Where is the MCC decided?
On the two climbs from Martigny-Combe to Col de Balme, before half the distance is run. The race climbs from the start. The first leg, Martigny-Combe to Col de la Forclaz, gains 1,038 m and loses almost nothing, and most of that height comes in one steep climb up to the col. Kilometre for kilometre it is the hardest leg of the course. At the time-limit pace you reach Col de la Forclaz at ten to one on Monday afternoon.
The leg to Col de Balme follows, and it is the biggest share of the effort, close to a third of the effort. After Col de la Forclaz comes the steepest of the big climbs: 542 m in about 2 km, very steep on average. More climbing follows up to Col de Balme. By the col you have climbed nearly 2,000 m of the course’s 2,300 m. More than half the effort is done there, with less than half the distance behind you. At the time-limit pace you get there at twenty to four.
From Col de Balme it is mostly downhill to Argentière, about 1,100 m down with little climbing. The biggest descent of the race is on this leg, the steep drop to Le Tour: 588 m in 3.4 km. The descent from Le Tour on to Argentière is steep too. At Argentière three quarters of the effort is done; at the time-limit pace you arrive at ten to six in the evening.
The finish is the longest leg and the gentlest. Argentière to Chamonix is nearly 11 km, gently downhill overall, and per kilometre barely harder than running on the flat. It closes with a short climb after La Joux, not steep, and a steep descent into Chamonix. At the time-limit pace you cross the line at eight in the evening.
Organiser's distances and heights; Pendio's shares and clock.