UTCT: Preparations and Previews
My detailed race prep, course planning, and predictions for the 2024 Ultra Trail Cape Town 100k
It only took a day into our stint in Cape Town to fully understand why UTCT is a bucket list race for trail runners around the world. Upon arrival, the area’s geographic gravitas, complex history, and unique culture quickly envelop you – akin to the clouds cascading over the top of Table Mountain. (which as I write this, looms large out the window of my AirBnB, the prominence is real)
The energy of the local trail and outdoor community really shines during race week as well. I’m not sure there is another major city with a gigantic ad for a trail brand prominently displayed outside of its airport, like Adidas Terrex boasts here. Another staple of race week is the the Tuesday Trails group run. We attended and it very much lived up to the hype, taking hundreds of runners around Lion’s Head + Signal Hill before welcoming them back to the run start with coolers full of local brews.
UTCT offers 6 distances: 100M, 100k, 55k, 35k, 23k, and 16k. Every race is competitive in its own right, with the 100k rising to the top, attracting the deepest elite field and biggest opportunity for runners to make a name for themselves.
Since I’ll be mixing it up in the 100k this preview will focus on that distance, but every race sees a decent chunk of the same terrain.
So, let’s take a look at what goes into this monument of a race…
The Course
The 100k departs from the Gardens neighborhood at 4:00AM, taking racers around a full loop of table mountain, starting south down the coast and finishing on the inland side coming north through the local wine country and university. The course gains 4972m (over 16,000 ft) across 6 major climbs, but it is hardly ever what you might call “flat”. Anyone who has run this race will be quick to share how stupidly technical and relentless the trails are. Should be fun, right?
Signal Hill / Lion’s Head
The first section of the course covers a couple kilometers of city roads before a long and skinny loop around Signal Hill + Lion’s Head. This passes through manageable single track and fire roads to the Signal Hill aid station (11.7k segment + 540m gain) and continues to traverse the hill up to Kloof Nek (8.4k segment + 319m gain), the place where most runners will link up with crew and prepare for what’s ahead.
Up Platteklip Gorge and over the 12 Apostles
Immediately after Kloof Nek is perhaps one of the sections of the course I’m most looking forward to – the first part of the India Venster ascent route, Kloof Corner. Spectators will line the stair climb, cheering runners on like they’re cyclists on a major climb of the Tour de France (for a peek, in my recon, I found this great vid of the route from local Pete Calitz). The key is to soak it in without getting too fired up, as the climb is cut short for a detour on the Contour Path, around to Platteklip Gorge – the biggest climb of the entire race. A grueling hike of 1.2k gaining about 500m.
I’ve heard the most masochistic part of the course, is not the steepness of Platteklip, but the technical rolling climbs of the 12 Apostles which comes next as you cover the top of the table. I’m going to do my best to not count these, and keep focused on moving efficiently and controlled through this section. Luckily there are two aid stations, Platteklip Gorge (5.0k segment + 850m gain) and Table Mountain (6.0k + 180m gain), to refuel at along the way before descending down to the next crew accessible checkpoint at Llandudno. (10.1k + 981m loss)
To Hout Bay, up Chapman, and through the vineyards
After Llandudno, more singletrack takes the race through the Rocket Road (6.3k, rolling) aid station down along the coast to the halfway-ish point at Hout Bay (9.0k + 516m gain + 677m loss). At this point, it is advised to do a sock and/or shoe change, after covering 55k of rock trails capped by a stretch on the beach with a water crossing thrown in for fun.
Once leaving crew at Hout Bay, runners immediately start climbing up Chapman. An exposed and technical but dare I say runnable climb that takes you to the inland side of Table Mountain. Once here, I’ve heard that the intensity of the technicality subsides and the course provides a cruisy reprieve through Constatia and Newlands Forest. The main crewed aid station in this area is Alphen Trail at 76k. At that point runners will have 3900m of climbing, and about the same descending, in the legs.
The final push
Of course, the route must throw a few final technical sections at runners for good measure. Coming around the northeast corner of table, through the University of Cape Town aid station, up Blockhouse and down a rocky descent before finishing back at the Gardens. This final stretch has about 1000m of climbing and descending…soak it all in.
The Field
The 2024 start list: sportraxs.com/en/event/rmb-ultra-trail-cape-town-2024
Looks beautiful! Best of luck my man and don’t forget to smile!