

Distance

+910 m

Vertical Gain

−900 m

Total Descent

21 Nov 2026

Next Edition · 89 days out

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The Course · GPS-Measured

What 24.2 km / 15.1 mi and 910 m / 3,000 ft of vertical gain actually look like

Measured from the GPS track: 24.2 km / 15.1 mi and 910 m / 3,000 ft of vertical gain. This is the terrain you're signing up for: read it before it reads you.

Course Profile

Terrain summary

Claimed vs GPS-Measured

Claimed · Organizer

25.0km

Distance

+1,200m

Gain

−0.8 km−290 m

GPS-Measured

24.2km

Distance

+910m

Gain

Climb & Gradient

+910 mTotal Gain

−900 mTotal Loss

Gradient Distribution

35%

Flat

≤3% grade

28%

Run-Climb

3–15% up

Steep Climb

>15% up

31%

Descent

downhill

Steepest Sustained Sections

Descent

KM 19.8–24.2 · −606 m

-13.5%

ClimbCRUX

KM 11.6–18.6 · +692 m

+9.8%

Descent

KM 6.5–9.1 · −121 m

-4.7%

Climb

KM 0.2–3.2 · +78 m

+2.6%

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 43% 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 running over 33% flat terrain between the major climbing and descending blocks.

ClimbingVertical power

21%

One 7km, 692m ascent at 9.8% plus shorter run-climbs across 36% of the course.

DescendingEccentric / braking

43%

31% downhill including a 606m loss at -13.5% over the closing 4.5km.

DurabilityLate-race resilience

36%

Legs must absorb 970m of descent, most of it after the day's biggest climb.

The Profile in One Line

A big midrace climb feeds directly into a steep 606m descent over the final 4.5km.

Aerobic FoundationalClimbing 21%Descending 43%Durability 36%

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

With 33% of the course flat and long runnable stretches linking the climbs, steady aerobic output keeps pace honest between the decisive terrain features.

Climbing

The dominant test is a single 7km, 692m climb averaging 9.8%, backed by 30% run-climb gradients that reward efficient, sustainable ascending.

Descending

Descending carries the most weight here: 31% downhill, capped by a 606m loss at -13.5% over the final 4.5km that demands control and quad resilience.

Durability

The sequencing punishes tired legs, sending you into the steepest descent immediately after the biggest climb, from a 848m high point down to the finish.

KM 12.8–19.8

The Main Climb

A 7km, 692m ascent at 9.8% is the day's biggest sustained effort and the decisive selection point before the plunge home.

KM 21–25.4

The Closing Plunge

The finish drops 606m at -13.5% over 4.5km, demanding braking strength and control on legs already loaded by the preceding climb.

KM 8.6–12.8

Mid-Race Descent

A 197m drop at -4.7% offers runnable downhill that must be used to recover and set up before the major climb begins.

That was a sample