Nicole
While some people sleep in on Saturdays, endurance athletes seem to have a reason to get up well before sunrise for their next adventure. For me, that adventure was supporting an athlete at her first ever USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championships.
The event was in my backyard on Pikes Peak. The course follows the same 20k stretch of road of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, where super-fast cars make their way up in minutes. This race would take in the “an hour or three” range for most of the athletes. The men’s winner rode it in 1:10, the women’s in 1:25.
I was very much looking forward to seeing the event, and a nervous and excited for my athlete as well. She had driven in from out of state a couple days before with her husband. She also had a couple training partners here as well (they had convinced her to sign up.) We’d only been working together for six weeks, so we just had a little time to work on some of the key skills needed for a challenging climb, and then make sure she was rested on race day.
We met up for a late lunch/early dinner the day before the event so that I could actually meet her in person and also go over any last minute race-preparation questions. (And yes, there were cupcakes involved.)
On race day, I got up a little before 5 to leave my house before 5:30am. It’s a little over 20 minutes to the Pikes Peak Highway “Gateway” from my house. The line was building to get through, as there was only one gate open. Once I made it through the gateway, it was another 7 miles up the mountain to the starting line.
Most of the cyclists had already arrived, and the first wave was set to go off at 6:30am. It was pretty cold this early in the morning at 9000ft, so we were all bundled up. One of my friends was volunteering to assist with parking, and he had to be there around 3:30am. Talk about being dedicated to help!
I found Kat as she was staging for her start, essentially told her to have fun, and then we all cheered for her as her age group started. After that all we could do was wait! I knew a few other racers and spectators, and it’s always nice to see familiar faces.
Once she made it back down, there were the congratulations for finishing such a tough race, a quick debriefing on how the ride went, and then watched the award ceremony.
I always like to think about the events and some take aways from a coach perspective. Here are some of my thoughts…
- The Pikes Peak Hill Climb is not an easy course – 20k with an average grade of about 7%, so making it to the top is an accomplishment in itself. (I have yet to ride it and I live here!)
- Take challenges – Kat could have told her friends “no way” when they said she should ride to the top of a 14,115 ft mountain, but instead she embraced the challenge.
- If you give everything you have on that day, you have had a successful race.
- Review how your race transpired and make note of lessons learned in addition to the things that went well.
- It’s never too late to start riding (or to start any sport for that matter), and it’s something you can do a long time. The largest women’s category was 50-59. The men’s 60-69 category had 18 riders, and the 70+ had 8. (Note: we need more women cycling!)
I was very glad I got to meet Kat and be there at the Hill Climb National Champs to offer whatever support I could, and I certainly look forward to helping her continue to grow as a cyclist!
Nicole
