Mt. Evans - 7,000 Foot Climb
At the end of July, I spent 5 days in Vail, Colorado. The trip was for a family vacation but I naturally used the trip to double as my "High Altitude Training Camp." The crowning workout of the trip, was a bike ride up Mt. Evans, which was the hardest bike ride that I have ever done. Mt. Evans is one of Colorado's "14ers," which are the mountains above 14,000 feet. Mt. Evans is the only 14er with a road all of the way to the top, making it possible to ride a road bike to the summit.
A group of 6 of us began our ride in Idaho Springs, a town along I-70, the interstate highway that meanders through Colorado's mountain ranges. Idaho Springs sits at an elevation of 7,500 feet while Mt. Evans sits at 14,200, making the our climb a gain of almost 7,000 feet over 27 miles. This means that on average we gained over 250 feet of elevation for each mile of the climb. The length of the 27-mile distance is not what makes the ride challenging. Instead, it is the continuous uphill climb that is compressed into that distance that presents an intimidating undertaking.
When biking uphill, the pace is obviously very slow and methodical. We averaged around 8 miles per hour during those 27 miles uphill, taking about 3 and a half hours of moving time (excluding stops). For comparison, I can average around 20 miles per hour for a long distance on a flat road. Despite the long amount of time required for that climb, the sights and vistas of the Colorado Rocky Mountains sweetened our effort. The considerable change in elevation also created a wide diversity of scenery as the later part of the ride was above the tree-line. Being in such a beautiful landscape made the incredible effort even more worth it.
I felt strong and well trained for this ride overall. That said, the last 3 miles to the top of Mt. Evans were mentally and physically exhausting. After riding uphill for over 3 hours, the legs ached, and those last 3 miles were likely the steepest inclines we climbed. Importantly, the end of the ride takes place at the highest elevation. With thinner air and less oxygen, the fatigue began to compound. I had to tap into my stores of willpower and power through to the top.
Reaching the summit was a huge relief, but we could not hang around too long—storm clouds were beginning to roll in, an ominous sight for a biker riding downhill. After getting the requisite summit photo, we put on our warmer layers and began the much faster descend back to Idaho Springs.
Unfortunately, the top half of the road on Mt. Evans is very choppy with lots of large cracks and potholes. I also was not using my own bike as it was back home in Dallas, so I had borrowed an older bike from a friend. The bike I was using was good bike except the wheels were very thin. I had to proceed on the initial part of the descent with caution to avoid the dangers of the sketchy road, but I was able to get down without any issues.
This experience on the downhill taught me a few valuable lessons for my upcoming Triple Bypass race on August 20th. First, I need to make sure that I have good gloves to wear on the downhill portions of the Triple Bypass. My hands were getting numb with pain from the cold and wind on that descent down Mt. Evans. Even more importantly, I learned that I have no desire to maximize my speed on the descents of the Triple Bypass. Going at fast speeds on a road bike is risky, so safety will be my number one priority on that upcoming race. Originally, I had hoped to achieve a time of under 8 hours on the race, but I no longer care about this goal. I will still complete the uphill climbs at a strong pace, but I will slow down, be careful, and enjoy beautiful Colorado on the downhill parts. Dropping the goal and my competitive motivation is not natural for me (if you have not already realized how competitive I am), but I am glad that I have made that decision before the race.
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Pushing my physical limits on the bike up Mt. Evans was one of the most rewarding experiences that I have had this year. I cherished the opportunity to take on an extreme athletic challenge while savoring the gorgeous views of the Great Outdoors. I hope that this adventure is just a taste of ambitious adventures yet to come.