| Comments: | Just when you think you've ridden a hill a friend takes you up a real hill and puts everything into perspective.
We started across the street from the beach so it was harder to get any closer to sea level. From where we parked the car we rode one block, took a right and then it was up, up, UP. But I gotta say, as crazy as a 36 mile hill sounds, the grade is not so bad. And it's super consistent at about six or so percent (that's what I was told) for almost the entire climb. Yes, there are pitches that get steeper but there are also some flatter sections and even a couple of small descents on the way up.
We started very mellow (read: 250 watts). For some reason I was itching to get going but Greg K and Brad K kept telling me how so-and-so had blown their wad by starting too hard so I hung out and tried to chill.
At 3500 feet there is a little general store where we stopped and got snacks and drinks and ate them in the grass. That was really nice. From here the pace picked up (we had made a 'pact' to ride together to this point) and right away we unfortunately lost Dean J. It seemed Brad was on a mission so I just stayed close to him.
I was surprise by how easy I was breathing. Most of the time I was in my 42x25 or 23 and only needed the 27 for the occasional switchback. Standing was also feeling really good and did not sap my energy like it usually does. And my back was feeling fine! At this point anyway. :)
After a bit I noticed that Greg's breathing was in stark contrast to mine. :( He was almost panting and sure enough, shortly after I noticed this he slowly started to drift back. That was at around 6000 feet maybe? So now it was just super Brad and me. And Brad was looking good! Every time the grade would flatten out, Brad would dutifully shift up and accelerate. We just kind of took long 'pulls' and kept trading places.
There is a ranger station/tool booth at about 7500 feet where you have to pay your $5 to enter the park. My feet were kinda hot (and swollen) so getting off my bike for a minute felt pretty darn good. After this point we rode into the fog. Nothing like having it get damp and having the wind pick up to make you second guess what you are doing. And it was swirling so just because you had a headwind at one point did not guarantee that you were going to get a tailwind around the next switchback. Headwind + climb = extra work. Big time.
ASIDE – by this time I was spending most of my time in the 25 with more and more frequent visits to the 27. Oh yes.
At around 8000 feet I started feeling the altitude and now my breathing was getting more shallow and rapid. I had to concentrate to slow it down and really blow out everything in my lungs so that they would take in as much as possible. At around 8500 feet I was in front and suddenly Brad was 30 feet behind me. Then it was 50 and then I was gone. You can't really attack on this kind of a hill – at least I can't – you just ride your pace and people either hang or they don't.
At 9000 feet I was in the 27 a LOT. Several times I would shift to the 23 and stand to release my back and after a meager five revolutions or so would be right back in the saddle. Sheesh… I felt okay in the saddle but standing was f'n hard! Because I could not get out of the saddle to do my back any good I had to get off my bike and walk for 50 feet three times in the last 1000 feet. Oh man did that feel good.
There are two visitor centers at the top of the crater. The lower one has restrooms and water and the upper one is just a lookout. Greg and Brad had both told me that the stretch of road from the lower one to the upper one was the hardest and they weren't joking. I was already in the 27 and then the road tipped up. Not being able to get out of the saddle I just had grind it out. One word: ouch.
But then I saw the 10000 foot sign. Nice. And really, I felt surprisingly good! After leaving Brad I had been able to ride my own pace and in spite of it being just a hair faster than his it was easier for me than to follow his accelerations.
I got a picture of me in front of the 10k sign, toured the parking lot and then returned to the sign and hung out to get a picture of Brad as he rode up. And then he promptly rode up the pedestrian walkway to the observation tower so I followed.
Oh. My. God.
I recall remarking that this mountain did not look like it was 10000 feet tall but now it did. We were WAY above the clouds and since it was kinda broken up you could see for ages in some directions. At times like this I wish that pictures could do the scenery justice but sadly they always fall short. :( And did I mention that the last 2000 feet were like riding through a blast zone? Nothing but pumice, red dirt and brown dirt. There was zero vegetation.
After 30(?) minutes Greg rode up and we got the obligatory group shots and got horizontal on a rock wall that had been warmed quite a bit by the sun; what a luxurious feeling!
After another 30 or so minutes Greg checked his phone and saw that Dean had sent a text letting us know that we should pick him up on the descent so off we went. We stopped really quick at the lower visitor center to get water and put on our vests and warmers and then half a mile later there was Dean.
I love descents. No, I LOVE descents. After we hooked up with Dean I did not see anyone until we regrouped at the ranger station. At the top I was only doing about 35 mph but still easily able to pass cars – of which there were thankfully not too many. Even when I descended through the clouds/fog/mist and got myself damp, the roads were pretty darn dry so I did not have to back it down much at all. To top it off, most of the drivers were really nice and would pull over to let me by. Not all but most. :)
After regrouping I was gone again. Did I mention that I love descents? And now the roads really were dry so I started hanging it out a little more. God this was fun. On some stretches of road you could see really far ahead and one time I was able to pass a car on a left hand switchback by just taking the other lane. It felt beautiful. I was almost faster than the cars on the straights as I was spinning the 12 as fast as I cold and cars were holding back. By now I was doing 40 most of the time. All the switchbacks were marked at 15 mph and they felt so good. And they were banked just slightly so you could really just brake as you approached the entrance and then once you tipped into the turn get off the brakes and ride it out. As soon as I could pedal I was doing so.
This was nuts! I just kept going down and down, through sections that I recognized and some I had forgotten about. The entire descent took me 1.5 hours! And for a change my arms and back held up fine. My legs on the other hand did not. Those little descents on the climb? They felt like walls on the way down. But who cares? I was having the time of my life.
Back at the car Dean, Brad and Greg all showed up together so that made me feel good. It was obvious that some folks were being a bit more cautious on the descent and so I'm glad they all made it down nice and safe. |