[DVBC] RE: MT. Washington

GERALD BURHOP jerry_burhop at verizon.net
Thu Feb 1 19:30:43 EST 2007 

Well I was at my computer at 5:50. System up. Browser on. Web site loaded.

Patience...patience...

Registration opens...

Check the boxes...log in...click

Patience...

Next screen...Fill in blanks....click...

Patience.....

Repeat...
Repeat...

Done.

The hard part is over.  I am registered for Mt. Washington. The easy part
will actually be making the climb.

-----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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