Okay, so I think to my general excitement I have successfully made it through the lottery and I am now entered in this year’s Leadville 100 MTB race. As well rehearsed the key distinguishing feature of the event is that it starts at 10,200’ above sea level, eventually hitting a max elevation of 12,600’. While potentially desirable I cannot move to CO three weeks ahead of the race and acclimate nor will my will my wife let me modify our bedroom for an altitude chamber.
In the past I have not had issues with altitude; whether biking or snowboarding other than being careful to stay hydrated and that it is more difficult to sleep. I will be 50 on race day, I would be viewed as pretty fit for a serious recreation rider, I have broad experience with long distance rides involving numerous mountain climbs and I train in a very structured way using a powermeter (current FTP is 345 watts, though I am a big guy).
My questions are given that I basically live at sea level what can I do to either modify my training or otherwise prepare myself for the event and the unique challenges posed to athletic performance by the altitude of this race? I am wondering what thoughts people have.
I would also welcome people’s experiences from having done Leadville.
That’s a great question and I look forward to others’ responses. I’m considering entering some mountain ultramarathons (running, not cycling) but I believe the altitude would have a similar effect on a runner and cyclist? Here are some readings on running high-altitude ultras and how to adjust your body, etc. It focuses on running, but I imagine the suggestions are applicable to cyclists as well.
3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months. You are not going to do much in terms of acclimatization as you noted just going out there. The question is whether you want to go up to altitude for a few hours once or twice in the days before the race. This will clear out the headache and improve your coordination. You need to balance this against whatever it does to your blood oxygen saturation levels. My personal call is to go up the days before the race and just hang out but I can see the other side of the argument too. The other thing to look at is how much of the race is above the tree line (i.e., 11000 feet or so) – that is where things start to get interesting. Finally, everyone’s body reacts differently to altitude. Some people can go into the Death Zone with little problems while others top out at 9000 feet. Historically you have not had issues at around the same heights as you will be racing and this should serve you well. On the other hand, the fact that you do not sleep well at altitude, which I assume is around 8000 feet, “might” indicate you are not the most generically gifted person in this area. But overall, you sound okay. Have fun.
If you decide to take Diamox (I am opposed but people do it all the time) remember you are going to be whizzing your brains out so watch your hydration.
Avoid caffeine and alcohol.
If you do a search you will find some threads on this topic. Best.
I recently read an article (I can’t remember which magazine) that suggested that if you are going to race at a substantially higher altitude than you are used to training at, you should either allow several weeks to acclimate to the conditions or race almost immediately after getting to altitude. The article suggested that just hanging out for a couple day before a race could lower you oxygen levels in your blood enough to affect performance.
Now that I think about it, it was probably the most recent Trail Runner.
I’ve been thinking about attempting some trail running out west, but the altitude has me more concerned than the climbing involved.
I have done the Leadville 100 3 times. You have 2 options either arrive 2 weeks before or as close to race start as possible so you don’t get the effects of altitude sickness
Year 1, I arrived 2 weeks early, hung out got acclimated and did training rides on the course. The result was good
Year 2, I arrived 5 days before, felt like absolute crap race day, legs had nothing
Year 3, arrived 48 hours before race, had best race.
I acclimate poorly every time I go to elevation though
I do know some people came up from lower elevation only on race day. But with a 7 am race start that can mean waking up extremely early because you want to be on the line by 6 am if you want a decent start. All 3 years there were pile ups at the start.
For training, learn to love the small chain ring because you will be doing a lot of it. There are 5 major climbs lasting 45 min-2 hours each. The second last climb up the Powerline is by far the hardest so practice it if you get there early.
It is not 100 miles, it is really 102 and the last 5 km are a long false flat climb, painful
You seem to corroborate other things I have read. We will arrive Denver/Leadville on the 13th with the race on the 15th. So similar to your 48 experience. I have seen other articles which argue for either three weeks or just before the race.
Thanks for the course advise too. I have found some decent blogs detailing the ride and everyone comments about the last section back into town.
I suspect I will be more conscious of the altitude while I’m in UT for the week snowboarding then on prior trips. But even when I’ve been to CO or WY to snowboard I don’t recall issues. I’ve simply strapped up and gone shredding.