These Mountains are Hilly

These Mountains are Hilly

Sammy Hagar told me a long time ago that I can't drive 55. For the last 25 miles of today's first leg of the Rocky Moustache Ride, I was wondering if we would be able to ride 55. Through the multiple training rides this year of 25-40 miles, through the 104 miles in the Horsey Hundred and 100km (62.7 miles) in the Ride Cincinnati, I have ridden the rolling hills of Kentucky in and out of both the Kentucky and Ohio river valleys multiple times to get ready to ride in the Rocky Mountains. The first day was supposed to ease us in with a manageable 55 miles. Everyone kept telling me that "you can't train for the elevation." Today the elevation was a non-factor even though we climbed from 5200 feet (in Denver) to 8601 feet (in Empire, CO).  (Now that is total elevation gain. That does not count every time we descended and had to re-climb those feet to get to our total elevation and the couple hundred feet up to the parking lot of Red Rocks.) No not the elevation today...it was the hills. Both Brennan and I prepared ourselves for a few long climbs, and we thought we knew where all of them were. We did not. First 20 miles were all bike trail coming out of Denver and into the scenic Red Rocks Amphitheater, where Brennan and I hung out, waited for Costello, and rested while all other people there killed themselves working out (that would come later for us).

Knowing that the stretch into Evergreen would be all up hill, we began the slog. Enough cannot be said for knowing how long a hill, in this case 11 miles, and what is waiting for you at the top, in this case lunch. We spent the next hour grinding it out around turns, in and out of the saddle, and trying to enjoy the few downhills and the slight wind at our back. We rocked that hill, and both felt pretty good knowing that the longest hill was out of the way. Lunch - at the Little Bear Saloon - was perfect: bras hanging from the ceiling, suggestive license plates, and people's names carved in the tables, chairs, and walls. No complaints on the food as it fueled us well for the second half of the day. 

Once again, we knew that we had a shorter but steeper climb for about 4-5 miles out of Evergreen. Done. Is this all the Rockies has to offer? It was at this point that my mindset changed. I (foolishly) let myself believe that the last 20 miles would be easy. After another hour, several grueling (shorter and steeper) hills, we reached Idaho Springs. Brennan tried (without much success) to fix shifting issues that plagued him all day long. With 10 miles to go we remounted, and thug raindrops (I am talking the size of water balloons) that we had been running from all day long began to fall, with little pieces of sleet inside to boot. We outran the rain and ran into our last, and completely unexpected, climb of the day. 1100 feet of climb over the last 9.5 miles kicked our tired butts.We rolled into Lewis Sweet Shop in Empire, CO, and there was hospitality and sweet treats waiting for us. As we sat down and chatted with owners Bernie and Peggy, they told us all about their eclectic little restaurant and all the ins and outs of the area. We left full of milkshakes and many options of eateries for dinner as approved by our new friends. 

This was the toughest 55 miles I have ever done. Brennan seconded the sentiment. And I realized that part of what made it so difficult was the climbs. They punished us, no doubt. But the bigger issue was our changed mindset, thinking that those last 10-15-25 miles would somehow be easier was a mistake. We could, and did, ride 55 today, and these mountains are no joke. Heading up over 11,000 feet tomorrow, so I think it safe to say we won't be overlooking anything tomorrow. Time for beer, pizza, sports (watching), and rest.