The Mozart100 race takes place in the beautiful town of Salzburg, Austria. They offer various distances, this year a 12.5 km City Trail, the 30 km Scenic Light Trail (that I did), the 42 km Marathon trail, the 62 km Scenic trail and the classic 105 km trail. This last one is very popular, as it is also a Western States 100 and UTMB qualifying race.

Travel &Accessibility

Salzburg can be easily reached by car, train and even plane, although there are less flights in summer than in winter. The race headquarter is located at the Residenzplatz, which is a central square in the center of the old town of Salzburg. All the races except the Scenic Light trail start from there. The Scenic Light Trail starts in Fuschl but there are buses to take you there from the old town.

Pre-Race

You can pick up your bibs the night before or even on race day for the shorter distances at the finish line area at Residenzplatz. The area is not very big. There is only a small stand where you can buy some clothing, but not a lot of supplies. There are also not a lot of food stalls. around. But luckily the famous Café Tomaselli is just 1 minute away.

Before Mozart 100

View from Cafe Tomaselli before the race

As I did the Mozart100 Scenic Light Trail I had to board the bus to Fuschl. The pick up was 3 minutes from the finish line area. It was a bit chaotic, but in the end we made it there on time.
In Fuschl itself the start area was the normal course area for the other participants of the longer races. There was an aid station with food and water for them, and even one proper toilet. Only one, so be prepared to wait, but at least not a porta-potty.

Mozart100

I also had to drop my bag there, which was like: “just drop it here underneath the tree next to all the other bags. We will take them back to Salzburg”. Not very assuring. But it arrived in Salzburg safe and sound.

Mozart100 Race Course

As I only ran the Scenic Light trail, I can only focus on that part. However, the same course was part of the 62 km and 105 km races too.
Overall the course was mainly trails with some roads in between. Every 10 km there was an aid station with water, drinks and plenty of other food choices.

The course started in the town Fuschl (which also happens to be where Red Bull’s headquarters are)

Mozart100

First the Mozart100 course headed west along lake Fuschl (be prepared for some amazing views) before going up and down some rolling hills. (in which we also got lost once). It is fairly “flatish” in the first half, with the two hardest ascents in the end.

Mozart100

The biggest ascent was the mountain “Nockstein” at km 20 which had some technical trails but also amazing views.

Mozart100

 

The descent leads into the town of Salzburg where after around 2 km it reaches one of Salzburg’s City hills, the grueling Kapuzinerberg. It is just around 100m of elevation gain, but it feels more like 1000 m at the end of the race . It is mainly stairs which is a nightmare if your knees are already destroyed.

Mozart100
Mozart100
Mozart100

Post-Race

As mentioned above the finish line area of the Mozart100 trail race is relatively small, but as it is a small race it was not too packed.
There was a small tent where you could refuel with water, sports drinks and lots of food.
You could even pick up your finisher pic in a nice silver frame for free, but only if you waited long enough as the printer was relatively slow. (I did not wait).
There was a bus service that took participants back to Fuschl in case they had parked there. And there were showers around 5 minutes away. 

the finish line area of the Mozart100 race is generally open until late at night when the last runners are expected to cross the finish line.

Sightseeing

Salzburg is one of my favorite cities to visit. It is incredibly beautiful with the Fort (“Festung”) overlooking the city. The palace Mirabell and its gardens are also stunning, as is the Leopoldskron Palace, where some scenes of Sound of Music were filmed.

There is also the Mozart Museum in the actual house where Mozart was born. It is located in the famous street Getreidegasse, which has the cutest little signs. Make sure you also try the Mozart Chocolate balls and the Sacher cake from Hotel Sacher Salzburg.
One of my top places to visit is the Museum of Modern art at the Mönchsberg hill. From the terrace of the restaurant you have amazing views on the city.

In summer there is also the famous Salzburg Festival, with concerts, opera and theatre performances. But even outside the main festival season there is a lot of classical music happening. It is Mozarts’s birthplace after all…