I just signed up for a spot that opened up for a 3 day climb up Rainier with Alpine Ascents. I will be climbing on August 13, and need some training help. I recently did the Florida 70.3 on May 17, and was training since approx. January of this year for the half. I took approx. 10 Days off after the race for a vacation, which included a lot of walking every day. So that leaves me with approx. 11 weeks to focus on Rainier, I was thinking of continuing with my tri training as usual, but modify it to include 2x weights at the gym, with stairmaster etc, and switching my long ride on the weekends for a long hike with the pack and build up the weight of the pack over the next several weeks. Thanks for any tips or advice.
This must be Rainier day on ST.
I climbed Rainier as a teenager long ago. My dad somehow thought it would be great fun for 3 flat landers who had never seen a mountain much less climbed one to head out to Washington and climb Rainier. I’m not sure if he or my brother did any training but I know I did absolutely nothing other than swim. I was a pretty good swimmer back then and we climbed the mountain right after summer swimming ended so I was in decent cardio shape but I could have used some leg work (and it would have been nice to have some clue what I was getting myself into but that is another story).
If you are doing the normal guided route up through Camp Muir and Disappointment Cleaver, it is basically a long long walk, but it gets pretty taxing to just walk after a few hours above 10,000 feet. The hike up to Camp Muir is just hours of walking up hill. Its pretty flat for a while after Camp Muir then its pretty much like going up an endless flight of stairs except you are doing it while huffing and puffing like you are running not walking because of the altitude.
If you have done a HIM, you could wake up tomorrow and make it no problem. You can just continue to do what you are doing and you will be more than fine. If I were training for it now and wanted to do a litte extra (assuming I already had a good cardio base), I’d throw in some longish hikes and do some stair climbing. Its definitely worth doing some training work and treating it like you would a triathlon. Its not that hard but the better shape you are in, the more you will enjoy it. Frankly, for me it was kind of a death march even though I made it. It would have been nicer to have actually had some fun with it.
Get your gear on and do a couple of the short climbs to get things together… Pinnacle Peak, a short climb, but just enough to make sure your are organized and your boots fit right, is a good first climb. It’s located about 2 miles south of the King County fairgrounds in Enumclaw. Then I would do Mt Si in North Bend a few times. It’s more to adjust to the gear and the climbing. Conditioning wise you shouldn’t have any problem.
Enjoy!!!
Check out this site: http://www.mtnathlete.com/index.php It has various workouts for climbing and other backcountry sports.
You should be pretty darn confident with what you’ve been up to lately. You’re going to have a great trip. Three years ago I was coaching this guy in Denver who had climbed all 14ers in the lower 48 save for 4 and Rainier was one of his 4. He asked me to join him in checking that one off his list. Just like you I had been in tri mode for a while and was worried how it would translate. To “test” I tore off for a solo, one-day climb up Whitney with a heavy pack just to suss out where I was and realized immediately that the overall fitness we have from bike and run training really works well for climbs such as these.
Your plan to swap out the long rides with some long hikes with a pack is perfect. Prepping both your shoulder area for the feel of the pack and your feet in your boots will be big factors for total comfort. In the gym include a squats, split squats and lunges - the stepmill/stair master will be icing on the cake.
The fact that you’re taking 3 days is good too as the climb will be broken down into manageable pieces.
If you are going to Camp Muir, I gotta suggest this…there is a narrow rock ridge that runs north/south basically right through Camp Muir. There’s a small spire on that ridge just east of the camp, it casts a shadow on Camp Muir in the morning hours. You should spend the 5 minutes it will take to climb up around to the back side (east side) of that spire. Carved out of the jagged rocks is this small, 6x6 spot of impossibly smooth flat dirt. You can sit there, hang your legs off a 300 cliff and view the glacier below and climbers coming through the notch at Disappointment Cleaver. It’s a stunning spot in a magical place and I think you’d really dig it.
Enjoy yourself!!!
Ian
I’ve only been to Muir but have done it twice. The grade you are walking is really tough on the legs. The cardio isn’t a big deal but once you get to about 6000’ it starts to get bothersome.
Get on the stairmaster at the gym with a loaded backpack to build your leg muscles for this particular action. The weight of your pack really adds to the stress of the climb.
The way down is really rough on the quads. Do some downhill running to help build that up. I glissade as much as possible both because it is fun and because it is easier. Make sure your climbing boots account for the extra toe space needed because banging them on the end of the boot is really painful after a while.
It is beautiful.
Lots of Rainier posts today. It’s the season to be on the mountain!
Alpine Ascents, along with Rainier Mountaineering Inc. (R.M.I.) are two of the authorized guiding concessions on the mountain and both are excellent. I’ve done Rainier with R.M.I. and other mountains, such as Aconcagua, with Alpine Ascents. Both recommended.
Training for Rainier, I would suggest, consists of several predominant components:
Long, slow walking with a pack on your back. While this sounds easy, it gets tedious in single file with a large group going up to Camp Muir at about 10,000 ft. Once you rope up above Camp Muir for your summit day it becomes even more important to move efficiently as a rope team. Train for this by doing, you guessed it, long easy hikes with a loaded pack. Incorporate climbing into this where possible. Think about your gear. Bring what you need but keep your load simple and light. You’ll be amazed by how streamlined the guide’s equipment is. You need a plastic bowl and a “spork” and two 1 liter, wide mouth Nalgenes- that’s about it for your mess kit. The rest is clothing, sleeping bag and pad. Look at the equipment list they give you carefully and try to go light where possible. It makes a big difference up high. Your guides will enforce “breaks” on you every hour when crossing the snowfield and on summit day. Develop your break strategy in advance: Get you pack off, pull your parka out of the top of your pack and get it on, get out your water and a little snakc and get off your feet for the five minute break every hour. This is the same as hitting an aid station in a triathlon: Use it wisely and be business-like in your break. Get hydrated, get calories in, make clothing/layering adjustments and listen to your guides. If possible move at the front of your rope team, even on the march up the Muir Snow Field. There is less “stop-start” at the front, less accordian effect. It is a more even pace. The best views are up there too. If you’re far down the line of climbers you’ll be starring at some fellows butt all day as you climb up the snow field.
If you can get a copy of “The Freedom of the Hills”, the consummate mountaineering text. Review the sections on moving as a rope team and at least familiarize yourself with the sections on crevasse and avalanche rescue. This will help you understand your guide’s instructions during the climb and give you insights into why you are doing what you’re doing as a rope team on the mountain.
Most of all, be careful and have a great climb!
I live in Seattle and the standard training hike for rainier is a 3000’ 4 mile hike or 4000’ 5 miler. I’ve climbed rainier along with the other cascade volcanoes but I have’nt done any of the south side routes on Rainier. I’m sure you will have a good time. Going so late in the season should make the climb faster. There is still a lot of snow up there right now. I skied to the car at 3000’ feet last week coming back from a climb in the cascades. Anybody going up there this weekend is going to be knee deep in mash potatoes.
Lower back, legs, general core strength work are all good.
It’s really all about uphill leg strength. Walking on flat ground is a waste of time so if you live somewhere flat, then get on the stairmaster. If you live near hills, walk up them with a backpack. I used to load mine with water so I could dump some out at the top and save my knees on the downhills.
A 3 day climb should be a super relaxed pace as a fit person can climb it in less than 10hrs round trip, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
Best thing you can do is to get yourself used to high altitude. Play, camp, run, etc at the highest altitudes feasible as often as you can between now and then.
There is a new book out called “The Outdoor Athlete” that is very good.
I climbed it back in 2001. The only thing I did to prepare myself was load my backpack up with 40-50lbs of stuff and hike 8-10 miles up some mountains in North Georgia that were about 3500’, camp the night, and hike back the next morning. Did that every weekend for a couple months. Ran 2-3 times during the week for cardio.
I used RMI, but I’m sure they are all the same. They do a good job of mushing people up there at a nice slow (almost too slow) pace. I don’t think anybody in our group of about 24 had any altitude issues. I heard and read all about less oxygen and altitude sickness. I didn’t notice any difference from the air in the parking lot at Paradise to the summit (other than it was colder). I think altitude comes more into play as you get up to 20K feet. Not so much at 14K.
Oh - and you might want to bring some salt. I was cramping up bigtime when I made it back to the shuttle bus at Paradise.
If you doing the standard 3 day trip you’ll be fine. We had a 13 yo in our group. Its more of a long walk. Drink lots of water and have fun wondering why its taken hours to move 50 feet. Sunscreen everywhere. Inside your ears and nose. We used to climb to muir and snowboard down when we were younger also. Anyone in decent shape can make this climb.