After I completed the July 4th Killington Triathlon, I learned that going uphill is really not that bad. It’s difficult, but I love a good challenge and muscle burn. Thanks to genetics’ blessing with my large quadriceps and hamstrings, hills are a challenge I can handle.
On the other hand, going downhill on a road bike in the rain can be pretty scary. Since the Killington race, which included downhills in the rain, I’ve been nervous about going down hills. Now, I’m not talking about basic hills, you know those little hills that are a part of almost every race. Not them. I’m talking about segments of mountains, with elevation profiles that spike and dip not hundreds but thousands of feet across little more than a handful of miles. Yup – those are the ones I’m talking about. The grade is into the double digits—those hills.
So, when I signed up for the TrekWomen Triathlon at Mount Snow, held on August 9, 2009, I knew to expect some hills. The bike portion of the course would follow from the transition area at the base of Mount Snow up and down, and up and down, and up and down Handle Road. But, I couldn’t remember exactly how many or how big those hills would be.
I’ve been skiing at Mount Snow with my husband for the last 12 years. On our way home from skiing, we’ve driven down Handle Road hundreds of times. You would think I’d have some idea of what it was like. Trouble is, however, I never drove down the road thinking about cycling. So, I wanted to drive down the course with this new perspective in mind. John complied, and we checked out Handle Road on the way home from picking up my race packet.
As we drove the 6 or so miles (12 mile out-and-back course), I paid close attention to the steep grade, sharp curves (great song by Younder Mountain Stringband). The course did not look as steep as the Killington Mountain access road (thankfully), but there were a few semi-steep drops with some turns, and the turnaround was at the base of a hill. Complicating the ride were a few drop offs in the road due to erosion, pot holes, and other road disturbances that you would (or should) expect on a mountain road. Did I mention rain was forecasted for the next day?
Am I suicidal or just stupid? Neither. I just love to tri.
By the time we got home from previewing the course, I was nervous. I tried not to give in to the nervousness, with thoughts of high speed descents in the (potential) rain. Well, I tried. Succeed I did not. I got my brain so worked up, my stomach became upset, and I was barely able to eat dinner. Way to stay cool, girl. For goodness sake, they are just hills! Okay, segments of mountains, but still, this level of paranoia was not necessary.
I woke up race morning at 5 a.m. decidedly calmer than the night before. That was a welcome feeling. Better yet, it looked like the rain would definitely hold off (it did). I went through my pre-race ritual motions, one of which includes COFFEE. I know there are several schools of thought on coffee, or more specifically caffeine. I’m of this school of thought: DEATH BEFORE DECAF!
Properly caffeinated, we arrived to the race site by 6:15 a.m.—in plenty of time for me to check out my bike. Oh, another juicy tidbit in my cycling story: the night before the race, as we were cleaning the bike and lubing the gears, we noticed that it wouldn’t shift properly from the big ring to the small ring. Hmmm. That could be an issue.
After testing it out, I decided that I would just leave the chain on the small ring and shift the other gears up and down to add or decrease resistance as needed. Not ideal, but it was pretty much the only option I had.
The first mile or so of the bike was a climb—which was great because I needed to warm up after the cold swim. (See yesterday’s post.) And, even though I’m from Flat Jersey, it turns out that I’m not a half-bad climber. As I crested the first hill, I looked DOWN. Okay, time to grow some guts. I surprised myself because I just went. And, it was not that bad. It more more than “not bad”; after about a minute of cruising, I started to realize that going downhill was even fun. I wanted to go faster, but because I could only use the small ring, I didn’t have any tension. Grrrr! Wait, is this me? I want to go faster—ON A DOWNHILL? Even better – I’m actually having fun as I zip down the mountain!
At one point, I looked down at my bike computer and it read: 38 miles per hour. Woo-wee! It was a rush. I came into the turnaround successfully, and headed back up the mountain. The first half of the ride was basically a downhill, with some minor climbs. The second half of the ride was the opposite. As I climbed, I could feel the power in my legs and the rush of air in and out of my lungs. The feeling of my body working so efficiently was a precious moment–and it’s a feeling that gets you addicted to tri.
After turning around, I started to see the other competitors as they headed to the turnaround. We yelled words of support and encouragement to each other. At various points, we would hoot and holler–“Woo-hoo!” “Yeah!” “Looking strong, ladies!” In the 7 triathlons I’ve done so far, there has always been a sense of community and support. But, this triathlon was the most supportive and community-oriented so far.
When I came in from the bike, I looked at John and he said, “Great ride, Maria. Really, GREAT ride.” The best part is that I knew he wasn’t just being nice. I did have a great ride. I might not have had the fastest bike split of the day, I was 10th overall for the bike portion of the course, but I was over my fear. I hammered down the hills, and I had fun doing it.
For a full event summary, see my previous post.
