Training for Mount Mitchell

Back in December of 2009, I decided to repeat something I swore I would not do again. In 1995, 2002, 2003 and 2006, I did The Assault On Mount Mitchell. This is a cycling event covering over 100 miles that begins in downtown Spartanburg SC and finishes on the summit of 6500 ft Mount Mitchell NC. My reasoning for never doing this ride again was twofold: 1. The logistics getting from Spartanburg to Mitchell and back home again are really crazy. You cannot ride back down so you have to take a bus down while your bike is transported to Marion. If you drive to Spartanburg, your car is there so you have to take a bus back there. So either you require a car drop the day before or someone has to take you to Spartanburg and pick you up at Marion. Its a crazy way to do things no matter what you do. 2. this ride takes mortal men down with a vengeance. Your mind and body take a while to recover and the training it requires is long and arduous. You never really "conquer" the mountain, you merely try to not allow it to conquer you. Call it a truce if you will.

But, contrary to my thoughts of never attempting this ride again, I decided to sign up. Many of my riding club were doing it so I thought "why the hell not"? So in January, I was waiting online to sign up at the prescribed time on a Tuesday morning at 10 AM when the event opened to the public. I quickly received confirmation I was in. Now the training must begin. I maintained my general fitness through January and February even though Winter 2010 in NC was cold, wet and totally contrary to cycling and heavy training. But I felt as though heading into March and April, I was in decent form. March and April were OK for training and I accumulated miles of about 600 and 750 miles per month. I knew April was going to require some serious climbing to be prepared for the 12,000 ft of cumulative climbing this event will give me. I made a trip to Brushy mountain in early April and was pretty pleased at the way I climbed. But Brushy (although steep) is not anything like Mitchell. A second day at Brushy on April 22 was even better and I climbed it 3 times easily. Again, not Mitchell but good training nonetheless. On May 2nd, a large group of my cycling buddies made the trip up to Marion to do the section from Marion to the top. I was feeling strong but also tired since I had been out the entire week before at a trade show. I only ran on those days and did some minor spinning on a trainer at the Opryland Hotel gym. We all started out in a big pack in Marion and headed up HWY 80. this highway is the hardest part of the ride with a 3 mile section of 15-20% grade. I did OK but made sure I saved some legs for the ride up the Parkway. From the entrance to the Parkway to the summit is 16 miles. I put in the I-Pod on the Parkway and settled in for the climb. Music makes a difference in your overall mindset when climbing or suffering. I was able to ride a bit smoother and not get over heated as I always do. It also probably helped that it started raining and the temps were much cooler. As I reached the entrance to the State Park, I felt better than I normally do. I knew there was a 2 mile stretch that will hurt but also a nice "false flat" area for about 1 mile that helps you recover. The wind was blowing 30-40 MPH but it was a cross wind or tail wind most of the ride up. I finally reached the summit in 2 hours 35 minutes from the start in Marion. Not bad as it was about the same time I had when I trained in 2006. Maybe even a few minutes quicker. There were 3 others there when I reached the top and with the wind, rain and cold, we decided to not wait and head down as quick as possible. Going down was very hazardous as it was wet and cold and foggy. Some places you could not see more than 20 feet ahead of you. On the Parkway, I reached speeds of 45 MPH. When we got to Highway 80, we were bombing the switchbacks and cutting the apex of curves very fast. I had a car between me and the other 3 so I got in behind him and let it rip. Once back in the lowlands, the temps rose and it turned out very pleasant. We got back to the cars and waited about 30-45 minutes for the rest of the group. Now the question is: will I be physically and mentally ready for this?

You really never know what the day will be like when you get up. It could be a good day and you feel strong and able. or, it could be a tough day with a bad outcome. 90% of Mitchell is mental. Yes you need to have the physical climbing and endurance down, but getting the mental part checked off is the hardest part. I am looking forward to this ride again. Maybe on May 25th I make an entry saying I will never do it again. But for now, I am embracing the challenge.