Grand Raid Ventoux by UTMB
Grand Raid Ventoux by UTMB – Mistral Marathon Trail - MMT
Malaucène
Race guide
Updated 18 July 2026
The Mistral Marathon Trail (MMT) is the 51 km option at Grand Raid Ventoux by UTMB, starting and finishing in the Provencal town of Malaucene at 310 m. With 2431 m of positive climbing packed into 51 km and a high point of 1893 m, it is a genuine mountain race built around a single defining feature: the ascent of Mont Ventoux from its shaded northern side. This is not a rolling trail marathon; it is one enormous climb, a high traverse, and a long descent back to the valley floor. The course is essentially a loop that rewards runners who respect the mountain early and still have working quads at the bottom. Everything about the day is shaped by the geography of Ventoux, from the exposed summit ridge to the mistral wind that gives the race its name. If you are choosing between the Ventoux distances, the MMT is the one that puts you on the mountain proper without committing to the longer ultra formats.
The Course: Malaucene to the Ventoux Summit and Back
The MMT runs as a loop from Malaucene (310 m), with five recorded points along the way: Saint-Marguerite at 7.9 km (466 m), Mont Serein at 21 km (1400 m), Le Sueil at 36.6 km (734 m), Plan de Laval at 43.9 km (345 m), and the finish back in Malaucene at 51 km. The shape of the day is unmistakable from those numbers. The first 21 km is a long, sustained pull from the valley up to the Mont Serein ski area, gaining roughly 1090 m of net height, before the route pushes higher still toward the 1893 m high point on the Ventoux massif. From the top the course reverses its logic entirely and gives most of that elevation back, dropping to Le Sueil at 734 m by 36.6 km and continuing down to Plan de Laval at just 345 m by 43.9 km. The final 7 km rolls back into Malaucene with a modest amount of reclimbing to the 310 m finish. In practice you are running one big mountain: up for roughly the first 40 percent of the distance, then down for most of the rest, with the summit as the emotional and physical hinge of the race.
Where the Race Is Decided: The Climb to 1893 m
The decisive terrain is the block between the start and the high point. From Malaucene at 310 m to Saint-Marguerite at 466 m the grade is gentle, a chance to warm the legs before the real work. The climb bites properly on the way to Mont Serein at 21 km, where you top out at 1400 m, and it keeps going beyond the aid station to the 1893 m high point. That is close to 1580 m of climbing concentrated in the first quarter to third of the race, most of it on the wooded, cooler north flank of Ventoux. The second place the race is won or lost is the descent off the top. From the high point down to Plan de Laval at 345 m you lose over 1500 m of altitude, much of it through Le Sueil at 734 m. This is a long, quad-hammering descent, and runners who blew their legs pushing the climb will feel every metre of it. Braking control, foot placement and pacing the downhill honestly matter as much here as raw climbing strength. Save something for the drop and the flat-ish run-in to Malaucene will feel manageable; overspend on the ascent and the final descent becomes damage limitation.
Pacing and Fuelling: Reading the Cut-offs and Aid Spacing
Two cut-offs frame the race. Mont Serein at 21 km closes at Sun 11:45, and Plan de Laval at 43.9 km closes at Sun 16:45, with the Malaucene finish at Sun 18:30. Mont Serein at 1400 m is also the marked crew point, which makes it the natural place to reset, top up and prepare for the summit push and the long descent that follows. Because it sits at the top of the main climb, reaching it comfortably inside the cut-off is the single best proxy for a good day. For fuelling, treat the climb to Mont Serein as the section where you bank calories and fluids, because there is a long stretch of high ground and descending before you reach substantial support again at Le Sueil (36.6 km) and Plan de Laval (43.9 km). The 15 km between Mont Serein and Le Sueil crosses the highest, most exposed ground on the course, so carry enough to be self-sufficient across the summit. From Plan de Laval you have a short 7 km to the line, so you can run that segment lighter and empty the tank into the finish.
Conditions to Expect on Mont Ventoux
The race takes its name from the Mistral, the strong regional wind, and Mont Ventoux is famous for its weather swinging quickly between the sheltered valley and the exposed summit. The lower approach from Malaucene and Saint-Marguerite runs through Provencal woodland where you are protected and conditions are typically warm. As you climb past Mont Serein toward the 1893 m high point the terrain opens up, and wind, temperature drop and exposure become the dominant factors. What feels like a warm morning at 310 m can be a very different environment near the summit. Plan your kit around that contrast: enough warmth and wind protection for the high traverse even if the valley start is mild, and enough sun and heat management for the exposed sections and the long descent. The mountain's reputation for barren, wind-scoured upper slopes is well earned, so do not assume tree cover once you are above Mont Serein. Managing the transition from sheltered forest to open high ground, and back down again, is a large part of running the MMT well.
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Checkpoints & cut-offs
✓ Course data verified against the official source (2026-07-17) · official source
0 km · 310 m · —
7.9 km · 466 m · —
21 km · 1400 m · Sun 11:45
36.6 km · 734 m · —
43.9 km · 345 m · Sun 16:45
51 km · 310 m · Sun 18:30
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