Shasta Report & Rec.

[Starfish]

OK, women (& Mr. Silver), this book got very long...I divided it up into boldly labeled chapters, making it easier to scan!

Thank you:
The TE community has been extremely wonderful in supporting me through the training and prep for this ride, which was my goal ride for the season. Thank you!! And, a little extra special thank-you to V, SK, MP.

Cutting to the Chase - The Upshot:
I had one of those stellar, thank-you-Lord, awesome days that come around every one in awhile. Although I worked hard all day, the weather was perfect, I had no mechanicals or digestion issues, I was organized and prepared, I paced & fueled myself wisely, I apparently had trained enough, there were super fun people along the way, and I hit all of my goals for the ride, which were, in this order: (1) have fun & maintain a positive attitude, (2) set a PB for elevation gained, (3) finish the whole summit century. I had the time of my life!

I recommend this ride to everyone--About the organized ride:
Shasta Summit Century, in Shasta City, CA. http://www.shastasummitcentury.com This ride has options of 30, 60/4K', 100/10,000K', and 135/16,500' miles. The scenery is ALL gorgeous, and their claim is really true: it is a perfect 1st climbing ride because, due to their route, you really are never more than a downhill away from the finish. It is not a big loop...it is a series of out-and-back climbs & descents from one central valley loop, so you can literally turn around and coast down to the finish if you are simply too cooked to go on. I will definitely come back here, especially so that I can do the one climb I missed (for the super century folks). I drove up there earlier, and it is stunningly beautiful. All the roads are great, and the traffic was very light. The area abounds with lakes, rivers, hiking, scenery and little towns. I spent a week here and had a great time. The ride was well supported & marked. And, it was limited to something like 700 people, so it was not one of those crowd-fests.

The stats of my ride (yes, I'm disgustingly proud of myself):

96.43 miles (completed the "century" route)
10,014 feet of climbing
10 hours actually on the bike; about 13 hrs, 15 minutes total
>4 hrs over 85% MHR (plenty >90% ), 6 hrs at 65-85% MHR

I was a little amazed at how much break time I actually took. I never took more than 15 minutes at one break, and took that much at only 2 breaks all day. I skipped one stop altogether. I did allow myself to stop every 15 minutes of climbing for about 2 minutes to let my HR drop a bit. I felt I needed to do that so that I could keep going all day & finish without my lactate-filled legs exploding like hot dogs in the microwave. I would be curious to hear how much break time experienced distance climbers on TE typically shoot for.

Main Ride Sections: I had mapped out the night before where and when I needed to be in order to finish the whole ride. I also planned to pace myself on the earlier, flatter sections so that I wouldn't be cooked later on. My plan turned out to be amazingly accurate, and I was grateful for all the minutiae I've kept track of over the course of my training. Or, maybe it was just dumb luck!

First 30 miles (valley loop) - I do not have a sprinter's or a morning-person's bone in my body. It takes me about 1000 yards in the pool to really warm up for swimming, and on the bike, the first 30 minutes to 1 hour usually feel like hell. This was no different, except the early light, the excitement of the day, and my commitment to my goals (including the positive attitude one) really kicked in. I did a great job of managing my attitude! The first 30 miles did present some good little hill climbs, and I did wonder if my high HRs would kill me later (my climbing HR here, 3000-4000' higher than home, was averaging a good 10 beats higher than normal). Wondering what the big climbs would be like, I paced the best I could, and concentrated on my breathing, and on starting my hydration/fueling schedule, right off the bat. I was also careful to pace & take the rests on downhills where I could. I was REALLY glad later that I was mindful at the start! I also took time to take in the beauty and be grateful for even being there and starting that ride. That alone was a victory this year.

Climb One - 10 miles up a scenic river canyon:The first real climb was 10 miles up a wild, rocky, beautiful river valley. It was a great starting climb, beginning with a few little rollers, and then having long stretches of 5% type grades. It kicked up higher here and there, but was really enjoyable--it felt good to just settle into a little climbing after the up and down of the first 30 miles. The first 40 miles of the whole ride, including this climb, was about 3500'. This climb was often shaded, and it was still in the morning, so fairly cool. I began to feel my rhythm and REALLY enjoy. The rest at the top was beside a swimming hole I had been enjoying at the river all week!

The descent back down put a HUGE on my face, and I caught some bugs in my teeth! I got undisciplined and worked hard, instead of resting, pedaling down the hill and enjoying the speed. I smiled at all the folks still climbing up, as all the others before me had smiled on the way down. This went on all day on all the climbs, and it was just a blast. Those smiles on the descender's faces encouraged us and reminded us all that we would also get the same reward after our work!

Climb Two - 7 miles UP to Castle Lake:

This was a climb, and it started right about mile 50! Somewhere around 2100-2200' in 7 miles, with most of the elevation gain in the bottom half, making for a real climb. This climb had quite a few sustained stretches of road between 7-11%, with a number of little kicks up into the teens. I was also shooting for a summit time of noon, and this ended up being the hottest climb of the day, for me. I am one who really loves heat, but even I was grateful for my 3rd bottle cage...I used that water to douse my hair, bra & jersey to keep cool. I worked hard and saw some high HRs!

The reward at the top was another great rest station, pretty Castle Lake, and a wonderful view across the valley to Mt. Shasta. It was a little daunting to realize I would be descending back down into that valley, and then climbing Shasta back up beyond its treeline.

Valley Interlude (or, the low point):

This was, in more ways than one, my low point. After the amazing descent off Castle Lake, I hit about mile 57. After that steepish climb, I was a little hot, a little tired, and wondering how I would do with the second half, the longest climb, and the highest elevations yet to go. Fortunately, it only took about 1/2 hour to through some neighborhoods and get back away from town traffic (which was minimal, anyway) and settle back into the climbing, which is what I wanted to get on with. I'm pretty proud of how I reminded myself of goal #1, which was staying positive. I did that, and talked myself through it, mainly by reminding myself that I had hit all my target times/locations so far, and that I was on track for finishing.

Final Climb: Mt. Shasta Summit @ 7720':

A 4300' climb of 14 miles. This is a wonderful, amazing climb with outstanding views. I was very grateful I had driven it the day before, because I had a sense of when the rest stops would come. This climb was a little steadier than Castle Lake, so although it was definitely a climb, it was never into the teen %s (I don't think, anyhow). The support was great, and at one stop about 1/2 way up, they had put up little signs every 25 yards or so, with motivational quotes about determination, success, and courage. I was going so slowly, I had time to read even the long ones!

I had a lot of fun playing leapfrog with a couple of cute guys who were thin and fit and much faster than me...except they took a LONG time at the rest stops. I knew I couldn't afford to, so I just kept on keepin' on. My pace was sometimes only 3.5 mph on the hard parts! I would just pedal slowly past in my 30-32 granny, with all kinds of time for some banter, and then later they would fly past me in their 39-23's, only to see me at the next stop when I crept by. The whole 14 miles took me about 4 hrs and it was fun having those adorable & friendly companions on the road up the hill.

Digging Deep:

The final stretch up to the summit, the final hour or so, the final 2000 feet in 4 miles, at mile 76 after about 8,000' already...made me dig a bit deeper.

I was tired, but determined, and concentrating one pedal stroke at a time on the fact that, barring anything really wild, I was going to finish the ride. The ride that I first dreamed about doing with my husband, before we were divorced last year. The ride I decided to do before caring for my mom until she died a few months later. The ride I kept training for throughout the spring, despite three jobs, caring for my dad until he died, and handling the estate sale, selling the house, and moving, just last week. This ride symbolized for me something much more than an athletic achievement. And now that it is done, I feel extremely humble, and grateful, and hopeful.

The final portion of the ride took me a bit internally focused, with the last pitch between the final two parking lots hitting 12% in the final few feet. My first words off the bike were, "Who's got my barf bag?" It wasn't really a joke...I thought it could happen. I sat down for 5 minutes, asked some guys to take my picture, and off I went with an amazing feeling of accomplishment and joy, down the most wonderfully paved and amazing descent I have ever done, toward some new, cheering friends at the bottom, and a hot epson salt bath later!

Thanks for reading. I know this was long, but I hope the fact of my ride yesterday will encourage anyone on TE who is nervous about a goal to train and go for it! If a sad, tired, middle-aged, 30 lb overweight woman like me can go from celebrating 5 miles on a paved bike path 3 years ago, to climbing 10,000 feet in a day, anything is possible! I am now eager to see what will actually happen if I train for more power through this winter, lose the weight, and for once build on my base for next year's season! Someday, I'll even get a bike that weighs less than 24 pounds!

Pictures to come, if they turn out!

[onimity]

Congratulations!!!

I've been looking forward to reading about your ride. I loved your ride report and have been so inspired by your training; you've really accomplished something amazing for yourself and are right to be proud.

I'm looking forward to the pictures.

Anne

[SadieKate]

I didn't do nuthing but find you some Saturday dinner dates to talk your ears off.

I'm having a hard time reading it cuz I'm getting all teary-eyed. Congratulations. you're gonna be flying high for days and you should be!

[Starfish]

you've really accomplished something amazing for yourself

Not by myself, believe me. There are some certain TE women who practically held the handkerchief while I blew my nose crying & worrying for months.

Thanks, though...I'm pretty pleased!

[yellow]

Awesome report. Glad you had such a great ride. You rock!

[mudmucker]

What a great narrative ! You go girl ! Congratulations.

[jobob]

Oh my goodness !

I cannot begin to express how impressed I am. You most definitely ROCK !

I'm so glad this turned out so well for you.

You're an inspiration to me. I need to print out your post and pin it up on my wall. And I should carry it with me when I have those moments of self-doubt that I succumb to all too often.

[jeannierides]

Oh my goodness !

I cannot begin to express how impressed I am. You most definitely ROCK !

I'm so glad this turned out so well for you.

You're an inspiration to me. I need to print out your post and pin it up on my wall. And I should carry it with me when I have those moments of self-doubt that I succumb to all too often.

Amen.

[mimitabby]

you are a strong and brave woman! great ride report!
(pictures??)

[teawoman]

Woohoo! Congrats to you! That is totally amazing! I am in awe.

[Blueberry]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!

And yes, you are an encouragement for the rest of us! I'll probably try to train for one of the "challenge" centuries around here next summer.

Thanks for your report, and ENJOY your stats You earned every bit of it!!

[snapdragen]

You are amazing! I am humbled. I am awestruck. Congratulations!

[smilingcat]

Congratulation. Wow. A perfect gorgeous riding day to boot with wonderful people.

It definitly is a start of new life for you. Yup leaves me teary eyed. Beautiful description. And yes I would love to see more pictures of the ride. Hopefully, I can do this ride next year. I do miss the alpine environment with the cool crisp morning air, the beautiful blue sky. Did you notice that the blue in the sky is more vibrant and more beautiful than at sea level? An all the beautiful lakes and mountain stream the sound of the water in the stream...

Yes its a ride you will remember forever.

Again congratulation.
Smilingcat

[Starfish]

Jo: Uh, Jo? You are one of my heroes from Climbing Club!

Mimitabby: Pics are still in the little camera I bought at Safeway! I'll post some pics in a few days!

SmilingCat: Did I notice the particularly vivid blue sky? Uh, where I live, it rains another inch for every mile you drive west (until you actually hit the North American Rain Forest). I noticed immediately that there was blue sky (and hot weather, and air that lets you hang something up overnight to dry without turning on the heater in the bathroom). Yep...I LOVE this kind of country. Makes me homesick for my years in Eastern WA.

Thank you all so much for helping me celebrate!

[maillotpois]

Wow.

I really can't say much more. I am speechless. (Those who've actually met me know that's saying something.)

Wow.