Build your Templiers plan
The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so this one comes from the coach itself. Tell it your race date, your weekly mileage, and the terrain you can get to, and it writes the whole build and keeps adapting it as you log the training. Free account, no card. You are about 51 weeks out.
- Distances
- 80K
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Field
- About 13,000 runners across 18 races at the festival; 2,500 on the Grand Trail
Course
The Templiers course
The Grand Trail starts in the dark on the route de Paulhe at the Domaine St Estève in Millau, in waves from 5:10, and covers 80 km with 3,497 m of climbing across the Grands Causses. After an easy road opening, the climb by Mas de Trauque and the steep, wide côte de Carbassas lifts the field onto the Causse Noir, then forest tracks lead to the first singletrack descent to Peyreleau above the Tarn (km 22.8).
Read the full course notes
The middle section follows the Jonte past the St-Michel hermitage and the St-Jean-des-Balmes chapel to Saint-André-de-Vézines (km 36.3), then runs via Montméjean, the Rajol cliffs and the Roquesaltes arch to La Salvage (km 55.4). The last third climbs back onto the Larzac through century-old box woods and cliff-edge singletrack, drops to the Dourbie and Massebiau (km 69.8), then finishes with the technical CAF descent, the Pouncho d'Agast rock spur and the grotte du Hibou before the final arch. Expect forest tracks, rocky singletrack and steep descents rather than smooth trail, and a long line of 2,500 headlamps in the opening hours.
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Distances
- 80K
- Field
- About 13,000 runners across 18 races at the festival; 2,500 on the Grand Trail
- Weather on race day
- Mid-October around Millau usually brings about 8 °C overnight and 16 °C in the afternoon, and the high plateaus feel colder at the pre-dawn start and in any wind. October rain is common (around 75 mm in the month) and leaves rock and roots slick, so a headlamp, warm layers and a waterproof jacket earn their place. Shed layers as the sun climbs and keep eating and drinking steadily, since most runners are out from before dawn until the afternoon or evening.
What to train for
With 3,497 m of climbing in 80 km, vertical is the priority: build weekly gain toward 2,500 to 3,500 m in your peak block, with hill repeats of 6 to 10 minutes and long power-hiking sessions on steep ground.
The rocky descents in the last 15 km, especially the CAF and the Pouncho d'Agast, test tired quads, so add downhill reps and eccentric strength work twice a week.
Run back-to-back long days (for example 30 km then 20 km on hilly trail) and practise eating every 30 to 40 minutes. Do a few runs in the dark with your headlamp so the 5:10 start feels routine, and know the cut-offs: Peyreleau 9:30, Saint-André 12:05, La Salvage 16:35, Mas de Bru 18:25 and Massebiau 19:30.
Sample week
A sample Templiers training week
A week from the middle of the build, about six weeks out. Your plan sets the real distances and paces from your own fitness and adjusts them every week as you train.
- Monday
- Rest, or 20 minutes of mobility
- Tuesday Key session
- Hill repeats: 10 × 2 min up a steady grade, jog back down
- Wednesday
- Easy run, 10 km
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 13 km with 6 km at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 6 km, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 29–32 km on trail, with as much climbing as you can find
- Sunday Key session
- Second long day, 16–19 km easy on tired legs
Taper
Tapering for the Templiers
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar.
Templiers training questions
How long should I train for the Templiers?
Most runners give a 80k race twenty to twenty-four weeks of focused training on top of a season of consistent aerobic mileage. The coach counts back from your actual race date, so if you have less time than that it builds the best plan the remaining weeks allow rather than pretending you have longer.
Is the Templiers course hilly?
Hilly. The Grand Trail starts in the dark on the route de Paulhe at the Domaine St Estève in Millau, in waves from 5:10, and covers 80 km with 3,497 m of climbing across the Grands Causses.
What is the weather usually like at the Templiers?
Mid-October around Millau usually brings about 8 °C overnight and 16 °C in the afternoon, and the high plateaus feel colder at the pre-dawn start and in any wind. October rain is common (around 75 mm in the month) and leaves rock and roots slick, so a headlamp, warm layers and a waterproof jacket earn their place. Shed layers as the sun climbs and keep eating and drinking steadily, since most runners are out from before dawn until the afternoon or evening.
When should I start tapering for the Templiers?
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar.
Do I need an account to get a Templiers training plan?
For this one, yes. The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so an ultra plan comes from the coach itself, which needs a free account. Still no card, and the plan adapts as you log the training.