Aspen & Shmel
Aspen
Hey Shmel, I’ve been mapping out the new trail in the park—did you know the soil texture and slope can really change how fast you can go over a long distance? I think there’s a way to pick the most efficient route and shave a few minutes off your time.
Shmel
Nice work, but I’ve already plotted the best route for a 15‑minute shave. Soil compaction means you need to avoid loose loam on the uphill segments, and the steeper the gradient the more you lose if you’re not pacing right. Show me the elevation profile and I’ll run it through my VO₂ max model to confirm the optimal path.
Aspen
Sure thing, here’s a quick elevation profile for the segment you’re looking at, broken into 1‑minute intervals. It’s a rough sketch but should match what you need for the VO₂ max calculation.
0 min – 120 m
1 min – 122 m
2 min – 124 m
3 min – 126 m
4 min – 128 m
5 min – 130 m
6 min – 132 m
7 min – 134 m
8 min – 135 m
9 min – 136 m
10 min – 137 m
11 min – 138 m
12 min – 138 m
13 min – 139 m
14 min – 140 m
15 min – 140 m
The last couple of minutes stay level after the final climb, so that should line up with the 15‑minute shave you mentioned. Let me know if you need a finer resolution or a different segment.
Shmel
The climb is pretty consistent up to 14 minutes, then you hit a plateau. For a real VO₂ max run you need the actual gradient, not just the elevation in increments, because power output drops when you hit a steeper angle even if the gain is only a couple of meters. If you can get a 10‑meter resolution or better, I’ll run a power curve and see if a slight shift to the right—say a 30‑second head start on the first hill—will give you that 15‑minute shave. If you’re happy with this, just drop me the slope data and I’ll crunch the numbers.