Up a big notch - Quandary Winter Ascent 2nd Place

I finally got that freaking 2nd place for the Quandary Winter Ascent Route on Strava.

I did a reconnaisance of the East Ridge Route on Saturday, April 11 after climbing the Cristo Couloir route with my good friend Todd Gilles, a figure skating coach from Colorado Springs. ARTICLE HERE

Todd Gilles and I on the descent of the East Ridge of Quandary

Todd Gilles over my right shoulder as we ascend the Cristo Couloir of Quandary

I noted that the route looked fast, with some great firm snow up high. Unfortunately, the snow down low was wet granular with Swiss cheese postholing around 12,000' but overall it looked like I could get my PR and possibly 2nd place.

On Monday morning, April 13, I dropped the kids off at school and went to the DMV to take care of business in a hurry to get to the route before it warmed up too much. Sadly, nothing at the DMV ever goes according to plan, right? I was held up nearly 90 minutes and almost bailed. I was a little off in my nutrition timing. I quick chugged a half protein shake and hoped it would settle in the half hour to the trailhead.

On the descent of the East Ridge. After removing the vest.

It was warm, and I was dressed lightly. I wore a Columbia Omni-Heat (reflective dots) tech tee with a Patagonia R1 fleece up top. On the bottom I wore GoLite Windpro tights. That's about it. I tried to set a pace about 24:00 or better for the first mile, 30:00 or better the second mile, and 35:00 or better that last mile. It's a little over 3 miles to the summit. I kept the throttle pressed down at those levels and tried really hard not to rest.

At the summit, my watch reported 1:44. Previous 2nd place was 1:47, so I was pretty sure I'd done it. I put on my TNF extremely thin vest over my TNF BTN wind shirt hoodie. I was wet and cold. I put down a Hammer Gel and chugged some NoXplode. Seriously needed the energy for the descent.


I hung out for maybe 5 minutes, chatted with some skiers as I added layers and fueled up.

DID IT! Strava has me at 2nd place on the Quandary Winter Route. 1:43:34 - 5.5 minutes faster than my previous best. I'll have more news about this later so stay in the loop, okay?
Posted by Seven Summits Quest on Monday, April 13, 2015

Gas in the tank for the Descent PR?

I wasn't sure if I had enough gas in the tank for a PR on the descent. Not after cutting nearly 6 minutes off the ascent. I took off downhill at a fair pace, and slowed a bit for the steep hard snow. I tried staying in the slightly more loose snow so I could step with less concentration. On the hard snow you have to place your foot and make sure your spike points are set to avoid a potentially hazardous slide. With loose snow you can just "run" and your feet will settle and find footing as you transfer the weight.

I kept an eye on the time, trying to stay with a 20:00 pace for the first 2 miles where it's steep and either hard or loose snow. By the time I got to the "Restoration Area" sign the snow was softening up into granular over ice and I picked up the pace to about 15:00. I hit the car at about 1:10. Another 5 minutes or so off my previous best for the Winter Route Descent. This is a private segment so I don't have a comparison with others, but I'm thrilled to be so far ahead of where I was in the past.

Check out that Zone 4 HR!

PR's listed bottom center EPIC 429 Sufferfest

Feeling like a champion

I'll write some articles soon, maybe do some videos, about my training protocols, recovery protocols, and the mindset necessary to suffer greatly for a few hours in harsh conditions while underdressed, underfed, dehydrated, and knowing that there is a whole week of stuff to deal with after.

Again, Elbrus Race 2015? Who wants to hang out with me and enjoy the ride? Subscribe to this blog. Especially I want you to subscribe to my training newsletter. If you do I'll send you a copy of the vertical treadmill goals chart I use in my own training. Then I'll send you a video explaining how to use it. SUBSCRIBE HERE

Summit after Cristo Couloir on April 11

Strava counts time within the GPS bounds of the segments and cuts off when you step outside. I rested outside the segment to the West Ridge route area, so it wouldn't be counted. Movescount kept tabs on that until I crossed over to the descent, hence the extra 5-ish minutes of "ascent time" compared to Strava. That's also why Movescount has my descent at 5-ish minutes shorter, since it waited until I was actually moving downhill after traversing the summit area, while Strava started counting when I crossed the GPS coordinates for the actual USGS summit.