Road surface is PERFECT. I would even run higher psi at Roth because it's so smooth.

Not technical, but more turns than your average American road.

Disc = yes.

Roads are closed. Plenty of room.

Hills... most are short and not steep.

There is the one somewhat technical descent coming off of Greding.

Yes to all the above. The course can be quite susceptible to wind in places though; the year I did it 2008, it was very wet & windy, reflected in the winner's time of 8:09.

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29 years and counting

the course has a short but technical descent with a handful of switchbacks after one of the climbs mid way through. I believe Jan Frondeno over cooked it and came off on them.

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http://www.tri-monkey.co.uk

RLB wrote:

the course has a short but technical descent with a handful of switchbacks after one of the climbs mid way through. I believe Jan Frondeno over cooked it and came off on them.

It's really only 3 switchbacks and they aren't THAT technical.
https://www.strava.com/segments/1829829


Although if you know how to rail a corner, you can make up some time here. I think I passed about 6-10 people on this descent.

Solar Berg is probably one of the easiest climbs you'll ever do. It's short, and not particularly steep and the crowd pushes you.
Greding is where people screw up. The initial pitch is steep and it's easy to go too hard. Then it's followed by a long false flat.
Typically people go too hard on the first lap up Greding and then blow up on the second. That's where you can see a lot of folks stalling.

Road quality is fantastic and Roth loves its Ironman. This remains my favorite IM by a long shot.

Thanks - definitely doesn't look that technical...

Thanks Francois! Any data on the gradient for Greding?

I think it's about 13pct for a couple of hundred yards then it flattens to a 2-3pct false flat.
I'm sure someone who's raced recently has better data.

Mag3 wrote:

Thanks Francois! Any data on the gradient for Greding?

https://www.strava.com/segments/731360

Here's my ride from 2012.

https://www.strava.com/activities/13086581/

As others have said Greding is a much stiffer climb than Solarberg (which is lots of fun).

The wind can make a big difference. This year there was a SE breeze to start ie head wind all the way to Greding on the first lap. The wind direction then changed and that section was much quicker on the second lap.

I thought this course was beautiful. Great views in the country and support was all over the place. Their worst roads are better than the best roads in America. The surfaces are awesome. Not terribly technical, only issue I had was coming up to Greding, it is fast coming into it, then you turn left and, boom, you are right on the steepest part of the incline. I dropped my chain here....granted my big ring was bent in transit, but still, be aware, because the hill comes out of nowhere. On Solar, take your time and really look at the spectacle, take in all the fans...it is definitely the most iconic part of any full tri course in all of the sport.

The only other thing I can say is, it was much hillier than I expected. Wasn't terribly hard, but we were all surprised at how many hills there were, even after studying the course.

Typing this makes me jealous of you. Did it last year and it was the greatest experience of my life. Going back next year, and am literally counting down the days!

Oh, and you get the new run course this year which I am sure will make it even crazier with the fan support!

Enjoy every minute!

Great race.
I asked a college the same questions before I did it last year, most of it about gearing.
He said to pack the 11...and he was right.
Went with 53/39 11/28, used the 28 for maybe a minute in greding just to make sure not to over cook.
But there are lots of flats and slightly downhills where you can grind it (if you are not a crazy spinner like me).
Enjoy the atmosphere, it's stunning.
Unfortunately they changed the run course from 2017 on, I liked the stupidity of the old one. Seems not the same to me anymore.

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-shoki

Yes, we got hit with that down through Thalmassing in '08, both laps.

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29 years and counting

Do they still play the Final Countdown at the start? I won't go back until this shit stops.

I just asked my wife but she couldn't remember for sure but left the possibility open.
Terrible song but friends told the band is good besides that, was too scared to check though.

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-shoki

What is it with Germans and bad 80's music?

Modern Talking, Alphaville, Nena...it's a curse.

Is the course too windy for a 60mm front? I'm a decent bike handler, but don't want to get blown all over the road.

It's a 90mm front - disc kinda course.

I did Challenge Roth last year.

• Very smooth roads -- about the best roads I have ever seen apart from the virgin asphalt on a new unopened road :)
• About 2/3 is closed for all traffic, 1/3 is closed in one direction only. This means it is very easy to overtake. I had a few occurrences where someone was blocking. A few times I just passed in the opposite lane as it happened on the fully closed section of the course.
• A fast course, but actually lots of climbing (5,000ft / 1500m) -- you will see gradients of 10% so think about gearing
• Always ride a disc wheel :) For the front you choose whatever you can handle. Last year there was very light winds from north west. I rode 90mm front and disc rear
• The course is in my eyes non-technical, but there is a switchback section on the descent after the Greding climb but as the road is closed you can take the best line through the curves, and they have positioned bales of hay in the corners... ;) I hit 40+mph on the descent. I did the Greding climb and the descent a few days before the race, so I knew what was coming.
• There is actually a faster descent at Tiefenbach, but it is non-technical. I hit 45 mph here. I didn't do it on my recon ride, so I held back on the first round, but tucked in aero on the second round.
• The climb as Solar hill is fairly easy, but you can easily end up climbing at >FTP it due to the crowds ;) This is the only place where you cannot overtake due to the crowds

Here's my Strava file of the route: https://www.strava.com/activities/644216903
Re the Greding climb, see the picture here: https://www.strava.com/activities/640803545