Best Altitude Training Venue You've Never Heard Of

I just posted the following article on my website, http://www.triandcatchme.com , and thought some people on SlowTwich might be interested…

Mount Charleston, NV - The Best Altitude Training Venue No One Has Heard Of?

Most world class endurance athletes and coaches, at some point in their career, try altitude training as a means of achieving a higher level of fitness. Typically only used prior to key races, such as the Olympic Games, National Qualifiers, World Championships, or other “A-Races,” altitude has been proven to be effective in boosting performance for individuals that respond physiologically to it.

Recent research into altitude training has shown that the most effective protocols necessitate a “live high, train low” situation where an athlete can subject themselves to hypoxic stress while living and sleeping, but descend to a lower elevation for faster and more intense training sessions. Unfortunately, most of the locations typically associated with altitude training don’t meet the criteria to live high and conveniently train low. Conveniently, is a keyword. In the midst of peak training volume, the last thing coaches and athletes want to do is drive hours and hours a day up and down mountainous areas when they could be resting or preparing for the next training session. The cumulative stress of trying to get up and down from high to low could quickly negate any benefit from altitude.

Locations such as Flagstaff, Boulder, Park City, Mammoth Lakes are some of the more common locations associated with altitude training, however, not one of these locations offer the ability to quickly descend to a truly low altitude in a short amount of time. Furthermore, the weather at these locations limits one’s ability to be able to train year round.

Ultimately, athletes and their coaches end up compromising in choosing an altitude camp location.

Based on my experience as an athlete, I have laid out the following criteria that an altitude camp should be able to meet:

Proximity to major international airportAbility to train 12 months/yearAbility to live at a variety of elevations between 5,500-8,500ft based on whichever elevation a particular athlete responds to bestAbility to quickly descend to under 3,000ft in <30minEntertainment options within reasonable proximity. Yes, athletes need a break once in awhileConsistent weatherGood training optionsNot be too expensive to live and train300+ days of sun/year

Okay, you might be thinking to yourself that these criteria describe an untenable situation. We have to compromise, right? After all, none of the typical altitude camp locations meet all of these standards. Not Flagstaff, Mammoth, Boulder, or any other typically considered location fits the bill.

To my knowledge, there is only one venue that checks all of the boxes

A short 30 minute drive north from Las Vegas on Interstate 95 is state road 156, also known as Lee Canyon Road. In a matter of 18 miles this road climbs from 2,500ft on the desert floor up to an astounding 8,600ft at the base of Ski Las Vegas. That’s right, a ski resort in Las Vegas. Going the speed limit, it takes you 20 minutes to get up, 20 minutes to get down. Along the way there are rental cabins scattered from 8,500ft to 5,500ft where an athlete could choose their accommodations based on their preferred “high elevation.” On the other side of a mountain ridge is the town of Mount Charleston. At an elevation of 7,500ft, the sleepy little town of Mount Charleston has the largest variety of accommodations, from hotel lodging to condo rentals.

http://www.inetours.com/Las_Vegas/images/Mt_Charleston/Orleans_1023.jpg

Need to descend from your lodging for a bout of intervals? 20 minutes down the hill, and several ear-pops later, you’re at the bottom of the mountain and ready to do your workout. Need to get to the airport to pick-up another coach or athlete? It’s an hour away. Need to get to the pool? 30 minutes away. Want to catch a movie, see a show on the Las Vegas strip, or go to a world class restaurant? It’s right there for you.

Okay, how about the weather? Las Vegas has 300+ days of sunshine a year. It’s drier and cooler than Phoenix. Yes, it’s cold at 8,000ft in the middle of the winter, but the roads are usually still clear and a 20 minute descent gets you to much warmer air.
If a smart company, or maybe the US Olympic Team, were to install an Olympic-size swimming pool at the base of Mount Charleston, we would literally be talking about the most PERFECT ALTITUDE TRAINING SITE ON PLANT EARTH.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Lee_Canyon_view_1.jpg

There is nowhere, which I know of, in the United States, and maybe the world, that offers the kind of convenience that Mount Charleson offers.

Just look at some of the shortcomings of the following competing locations:

Flagstaff,AZ --2.5 hrs to closest International Airport. Descent to Sedona or descent to bottom of Wapaki Loop is inconvenient and does not get you to a low enough elevation. Winter training is limited.Park City, UT – Winter training is limited. Decent to Salt Lake City is still does not get you close to sea level.Mammoth Lakes,CA – Inconvenient to travel to. Is there anything to do for entertainment close by? Eastern slope of high Sierras can get awful cold in winter.Boulder, CO – No chance of being able to descend lower than 5,000ftPlaces in Alps --Winter training is limited. Expensive. Difficult to travel to for Americans.Places in South America – Travel is expensive. Difficulty descending conveniently. Difficult to travel to for Americans.

If you take your training and racing really, really serious and are considering “going to altitude,” I think that Mount Charleston has to be on your short list of destinations.

http://i46.tinypic.com/sfle13.jpg

Tucson offers a nice option too. Sleep in Summerhaven up on Mt Lemmon. Roughly 7000ft, descend into Tucson 25 miles to about 2400 ft. Some real nice road riding in eastern Tucson, taking Colossal Cave rd south towards Madera Canyon or Sonoita. A great winter camp option.
Hard to beat Mammoth as a summer camp option. There is a swimming pool in Mammoth Lakes, or the many open water options such as June Lake. Endless riding on perfect roads with no afternoon thunderstorms.
I guess there is always the altitude tent option too, if traveling isn’t desireable/possible

La Paz, Bolivia…Well I like it anyway.


The climb you refer to that takes you from 2500 to 8600 feet. How far a bike ride would it be from Vegas (or do you need to take the Interstate to get to route 156?).

I’d say that having a place to swim should be one of your prerequisites. Best place I’ve been in the US is Big Bear Lake, CA.
There is no pool up at Mt. Charleston, is there? Why build a pool at the bottom when they could build a pool at the top of the hill?

I was at this place in Mexico a while back. Weather is pretty nice - highs in the 60s and 70s in January at 7K feet.
http://altitudeswimming.com/

You just described Xantusia, and we have a pool on site and a public one 20 minutes away. Close to 4 major airports, and the TOC thought it good enough to make our bread and butter ride their queen stage. You can ride to 8000 on the road, 9500 on a trail, and be at 3000 flat desert in 15 minutes. There is also a lake 15 mi away for OW swimming, and one of the coolest B&B’s you could ever hope to stay at…

When I was staying in North Vegas I was on my way up there one day, but turned around after too many cars buzzed me at high speeds along the way. Really didn’t like much of anything about Vegas. What brings you there? Is Mt Charleston where you are living now?

There is a decent pool in North Las Vegas about 20 minutes down Kyle Canyon Road from Mt Charleston…

I did some training up in Telluride, CO at Mountain Village… Swimming at 9,500 was TOUGH!!! Every single set felt like a hypoxic set, even when swimming with a snorkel or breathing every stroke.

I prefer swimming at lower altitudes…

When I was staying in North Vegas I was on my way up there one day, but turned around after too many cars buzzed me at high speeds along the way. Really didn’t like much of anything about Vegas. What brings you there? Is Mt Charleston where you are living now?

I’ve never had an issue with cars on Lee Canyon. More of a problem on the Kyle Canyon side… You can also ride on hwy 95 about 30 miles north on a shoulder that is about 8ft wide… Totally safe…

My wife’s work brought us to Las Vegas and we live in Summerlin… If we are still here next fall, I’ll be doing a pre-Kona camp up on Charleston for sure…

I was headed up there from the east side. It was actually great for quite awhile, as I had a bike lane pretty much the whole way there. And the climb was a perfect steady grade at the beginning which would have been great for intervals.

Summerlin looked like a great area. Not too far from the Red Rocks area. Loved the trail running out there.

Overall, it wasn’t bad for a big city (I just really don’t like big cities). Next time I go there, I will definitely have to check out Mt Charleston.

There’s a great little bike shop that runs bike rentals tours in the Vegas area. Mt Charleston is one of the ride choices, along with Red Rock, and some other MTB rides. http://mcghies.com/ I called them up and they picked me and the wife up in a van. They took us to a local Dunkin’ Donuts to start and then led us on the ride. All I had to bring was a cycling kit and shoes. They provided everything else! Then brought us back to our hotel on the strip when we were done. Last time, I did the Red Rock loop. Next time I’m either doing MTB ride or Mt Charleston.

Do you have any suggestions for places to stay in the Tucson area for mid February, as Summerhaven might be cold and snowy then.

Preferably somewhere close to good riding options (climbs) and running running options (flatter routes on roads or single track type trails).

Pools nearby would be a plus, but not required.

I lived in East Tucson as I liked the riding the most with access to Mt Lemmon. Typically in the middle of winter I would still be able to climb 5 or 6 miles up and I also like the rolling terrain heading south out Colossal Cave rd. There are not alot of hotels in the East. For budget conscious options The Varsity Club and Lodge on the Desert are good and if you are not as financially concerned Loews Ventana Canyon and Tanque Verde Ranch are nice.
I liked the running on some of the quieter roads way northeast, like N Soldier Tr and Snyder and some even quieter roads off of those. Those are at the base of Mt Lemmon. They have gentle rollers. For some trail running or fun rolling mtn biking Fantasy Island at the corner of Harrison and Irvington is cool. I believe you may need to pay a fee to use these http://www.singletracks.com/bike-trails/fantasy-island.html
For pools, the best bet is probably the University of AZ which is farther west and towards downtown but probably only 15 min from the hotels above. They have alot of lanes and alot of lap swimming flexibility. The smorgasborg of fit, young, attractive college woman may also be a plus.
There are group rides on Sat am starting from the University. It is fast, frequently visited by vacationing pros. If this appeals to you I would contact inquire at one of the local bike shops for details. They head southwest out of town.
Trisports has their big store in Tucson which is also nice. Enjoy your trip.

Uh… no.

Mt. Charleston ain’t it. The weather definitely isn’t good year round, there or anywhere in the vicinity. But frankly I think that is a silly requirement anyway, since if it is supposed to be a “training camp” then it only needs to be good when you are there. Which would be the summer in that location… but then it’s too damn hot lower down… which is where you’d like to be doing intense training.

If the altitude benefit can be gleaned via sleeping at high altitude and training at low altitude, it’s silly to be driving back and forth anyway. Just get an altitude tent.

If you want to spend a few weeks training at altitude, then you can go anywhere that is high in altitude… and Mt Charleston sucks for that. If you want to ride the options are very limited.

And even based on your odd criteria, there are a bunch of places around southern CA (Big Bear, Crestline, Wrightwood, Frazier Park, etc), Tucson, and Phoenix that would be better.

Santa Fe or Albuquerque conveniently meet more of your criteria than Mt. Charleston.

Tenerife
.

Hawaii…10,000ft to 0ft in about 30miles of road. Sleeping at the top is a little challenging.

Santa Fe or Albuquerque conveniently meet more of your criteria than Mt. Charleston.

Where can you drive to lower elevation quickly?

Hawaii…10,000ft to 0ft in about 30miles of road. Sleeping at the top is a little challenging.

Pretty amazing up on Mauna Kea. I’ve been up to the top and about killed the rental car I was driving… Brakes were literally smoking on the decent

Uh… no.

Mt. Charleston ain’t it. The weather definitely isn’t good year round, there or anywhere in the vicinity. But frankly I think that is a silly requirement anyway, since if it is supposed to be a “training camp” then it only needs to be good when you are there. Which would be the summer in that location… but then it’s too damn hot lower down… which is where you’d like to be doing intense training. If the altitude benefit can be gleaned via sleeping at high altitude and training at low altitude, it’s silly to be driving back and forth anyway. Just get an altitude tent. If you want to spend a few weeks training at altitude, then you can go anywhere that is high in altitude… and Mt Charleston sucks for that. If you want to ride the options are very limited.

And even based on your odd criteria, there are a bunch of places around southern CA (Big Bear, Crestline, Wrightwood, Frazier Park, etc), Tucson, and Phoenix that would be better.

First what is wrong with my criteria? What’s wrong with a convenient to travel to location (close airport), ability to decent quickly for convenience (have you ever tried to drive to Sedona/Cottonwood every day from Flagstaff? It sucks and gets expensive on gas…), have a pool close by.

Do you live in Las Vegas? I do. I’ve lived at 3,000ft in Summerlin for two years and don’t find the summers to be that bad. I’ve also lived in Phoenix for two years and found it to be much worse. If you do your intervals in the morning and are back up the mountain afterwards, I don’t see the problem. What exactly is wrong with riding Lee Canyon or Kyle Canyon or Hwy 95 or Red Rock Loop or Mount Potosi?

Also, how is Phoenix a better location for an altitude camp? The elevation is 1,200ft. Flagstaff is 2hrs away. Do you plan to helicopter from Phoenix to the top of Four Peaks every day?

Tuscon could be an option, however the accommodations on top of Mount Lemmon are 30 miles up the mountain and the base of the mountain is still a long ways from any pool. In addition, there are far fewer riding and running options from the top of Mount Lemmon. There is one paved road up… Have you ever even been to these places?

Frazier Park and Crestline are at 4,600ft which is about 2,000 ft lower than the lowest recommended protocol. Most recent research suggests 6,500-8,500 meters. Too low and you don’t get enough benefit. Too high, you can’t recover.

Have you actually ever used an altitude tent? Did you spend the 16hrs a day in it to get the full effect? I’ve slept in an altitude tent for (2) 1-month stretches and absolutely hated it. Extremely uncomfortable, hot, and humid no matter how many fans I installed. Also I never spent more than 6-8hrs/day in it.

I appreciate the feedback, but I am just trying to educate people on a place they may not have considered if exploring altitude camp options.