When I signed up for this year's Livestrong Challenge back in January, one of my goals was to finish the 100-mile course faster & stronger than I did in 2006 -- and in essence conquer the distance as opposed to merely surviving it. Well after struggling on the road all day yesterday, I certainly didn't feel like I "conquered" the distance...but nevertheless I'm proud of myself for hanging in all the way to the finish. Here's a recap of one extremely tough day on the road.
The ride began in downtown San Jose, where 3,000 riders & runners from around the country gathered to take stand against cancer. Lance Armstrong was there for the starting ceremony, where he congratulated all of us for raising $1.5 million toward his foundation. Lance also mentioned to us about a woman currently under-going chemotherapy -- who was told by her doctor not to ride today due to the risk of infection from a potential crash. He told us though that the woman remained committed to participating in this event, and that she was going to ride 100 miles today on a stationary trainer placed by the finish line. Story of amazing determination & courage such as this is abundant at Livestrong Challenge...and it underscored why I'm a big supporter of this event.
View from the start
Nervous smile
At 7:30 AM the Livestrong Challenge San Jose officially kicked off -- with the 100-mile group leading the way to the outskirt of the city. With smooth, flat road and the police holding off motor traffic, the peleton moved quickly...and before I knew it we arrived at our first rest stop, which also happened to be one of the official cheering stations along the route.
With mom -- my #1 fan
After posing for quick pictures and hitting the porta-potties, I went right back into action...and soon encountered a series of unexpected climbs. When I was studying the elevation chart, the only climb I focused on was Metcalf Rd...so I was a bit taken back when I had to get off the saddle this early into the ride. But what was really surprising though was how weak I was feeling on these climbs. I was less than 20 miles into the ride and already I was laboring up the hills...and by the 30-mile mark my legs were already starting to feel stiff. This can't be happening I thought to myself -- I've trained too hard to be feeling this way.
As I continued to struggle early on in the ride, I began to lose my focus: Did I not eat enough before the ride? Have I caught some virus? Should I've taken a sleep-aid last night to get more sleep? I just couldn't figure out what was wrong with me...and my confidence started to unravel as I felt completely powerless with the situation.
But then I recalled this one training ride a while back where I felt extremely weak, but was able to regain energy after forcing down some food. So when I arrived at the next rest stop I forced myself to eat everything I can get my hands on -- bananas, trail mix, pretzels, PB&J, PowerGels -- all washed down with ample serving of Gatorade. Mind you, at this point I had zero appetite for any food...but I figured consuming more fuel is the only thing I can do that could potentially get myself out of this rut.
Well as it turned out I made the right move -- because soon after I got back on the road my energy level slowly began to increase. I could feel my shoulders starting to relax more, and my legs began to feel lighter as I finally got myself into a nice pedaling rhythm. With renewed focus & energy I cruised my way through the long flat section of the course -- maintaining good speed while exchanging draft with other riders. From mile 40 to 65, I probably rode faster than I ever did during my 6-month training period.
The pace slowed down considerably though when we entered the mountains off Hwy 101. My legs began to stiffen up once again as I pedaled my way through the hilly terrain -- and by the time I reached the base of Metcalf Rd at mile 70 my quads were already cramping up. Fortunately the event organizer was kind enough to set-up an extra rest stop for us right before the climb, and gave all of us a chance to gather ourselves before we attacked the toughest section of the course. I stretched out my legs as much as could, popped two advils I received from a kind rider, then began my slow ascent to the top.
Despite being only 2.5 miles long, going up Metcalf Rd. that day was the most painful climb I've ever experienced -- and I'm willing to bet that was also the case for everyone else around me. As I slowly grinded my way up the 15% grade switchbacks I was surrounded by riders walking their bikes...and I also saw many riders hunched over the guard-rails looking like they were about to puke. With every pedal stroke I felt a shooting pain in my already-fatigued quads, and it didn't take long before my heart rate shot past 180 bpm. There was definitely a part of me that thought about walking my bike too to conserve what little energy I had to reach the finish line...but I told myself to just focus on this moment and give everything I got to conquering this hill. After what seemed like an eternity I finally reached rest stop #6 at the summit -- ready to consume every packet of double-caffeinated PowerGels in sight.
Looking at the course elevation profile, I've always thought that once I got passed Metcalf road I could just shut my engine down and cruise my way down to the finish. So despite still having 24 miles left in the ride, I was already starting to think about the finish line celebration when I left the rest stop. Well as it turned out I greatly underestimated the final quarter of the course, because it was just as tough as going up Metcalf. First off there was another hill around mile 75 that felt way steeper and longer than what it showed on the elevation chart, and it completely obliterated my legs that were already way past their limits. Then there was a long stretch in the suburban area where I found myself completely alone for the first time that day...and it was extremely tough mentally to just keep pushing through pain & exhaustion all alone. What really killed me at the end though was the endless red lights that I encountered in the final few miles of the course. At this point my legs were so fried that both my quads and hamstrings were completely cramped -- so when I was forced to put my foot down and wait at the intersections, I could barely keep myself from falling down.
But in the end it was all worth it, because I made it to the finish in one piece and crossed the line in 6:13:33 -- about an hour faster than my previous 100-mile effort. Was it a perfect performance like I dreamed about? Nope, far from it -- I'm sure if I had trained even harder and paid more attention to pre-ride food in-take, then I could've completed the ride even faster and feeling much stronger. But looking back I'm actually glad I didn't have such "perfect" ride, because it gives me the motivation to work even harder for the next time. 2009 Livestrong Challenge -- are you ready for me?
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- Distance: 95.16 mi
- Time: 6:13:33
- Avg speed: 15.3 mph
- Avg heart rate: 152 bpm
- Total ascent: 4465 ft
- Calories burned: 5167 cal
