EPIC TRAINING SYSTEMS
Endure, Excel, Acheive
2006 Death Ride-- Ride Report
July 8, 2006 129 miles and 15,000 feet of climbing (207 km 4572 meters) TOTAL TIME: 9:15 Gearing 53x39 and 11-27 cassette I guess being prepared and training specifically for an event really works. That was supposed to be funny but there is some truth to it as well. Allow me to explain. By all accounts, the Death Ride is reported to be an extremely difficult event. When you look at the numbers 129 miles and 15,000+ feet of climbing- they are quite impressive. I on the other hand, found it to be a great ride and not all that difficult. Maybe it was the Palomar Mountain repeats (in the heat) or the outstanding support from the ride organizers, but I have suffered much more on my Double Centuries than I did on the Death Ride. More on the support Because of the masses of riders (3,000) the organizers go to great lengths to have what appears to be hundreds of volunteers. As you pull into the rest stops people are willing to take your bike, rack it for you, fill your bottles for you, offer sunscreen and just take care of you. I remember a couple of the stops had teenagers willing to run down the hill grab your empty bottles refill them and do a running hand off so you would lose the least amount of time at the aid stations. Now tell me isn't that AWESOME? At the aid stations you will find the usual fare: bagels, fruit, bars, Clif products and Cytomax. Gastrointestinal Issues (GI) If you ride you know what this is, if you don't ride then it is an upset stomach. A couple of hours into the ride I started to experience this gurgling bloated feeling. I don't use Cytomax in training and it just didn't agree with me during the ride. I spent more than a 1/2 hour off the bike in the porta-potty. I easily could have done this ride in Sub 9 hour finishing time. Even with all the time off the bike I was just barely over 9 hours. My suspicion is that when they mix it in 5 gallons jugs the mixture isn't right or it could be just me. Either way it hampered my performance significantly. Overall By the way, I rode on Friday (the day before the event) and previewed Monitor and Ebbett's Passes. I rode about 50 miles and did 6500 feet of climbing (SEE BELOW) and I felt great no altitude sickness. Which was surprising coming straight from seal-level the night before. The climbs aren't that high but they are over 8K elevation. On Saturday, day of the event, I felt even better. The scenery was fantastic the other riders were great and the support was top notch. There a lot of significant others willing to cheer you on as you ride by them. I remember coming through Markleeville, after pass #4 and heading towards Carson, the town was full of people along the roadside, on the grassy banks, all over cheering as you went by. A great ride, if you can get in, DO IT!! |
| Monitor Pass 8314 Elevation Pass 1 & 2 West Side 8.7 Miles 2632 feet (14.0 km 802 meters) East Side 9.8 Miles 3257 feet (15.8 km 992 meters) I found the West side of Monitor Pass to be one of the harder climbs. It is the first climb in the morning and you aren't warmed up yet. It has sections that are over 9% -10% momentarily with about a 2 mile section averaging 8.8% near the bottom. Once you are warmed up the climb is the most consistent grade of them all. There were water stops half-way up and at the top of each climb. I was able to refill my bottles at the top and bottom of every climb (great support). Both descents on Monitor are extremely fast with nice smooth blacktop. You must remain cognizant that others may not descend as well as you. But I easily reached speeds over 50-55 mph. |
| Ebbett's Pass 8730 Elevation Pass 3 & 4 West Side 13.8 Miles 3050 feet (22.2 km 929 meters) East Side 4.3 Miles 1642 feet (6.9 km 500 meters) Ebbett's West (#3) side gives you plenty of time to get your legs back after the wickedly fast descent down Monitor's East side. But then about 5 miles into it you begin a series of 10-12% pitches. They may catch you off guard because you have been spinning for a little while. All of the sudden you have to get out of the saddle to keep your momentum. And eventually, momentum gives way to grinding out your easiest gear ratio. This could be a problem if the early starters who are not good climbers are in front of you. I had people dismounting in front of me and they weren't riding to the far right as they could be. Steep hairpin turns get your attention but it's redeeming value is that I would say this pass is the most scenic. Some where above 7500 feet there is a lake that is just out of a postcard. I wish I would have stopped to enjoy it. Coming back up the East (#4) side all you keep thinking is "...when I get to the top of this I can cruise until Carson." And that is the right mindset to have because once you finish the 4.3 mile climb you will have a lot of downhill and some rolling terrain to the foot of Carson. You crest your second time up Ebbett's at mile 70 and don't begin climbing Carson, out of Woodfords, until mile 94. That is a long recovery period almost too long. |
| Carson Pass 8580 Elevation 15.8 miles 3140 feet (25.4 miles 957 meters) "Conserve for Carson should be your mantra." I felt great all day. As a matter of fact, I kept telling myself "save some for Carson". Many times I would have to back off the intensity because I felt so good. Aside from my GI issues, my legs felt fine and I wasn't experiencing any loss of power due to the altitude. It wasn't until the last 3 miles of Carson pass that I started to feel tired and both my big toes were hurting so bad I wanted to pull over. But I was making good time and didn't want to stop. Those cheering "fans" along the roadside played a big part in me not stopping. It felt great for someone to be there encouraging me. Complete strangers were applauding and cheering us on all the climbs but more so on Carson. When I got to Carson Pass I didn't partake in the customary ice cream but I did have a Coke and a smile (yes I know corny), got my sticker and my pin and headed back down. On the descent, I hit two big potholes, one of which launched one of my bottles--it is a good feeling to know "that's ok I won't be needing that". Although, it was still very scary since it happened as I was quasi-drafting a car at over 60 mph. Yes I love speed! |
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