This is the edition where forecast thunderstorms cut the course from 107 to 74 kilometers one day before the start. By the way, the other races had to be adjusted too: ZUT100 was shortened to the original Zugspitz Ultratrail route, and the Ehrwald Trail used the same route as Zugspitz Ultratrail. It is my section-by-section report from that night: the splits, what the climbs did to my legs, and one deliberate decision that shaped the entire race.
Race in brief
- Finish in 9:29:34, 65th overall, 1st in age group, 59th among men, 2:22:12 behind the winner. 74.5 km and 3,296 m of climbing, scored in the 100K category, 3 Running Stones.
- The course was shortened from 107 to 74 km the day before the start. The reason was heat above 30 °C from Wednesday onward and a forecast of thunderstorms with lightning, with possible storm cells moving in from the Allgäu and Außerfern area. The start was moved to Friday at 21:30 in Leutasch.
- Goal A was around 9h00min, Goal B was simply to finish. Until the end I was not sure whether my strained tendon had recovered in time. Goal A was nearly achieved, and the tendon held for the whole race.
- Because the distance was shortened, the planned drop bag point at Hubertushof simply disappeared. So much for the strategy I had planned.
- The shortened distance changed the strategy. I went harder from the start, consciously, to avoid getting stuck on congested trails. That gave me a clear route through the night, but it came back to bite me on the final big climb.
Table of contents
Splits and result
| Section | km | Cumulative time | Segment | Cumulative D+ | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start (Leutasch) | 0 | 0:00 | - | 0 | - |
| V4 Hämmermoosalm | 8 | 0:54 | 0:54 | 408 | 197 |
| V5 Hubertushof | 21.6 | 2:54 | 2:00 | 1104 | 164 |
| V6 Mittenwald | 30.2 | 3:47 | 0:53 | 1213 | 150 |
| V7 Schloss Elmau | 40.1 | 4:53 | 1:06 | 1542 | 109 |
| Partnachalm | 50.6 | 6:15 | 1:22 | 2058 | 73 |
| V8 Laubhütte | 53.6 | 6:36 | 0:21 | 2200 | 74 |
| V9 Hochalm | 58.6 | 7:39 | 1:04 | 2904 | 69 |
| V10 Troegllift | 67 | 8:51 | 1:11 | 3296 | 68 |
| Finish (Garmisch) | 74.5 | 9:29:34 | 0:39 | 3296 | 65 |
Before the start
My run training in 2026 came to about 2,300 km before the ZUT start, built around Jason Koop's method, with block periodization and terrain-specific preparation. The same planning logic sits behind my training planner based on Koop's methodology, and I track the load with the fit analyzer. I cut back over the final three weeks, including a two-week taper. During those same three weeks I also nursed the strained tendon in my right leg.
The decision that truly changed the race came on Thursday afternoon. The ZUT organizers reduced the course from 107 to 74 km and moved the start to 21:30 in Leutasch. The reason was the forecast of thunderstorms over the exposed ridge. Mixed feelings: anger, disappointment, sadness. I adjusted mentally to a lighter ultra. It turned out not to be light at all.
The plan I started with was simple: get it done in 9 hours. Plan B, if everything else failed, was simply to reach the finish. I planned nothing more. Inside, I was calm. I had studied the full course before the start, but by Thursday afternoon the race I had prepared for no longer existed.
The race, section by section
Start in Leutasch to Hubertushof, km 0 to 21.6
The race finally started at 21:40 with 808 runners. Forty minutes earlier, at 21:00, the runners of the Ehrwald Trail had set off over the same opening kilometers, 216 participants. More than a thousand headlamps on the same course at night.
The shortened distance made it tempting to push a bit harder from the start, but the real reason was the terrain. Narrow forest trails, limited room to pass on the climbs. I felt that if I went in too slowly, I would stay stuck. I ran the first 8 km to Hämmermoosalm at 8.9 km/h with 408 meters of climbing. For a night climb with a full pack, that was brisk.
Then came the climb to Scharnitzjoch, 2,048 m above sea level, the high point of the night, and a difficult, technical descent to Hubertushof. Wet rocks, steep terrain, braking required, and full concentration. Earlier rain had cooled the air, so conditions were not the worst.
What I took from this section: before Hubertushof the field did not spread out. I chose the faster opening because I did not want to spend the first climb moving at someone else's pace.
Hubertushof to Schloss Elmau, km 21.6 to 40.1
After Hubertushof it opened up. The field finally stretched out. Wide roads, almost like a highway. The section to Mittenwald was almost flat, a welcome breather, the fastest part of the whole race. I was running under six minutes per kilometer here.
Then came rolling terrain to Schloss Elmau, slightly uphill, deep night, and I was mostly running alone. No doubts. The aid stations along the way were well stocked: water, isotonic drink, Näak wafers. On that sweat-soaked night, that mattered. I stayed with the rhythm I had prepared for night running: simple, calm, and without overthinking the dark.
What I took from this section: between Hubertushof and Schloss Elmau I finally had room to run. I did not fight here. I collected places, ate and drank in rhythm, and kept the night calm before the second major climb.
Schloss Elmau to Hochalm, km 40.1 to 58.6
From Schloss Elmau to Partnachalm the terrain kept rolling, with a hard drop to the bridge over the Partnachklamm and a sharp climb back up. Then came a short section to Laubhütte, and the climb toward the ZEGAPA Cheering Zone at the exit of the Jägersteig: five kilometers and more than 700 meters of elevation gain, 4.6 km/h, almost an hour of hiking. Even before 6:00 in the morning, spectators were already standing there and cheering. I was grateful for that, and I still am.
Just after Laubhütte, dawn was breaking. My first headlamp ran out and I switched to the second one. I was climbing with poles, but my power dropped. There was no single cause. The legs did not collapse. It was more of a whole-body "the system says slower," even though there was still some reserve. Instead of forcing it, I climbed more calmly, and that is where the time slipped away.
That was the price for the fast start. It felt like the central governor cutting my pace because I had overcooked the opening. Osterfelder in the morning sun finally gave a little new energy.
What I took from this section: the climb to Hochalm was where I paid for the early freedom. I still had some reserve, but I could not turn it back into the power I wanted.
Hochalm to the finish, km 58.6 to 74.5
After Hochalm there was still a little more climbing, through the area around Osterfelder and Hupfleitenjoch, then a descent of around 1,300 meters. The first two hundred meters down were very technical, and I felt they could have been run better. Somewhere before Troegllift the course became runnable again. I tried to push, but the power did not magically return. Descending well is a skill of its own, and in those first technical meters I felt that I did not use it as well as I could have.
The final 7.5 kilometers to the finish in Garmisch I ran at 11.5 km/h, and I still managed to pass a few people. I crossed the finish line after 7:00 in the morning, so for me almost the entire race had happened in the night. At the finish there was joy and gratitude. That the body had held. That the mind had not backed off. That the work of the last few months had made sense.
What I took from this section: the final descent to Garmisch was still runnable for me. I could pass a few people there, but only because the legs had not completely fallen apart earlier.
The decisive choice
The situation: a start field of more than a thousand runners, with the opening kilometers on narrow singletrack and climbs where passing is not possible. For me, a slow entry meant the risk of losing time behind someone else, at someone else's pace.
The choice: put more power down from the start and create a clear route, or save energy and accept the bottleneck.
What I did: I went harder. I got a clean course and freedom through the whole night.
The price: on the climb to Hochalm the central governor cut my pace, even though there was still some reserve. Those few minutes are the difference between the 9:29 I achieved and the planned Goal A. I paid for the freedom, and I knew I was paying. With that field and my way of racing, I would take the same risk again.
What I learned from the night
- Start to Hubertushof: I chose position early. It gave me space, but it also raised the cost of the night.
- Hubertushof to Schloss Elmau: This was the calmest part of my race. I ran, ate, drank and let the field stretch out.
- Schloss Elmau to Hochalm: This is where the earlier effort came back. The legs did not collapse, but the whole system slowed down.
- Hochalm to Garmisch: I still had enough left to run the final kilometers well, but not enough to recover the time I had lost on the climb.
Gear and fuel that worked
During the race I used Maurten products and took only wafers from the aid stations. Roughly 60 to 65 grams of carbohydrate per hour. No stomach issues, although my stomach is usually reliable. On the warm night I also added salt tablets. On this night, those numbers were enough.
- Shoes: La Sportiva Prodigio Pro. They performed very well. The only complaint was small stones occasionally getting into the shoe. Gaiters would probably solve that.
- Pack: Salomon Active Skin 12.
- Poles: Leki Ultratrail FX.One SL.
- Fuel: 4 Maurten Drink Mix 320, 5 Maurten Gel 160, 1 Maurten Gel 100 CAF 100, 2 Näak Ultra Energy wafers, 3 salt tablets, water and isotonic drink by feel.
- Headlamp: I carried a second headlamp, and I needed it. The first one died before dawn.
After the race
Looking back, the shortened course did not feel like a reduced version of the race. It became its own thing: faster from the start, denser in the opening, still mountainous enough to expose every early decision.
I came away with the result I had hoped for, even if not exactly the race I had planned. Goal A was close, the tendon held, and the risk I took at the start was one I understood while I was taking it.
This article is a personal race report from the shortened 2026 edition of Zugspitz Ultratrail.
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