Tri training started fairly well in January and then we went on an amazing cycling trip to Chile and Argentina for a week in February. (I'm typing on my iPad right now so I can't include pictures but will upload some when I get back to my iMac). The cycling was fantastic and scenery spectacular as we were in the Volcano and Lakes region. Our two days in Argentina were the highlight but the toughest challenge was our last day of cycling back in Chile.
It started as a gently rolling ride leaving Puerto Varas along the largest lake in Chile. We stopped along the lake for lunch after about 35 miles. It was after lunch that the challenge came. One of our guides, a professional mountain biker, invited 3 of us to join him climbing the Osorno Volcano, which is 14 miles with grades of 20-25%. It was by far the hardest thing I've done on a bike. It is incredibly mentally tough because there are stretches early on without switchbacks, just brutal straights of 20+% incline. I would try to make my own little switchbacks on the allowable two-lane road. I had to stand for most of it and it took all my strength to keep the pedals turning. Luckily about 1/2 way up there is a parking lot and scenic viewpoint where our support truck was waiting and the pro had stopped to rest. I took advantage of this to catch my breath, refill my drink bottle and wait for the other two. After several minutes we realized the others would be a while so the pro and I took off for the rest of the climb. The next sections were not quite as steep due to some nice switchbacks until you came to the last long, brutal straightaway. This section was the 25% grade with no switchbacks. It was the toughest test I've had and took all my mental and physical strength to not walk, sit down or cry. Again, I made my own little switchbacks on the road but this just made the climb longer and didn't really lessen the grade. The pro rode a straight line up and steadily pulled away. I didn't care, I just didn't want to walk. The road ends into a level gravel parking lot at the base of the ski hill. My heart was pounding so hard and my panting so strong that I had to keep pedaling into the gravel as I was afraid of stopping suddenly and felt I needed to let my body calm down gradually and keep some muscle action to keep blood moving. I was elated to have made it and be done. After my HR came down I was finally able to appreciate the gorgeous views back toward Puerto Varas and the lake we rode along. Again, I hope to upload some pics soon. Due to the incredible steepness no one bikes back down as it's dangerous and will burn up brake pads. I gladly accepted the van ride down.
I highly recommend cycling in that part of the world if able. We concluded our trip with 3 days in Santiago and had fun exploring
the capitol including a little bike tour of the city. It was tough to return home to Seattle in February after the hot sun of the South American summer.
No comments:
Post a Comment