Week 15

Date
April 12th, 2013

Distance
165 Miles

Time
11:28:53

Route Map/Profile

Weather

Picture

Lake Tahoe with Snow

Ride Report
This was my last big ride before DMD and it was a tough one. The route included climbs up Geiger Grade, Gold Hill, Mt. Rose (east side), Kingsbury Grade (both sides), and Gold Hill again. The 20,000 feet number that RWGPS gives is definitely exaggerated (you can see errors if you look at the profile), but it was a difficult ride.

This was my first trip up Mt. Rose for the year (~16 miles and 4,200 feet from 395), and the weather was great. It wasn't as cold as I thought it would be up there, but I only did the short descent down to Lake Tahoe, not the long descent back down to Reno. There was more snow this winter than last winter, so the bathrooms at the summit are still closed and covered in snow. The extra snow made for some nice scenery along the way.

It was also my first ride to Lake Tahoe for the year. It couldn't have come at a better time, as I needed some new scenery to keep my mind occupied on an 11-hour day. It was the perfect time of year for this ride. There was plenty of snow in the mountains, but the temperature was warm enough to really enjoy the ride.

Physically, I felt pretty good. The second Gold Hill climb came after about 145 miles, which is about as close as I can come to simulating DMD's Sierra Rd at mile 155. Obviously I didn't feel fresh as a daisy, but my legs were far from dead. This will be my second DMD and my main advantage this time as opposed to 2011 is that I know what to expect from Sierra Rd as far as gearing goes. I ran a 50/34 with a 12-25 last time and I was a little worried that I might wish I had a 27 on the back. The 25 turned out to be fine, so I know that as long as I pace myself, everything will be fine.

I should be in good shape for DMD. The last 3 weeks have gone well and last week I set a personal best up Geiger Grade. I feel good physically. I hope I can avoid any mental mistakes. My time in 2011 was 14:53. I'm hoping for something under 14 hours this year.