Death Ride Report - Laura Stern - 7/10/10

Ahhh, the Death Ride. 129 miles, 15,000' of climbing, some of the finest high-alpine scenery anywhere, and 3000 new-found friends to ride with. How many rides can compete with this? The 2010 "edition" of the DR marked its 30th anniversary.
I first did this ride 22 (maybe 23?) years ago and have ridden it 6 or 7 times throughout the years, and I always go into it with a bit of trepidation as far as finding out just how much I'm slowing down over the years. Lucky for me, the mileage and total climbing at the DR has been reduced over the years while the number of aid stations and water stops has increased, which definitely helps cushion the blow.

Conditions were pretty great this year. Lows the night before were low-to-mid 50's, so jackets weren't really needed at the start, and the highs during the day were high double-digit but not triple-digit heat. The mid-afternoon thunderstorms that had been in the area all week ended up being non-existent on DR day, and we enjoyed sunny skies and clear air. There were still loads of wild flowers all along the route as well as lingering snow up high, making it particularly scenic. Really a gorgeous day in the Sierra!

Greg Sterling, Gregg Shores, and myself were the only Coretechs riders, and we each opted for different start times. The "official" roll-out window for the full (5-pass) route was 5:30 to 6:30am. I went for 5:30 thinking that I'd be reasonably near the front of the ride from the get-go, and also to try to avoid being out on the course late in the afternoon in case of thunderstorms and/or excessive heat and wind. (There is also a small group of guys that start out together at 5:30 to race the event amongst themselves every year, so I thought I'd start near them just to watch the attacks on Monitor. I had also driven up with one of them, Paul McKenzie, so didn't want to be too far behind at the finish.) I looked around for Greg and Gregg at the start but ended up rolling out on my own, as Greg (Sterling) told me he'd probably start extra early, while Gregg (Shores) indicated we wanted to start later.

Little did I realize though that probably 500 to 1000 riders started well before 5:30, so by the time I got to the base of Monitor there was already a sea of riders as far as I could see up the climb! I couldn't believe it. I ended up riding most the way up the west side of Monitor (pass #1) in the left lane because the right lane was so clogged -- but this was just fine since both sides of Monitor and Ebbetts are closed to traffic during the DR, and it was far too early for any riders to be descending yet. (I certainly kept an eye out for descenders, though.) I was also tremendously enjoying the ride on my new Leopard! About half way up I came across 2 guys who were also on Leopards (and sporting Leopard kits, for that matter), and we gushed about our bikes to the (mild) annoyance of those around us.

Monitor Pass tops out just above 8300', and the view from there in early-morning lighting is just spectacular. The descent is equally spectacular and a must-do for all cyclists! I filled my water bottle at the side of the road up top Monitor (so avoided the "full" rest stop and long lines there) before descending the eastern side, then immediately flipped around at the bottom of the east side as soon as I got my 2nd pass sticker to head back up. That eastern side is a monster climb with over 3000' vertical, and you can see a looooong way up! About half way up is my favorite water stop of the day, where there's a bunch of (teenage?) kids lined up eagerly waiting to grab your bottle. Then they sprint to the water jugs at a speed rivaled only by Usain Bolt, fill your bottle, then sprint up the road to hand it back to you while yelling all sorts of encouragement at the top of their lungs. They do this for several thousand riders and for many hours on end! I'm told that these kids are at-risk kids in programs to help keep them from ending up in jail, and I gotta say, they do an incredible job at this water stop.

Near the top of the east side of Monitor I finally spotted the familiar riding style of Greg Sterling up ahead so picked up my pace to catch up before the summit. It was good to finally find another Coretechs rider, and I could tell even from behind that he was feeling pretty good that day too. This time I stopped at the aid station up top Monitor for several minutes (or more) for a quick breather and to re-fill bottles and stuff some food into my pockets (and mouth). Greg and I left that aid station together, but I lost track of him by the time I got to the bottom of Monitor so continued on my own.

Next come both sides of Ebbetts, i.e. passes 3 and 4, and topping out at 8730' (the highest elevation of the DR). I felt good up the front side (one of the prettiest passes in the Sierra!), grabbed water at the top, rolled over the backside to Hermit Valley, then flipped around at the bottom immediately after getting my 4th pass sticker and avoiding the congestion of the rest stop. Along the way back up I somehow spotted Greg coming down at warp speed, amidst all the other riders descending too. Funny how familiar riding styles jump out at you! I knew I was slowing down considerably near the top though, so tried to minimize my down-time at the summit by just grabbing water and more pocket food, then rolled on. (I also had a very strong mix of R4 in my 2nd water bottle that I was relying on for much of my nutrition that day. I took along some Endurolytes caplets too.)

Descending that front side of Ebbetts was insane. I thought Monitor looked packed with people earlier in the day, but it was nothing compared to the wave of riders coming up Ebbetts. Or maybe it's the narrower/steeper road that makes it look different? I found it a bit unnerving in some places as it's a somewhat technical descent and there was often little room to maneuver around all the riders coming up the hill -- especially those couple of riders who were taking the paper-boy route!

At the base of Ebbetts I finally spotted Gregg Shores (or he spotted me, rather), who I hadn't made visual with yet that day and who was just starting up the front side of Ebbetts. The mercury was quickly rising by that point in the day, and I remember feeling very relieved with having started at 5:30am rather than significantly later. (Sorry Gregg!) The lunch stop is a few miles past the base of Ebbetts, but I opted for water, fruit, and a few fig newtons at the side of the road rather than going through the actual lunch line and/or sitting down. I also know from all previous DR's that things can suddenly get very unpleasant as soon as you leave lunch, and that eating a lot there can be a bad idea!

In my opinion, the 5th pass, Carson, is harder than all previous 4 combined, and leaving the lunch station is where the DR earns it's name (i.e. the final 40+ miles of the ride). I found a few riders to link up with for a bit of the way back to Turtle Rock Park (the start/finish, and always tough to ride past on your way out to Carson), but ended up riding solo for pretty much the entire remainder of the ride. It was very warm and the wind started to pick up quite dramatically, and by Woodfords I was already quite anxious for more water. Lucky for me there were only a few other riders at the Woodfords aid station, and I thoroughly enjoyed all the personal attention they were giving each rider. One worker grabbed my bike while another filled my bottles, then a third guy (a big strong guy!) gave me a GREAT running push to get me started from a stand-still up the incline of the road. Loved it! I was outta there very quickly. Best of all, they started blasting Stones tunes over the speakers, so I happily rolled out with Mick in me head.

But the Hope Valley wind-tunnel slowed me down in a hurry. This might be the toughest climb of the day since it's one that you don't (or at least I don't) really mentally prepare for. Worse, it's called a "Valley". Plus, the road is no longer closed to cars so there's lots of traffic. As I lurched my way up Hope Valley (Hopeless Valley, I dubbed it) I also started experiencing extreme "hot foot" and related foot cramps, which brought me to a near standstill. The legs felt OK, but the feet were absolutely on fire (maybe metatarsal pads would help?), and the wind was just oh-so debilitating. So stopped yet again at the next aid station at Pickets to get more water and pour some on the feet. I felt like I was dousing coals. Then continued lurching my way up Carson.

Think Lance at Morzine, compounded by several orders of magnitude, and that's how bad I looked on Carson. I reminded myself ad-nauseum that it's the Death Ride and it's SUPPOSED to be hard, and that I was SUPPOSED to feel lousy, but that wasn't too much consolation. I also tried to lose myself to the stunning views as the road climbed above Red Lake, as it was definitely one of the prettiest days I've ever seen on Carson. But oh, can't someone please turn the wind off? The top of Carson (8580') finally arrived though, and I got my 5-pass pin (the DR is all about the pin!), some water and watermelon, and then willed myself to turn around and get rolling before sitting down and sprouting roots at the aid station. The descent really isn't much fun due to the often-lousy road surface with jillions of cracks and holes that absolutely pummel you, and boy-oh-boy did I appreciate the Bar Phat gel and tape that Menlo Velo put on my handlebars the previous week! Lots of cars on the return, too. Then within the final mile or two of the finish line you get slammed with 2 short hills that seem like absolute walls at that point of the day.

But finally there was Turtle Rock Park! Yeah! It was just after 2:30pm so I missed my sub-9-hour goal by a few minutes (too much solo riding throughout the day?). Oh well! It was still one great and memorable day, and well worth the trip up there! Best of all, it kept me on some sort of training schedule throughout the spring. There were also showers and a very nice Mexican buffet-style dinner at the finish to complete the day.

What a day! We rode the Donner Pass/ Cisco Grove out-and-back (from Tahoe Donner) the next day to shake out the legs a bit, and then came home.

Hopefully Greg and Gregg will chime in with their own recaps.

One final note: There were many local team racers at the DR this year, including probably a dozen from Webcor/AV as well as others from Pen Velo, SJBC, SixFifty, Morgan Stanley, and other teams. I was envious that they had such good representation by their members and would really like to see a strong contingent of Coretechs riders there next year! What do ya say? The Death Ride is not your ordinary ride, and it's a great event to put on your calendar and to train for throughout the early-to-mid cycling season. Plus, it's a great area to plan some vacation days around with family or friends.