[DVBC] RE: MT. Washington

Thu Feb 1 08:32:02 EST 2007

Congratulations!!  I checked the site at 7:30 this morning and saw that it
was sold out already!  Do you know when it closed out?  When did you
register?

> -----Original Message-----
> From: dvbc-list-bounces at list.dvbc.org [mailto:dvbc-list-
> bounces at list.dvbc.org] On Behalf Of Pazos, Javier
> Sent: Thursday, February 01, 2007 7:44 AM
> To: dvbc-list at dvbc.org
> Subject: RE: [DVBC] RE: MT. Washington
> 
> I'm in!
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: dvbc-list-bounces at list.dvbc.org
> [mailto:dvbc-list-bounces at list.dvbc.org]On Behalf Of Robert J Young
> Sent: Thursday, December 28, 2006 12:54 PM
> To: dvbc-list at list.dvbc.org
> Subject: [DVBC] RE: MT. Washington
> 
> 
> I also did the Mt. Washington Hillclimb year before last.  My wife did it
> the year before that.
> 
> A few of extra thoughts in addition to Javier's good advice:
> 
> 1.  The ride is actually more about endurance than hill climbing.  You are
> using VERY low gearing and putting in a hard, steady effort for something
> between one and two hours (a VERY respectable time for amateurs is 1:30).
> 
> You don't need a very steep hill to train for this.  You can find the
> longest moderate grade hill that is convenient and use a big gear. The
> idea
> is to get to the point where you can crank out a steady wattage for one
> and
> a half to two hours.  Frankly and ironically, riding the flats in a hard
> headwind would be perfect training.
> 
> 2.  That said, the grades at "the rockpile" are pretty outrageous and you
> will need to get used to riding  18-22% grades.  There are quite a few
> nice
> hills in our area that fit that description.
> 
> 3.  Actually, the biggest trick to doing the ride has become signing up
> for
> it!  The website starts taking reservations on Feb. 1st.  The cost is
> $300.00.  On March 1st, the price drops to $200.00.  The first year Linda
> and I signed up; I got to the office at 4:30 am on March 1st and managed
> to
> get our reservations in at the $200.00 level.  The ride sold out (limit of
> 600 riders) by 9:00 am.  The next year, the count on the web went over 500
> on the 13th of Feb!  We had to hurry to get in at the $300.00 level (sold
> out that night)!!  Last year, the ride closed out by 9:00am on Feb. 1st
> (less than 3 hours)!!!!!  If you want to do it, you will need to be VERY
> fast and be on the site EARLY in the morning on the 1st.  Apparently the
> ride has gotten very popular since it's been featured in so many
> publications in the last couple years!!
> 
> Oh.  By the way.  My gearing was 24-32 and I barely managed to break 2:00
> ;-)  Almost got blown off the bike too (there is no preparation for the
> weather on Mt. Washington)!!!!
> 
> > ------------------------------
> >
> > Message: 2
> > Date: Thu, 28 Dec 2006 11:08:16 -0500
> > From: "Pazos, Javier" <Javier.Pazos at GEOSC.com>
> > Subject: RE: [DVBC] MT. Washington
> > To: <dvbc-list at dvbc.org>
> > Message-ID:
> > 	<B27761372ADBA945BF5A4D2E50063EE90763BAED at GEOMAIL.geosc.local>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> >
> > There is nothing around here that can prepare you for what you'll
> > encounter on Mt. Washington.  Besides being seven and a half miles of
> non-
> > stop steepness, the weather is notorious.  A couple of the years I did
> it,
> > there were 50mph and 60mph winds.  If you get blown off your bike on an
> > 18% grade, there's no getting back on.  My advice would be:
> >
> > 1:  Put in a lot of miles and a lot of hills.  Make sure to include long
> > efforts (1-2 hours at high heart rate)
> >
> > 2:  Get REALLY low gearing on your bike.  A 1:1 ratio or lower is
> > recomended as your low gear.  I've been able to do it with a 38/34 as my
> > low gear, but if I do it again, I'll look into getting a compact
> crankset
> > so I can have a 34/34 (1:1).
> >
> > 3:  Approach it like a time trial.  There are calculators (go to the Mt.
> > Washington forums) that can estimate your finishing time based on how
> long
> > it took you to finish other hillclimbs (you might want to look into some
> > of them as prep.).  Race it almost as you would a TT of similar
> duration,
> > except only use 90% of the effort you would use in the TT; you're going
> to
> > need that extra 10% when you get above the treeline and hit the weather.
> >
> > 4.  Another exercise that might help is to go out one day when the
> weather
> > is bad (especially if it's windy), find a steep hill, and pedal up very
> > slowly.  Try trackstanding a couple times on the hill while fighting the
> > elements.  Keep practicing until you feel confident that you can do it
> > without falling off the bike--even when you're completely exhausted.
> >
> > You are now as ready as you'll ever be for Mt. Washington.
> >
> > -Javier
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: dvbc-list-bounces at list.dvbc.org [mailto:dvbc-list-
> > bounces at list.dvbc.org]On Behalf Of GERALD BURHOP
> > Sent: Tuesday, December 26, 2006 7:24 AM
> > To: dvbc-list at list.dvbc.org
> > Subject: [DVBC] MT. Washington
> >
> >
> >
> > Is anyone planning on doing the Mt. Washington Hill Climb in 2007?
> >
> >
> >
> > Does anyone know of some good training rides with long steep hills?  I
> > heard there was a ride somewhere in the Poconos, does anyone have any
> info
> > or know the route?
> >
> >
> >
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> > ------------------------------
> >
> > Message: 3
> > Date: Thu, 28 Dec 2006 11:11:49 -0500
> > From: "Pazos, Javier" <Javier.Pazos at GEOSC.com>
> > Subject: [DVBC] Touring bike
> > To: <dvbc-list at dvbc.org>
> > Message-ID:
> > 	<B27761372ADBA945BF5A4D2E50063EE90763BAEE at GEOMAIL.geosc.local>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> >
> > Doug,
> >
> > I am thoroughly unimpressed by your touring escapades.  Now, if you get
> > yourself a real
> > <http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=lt&page_id=39650&v=ei> man's
> > touring bike for the next ToPA, then I might think about changing my
> mind.
> >
> > -Javier
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> > End of DVBC Digest, Vol 13, Issue 42
> > ************************************
> 
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