NUTS Karhunkierros - 55 km course and race-day weather
- Oulanka Visitor Centre, Kuusamo, Finland
- 56.3 km
- 1,494 m D+
- 2 aid stations
Analyzing route...
NUTS Karhunkierros 55 course, section by section
The NUTS Karhunkierros 55 course runs 56.3 km with 1,494 m of climbing and 1,300 m of descent - 27 m of climbing per kilometre. It tops out at 492 m, and its lowest point on the GPX is 143 m. 26% of the distance climbs at more than 3%, 23% descends at more than 3%, and the remaining 51% is flat or rolling.
The organiser's 4 checkpoints split the course into 3 sections. The table gives each leg's own climb, descent, average grade and high point, measured on the official GPX.
| Section | Km | Distance | D+ | D- | Avg grade | High point |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start - Oulanka Visitor Centre → Basecamp | 0.0-31.5 | 31.5 km | +682 m | -606 m | +0.2% | 290 m |
| Basecamp → Konttainen | 31.5-49.1 | 17.6 km | +501 m | -413 m | +0.5% | 434 m |
| Konttainen → Finish - Ruka | 49.1-56.3 | 7.2 km | +463 m | -433 m | +0.4% | 492 m |
The climbs that shape the race
The track holds 10 major climbs and 7 major descents. The biggest climb runs from km 8 to km 11: +127 m over 3.4 km at an average of 3.5%. The steepest sustained climb averages 15.2% over 0.7 km from km 49 (from Konttainen), with pitches of 32.1%. Late in the race, two climbs come back to back from km 34 to km 40: 194 m in all. 5 of the major climbs start in the last 30% of the course. The longest descent drops 130 m over 1.9 km from km 18, at an average of 6.8%.
Distance, total climb and high point are the organiser's. Each section's climb, descent, grade and high point, the low point and the named climbs are measured on the official GPX with the same method as the interactive profile, so the sections can add up to a slightly different total.