As some of you know, I have had a “one and done” attitude towards the Leadville MTB 100. I completed the race in 2009 and I have never felt the need to do it again. That’s nothing against the event. I love the event and I have coached athletes specifically for this event for the past 20 years. I even attend the event each year to support athletes with a pre ride/talk and set up a feed station at Twin Lakes. The vibe at this event is like no other I have attended.
My “one and done” feelings stem from the fact that I felt that I had my best day at Leadville and I am satisfied with that day and my accomplishment. Nothing more is needed. It was the hardest day ever on the bike for me.
“Never say never” is the saying and that became my truth when last November an athlete that I have coached and supported the last 12 years asked if I would join him for the Leadville 100. The event has always been on his bucket list. He’s not a mountain biker by trade and does not live in the US so he felt more comfortable having a companion along for the ride to aid in his goal of sub 9hrs. I did not immediately respond.
After 10 days, my first response to him was I needed to speak with my family and think about it. Training for Leadville is no joke. It takes time and most of that time will come from weekend rides which takes time from the family and any other activities that I have planned. If you sign up for this event, you come ready to perform or you come ready for disappointment. After 6 weeks, he reached out again and I agreed to join him.
My first job was getting into the event and the easiest way is through the lottery. I entered the lottery and contemplated other ways to get in like attending a qualifying event. Fortunately, on Feb 1st, I was notified that I had been awarded a lottery spot in the event. This made this task feel more real and the pressure was on. This athlete has a goal of sub 9hrs and I know he can do it so that meant I needed to be well prepared with good fitness and the speed to be able to guide him to his goal.
Like with all my athletes, I started to write down my goals supporting the 9hr goal. This included a everything from my training and power goals to my weight and to what bike I would ride. The past few years, I have been riding a down-country bike that weighs a respectable 30 pounds but now I would need something a little more nimble and a lot less weight. I was not in a hurry but would want something by mid May so I could train on the bike and still have time to make any necessary changes. I did know my companion had bought a bike local to him and it came in at just under 23 pounds. Knowing his weight and power and my need to ride with him, I absolutely needed something close to the weight of his bike.
The Bike
At first, I toyed with the idea of going very light and riding a gravel bike. I’ve seen more than a few people do this at Leadville and I feel very confident in my handling skills to ride a rigid drop bar bike. I also thought much about a hardtail MTB. When it comes to speed at the Leadville 100, and if you are a rider comfortable with your skills, a hardtail mtb is hard to beat especially when they can weigh 19-20lbs. Plus I knew the Leadville record was set on a hardtail MTB when I assisted my athlete Kristen Hynek and his team on breaking the 6hr mark at Leadville.
In the end, I went with a MTB as I wanted to have components and wheels that match my partners in case he had a mechanical and I could assist him with a quick wheel change, bike change, chain, etc… I became obsessed with this for a while checking out what seemed like an infinite amount of options and scouring the lightly used MTB market. A new bike whether hardtail or a fully in the weight range of 19-24 pounds would be in the $6k to $12k range. I saw many options and spoke with specialist MTB shops like Bicycle Haus about their thoughts. I came close to purchasing a few bikes but again, I was not in a rush so I took my time.
In the end, I was scrolling through my Instagram stories and saw that Taylor Lideen was selling his race bike from the 2022 season. This bike had all the bells and whistles including a double sided power meter and full XTR group set. The bike had the lightest wheelset that I know of and all this was mounted on a Pivot Mach4 SL frame which I must admit I had been admiring for a couple of years. I reached out to Taylor with some questions and the bike was in my possession in about a week.
I must also admit that I had been pining for a Pivot bike for a couple of years. Pivot is an Arizona company and I have toured their warehouse twice. It’s impressive. The frames are produced overseas but all the bikes are built and put through quality control here in Arizona. I was amazed in both of my tours at the hours and the care taken to make sure each bike is shipped to dealers as the bike is described by Pivot. It’s also cool seeing R&D being done right where I learned how to ride a mountain bike, South Mountain.
When I received it, I was stoked. Not only was this bike sub 24 pounds but Taylor takes very good care of his equipment. After a few changes like stem length, saddle, and grips, I made the bike mine. I have not looked back since and each day I am learning more about this bike and it’s capabilities. I highly recommend it as it’s a very savvy trail bike along with its race weight. The one change I will make after Leadville is a change from the current Fox 32 step-cast to a Fox 34 step-cast. I think this will match my riding style and the terrain around me much better than the 32.
Now that I have the bike, what about the more important piece, my fitness. I had started trail running over the winter to do something different so I had some general fitness but I needed to transfer that fitness to bike and build from there.
The Training
To start, I phoned up Tenac’s newest Coach, Rose Grant, to ask for her help. She has won Leadville twice so she knows this race. I had some ideas on what I wanted to do but wanted her feedback and for her to hold me accountable. She agreed and we wrote out a big picture plan of training the different energy systems along with putting down any know variables in my schedule like vacations, cycling camps, events, etc….
My approach to preparing for Leadville will be a little different but it has pieces of training that has worked well for me in the past. Working with any athlete even if it’s yourself, must include the realities of life. It must be in a format that is achievable. I want my athletes and even myself to be put in a position of success. And like all plans, it must be flexible and easy to amend as new variables appear.
With that, I tend to focus on bigger the picture and try to have each week have goals and be pliable. By that, I mean I will have an objective or two each week and it’s up to me and my schedule to get those objectives done. It takes a lot of communication and trust for a coach to give an athlete this kind of autonomy. However, I have found with more experienced athletes that this scenario works well.
In general my training is outlined below. It’s what I would call a Polar Pyramid. After some transition time, its a polarized plan and then switches to more of a Pyramid plan as Leadville nears.
February
Transition to the bike and ride how you feel. Volume to be 8-10hrs/week with 3hrs being a long ride
March
3 x 20 min Fat Max intervals and aim to increase Volume 8-12hrs/week with 4hrs being a long ride
April
Finish Transition and start a hell week of Rønnestad Intervals – 3 sets of 13x30s max effort intervals with 15s recovery
May
One day of Rønnestad Intervals per week. All other rides are endurance and aim to increase volume each week. 6hrs is a long ride
June
Begin sub-threshold intervals. 1 x per week aim for a race effort—Strava segment or group ride. Keep volume the same or small increase
July
Increase volume to a weekend of 1 x 6hr ride followed by a 4-6hr ride. Possibly some altitude riding to remind me how that feels. Continue sub threshold climbing efforts and maintain VO2 max.
Due to Coach Rose Grant holding me accountable, I have done well thus far. I just finished my hell week with the Rønnestad intervals. These have worked well for me in the past. These are very difficult. I have coached a few athletes to use this protocol and have had success with them. But I must say, it’s a very challenging workout let alone doing them for 5 days out of 7.
With these, you need to front load the intervals so that means 3 days of of the 3 sets of 13×30 max efforts, then two rest days and then do 2 more days of the intervals so you get 5 days of the intervals in a 7 day period. After that week, you just do one day of the intervals along with zone 1/2 riding. In the past I have seen a 5% increase in power and a bigger boost to my stamina or ability to hold power longer.
Before starting the intervals, I did a short field test on a local climb. The climb was 12 minutes and I was able to hang on to a 300w average just by the skin of my teeth. At the end of May, I’ll repeat the test. I hope to be at 315 watts. My end goal is to be at 4w/kg for 60 minutes. I will feel comfortable in being able to achieve my goal of assisting my athlete to a sub 9hr goal with this. So I need to be 67kg and produce 268 watts for 60 minutes. Currently I am 68kg and have a modeled power of 262 watts for 32 minutes.
There is work to do. There is still time. This is where I am and where I am going. I’ll make my next update in June.
June Update: Why I Ride
“The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times…the best moments usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.” –Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
This quote always comes to me as the second Saturday in August nears. It comes to me because when you set out on a goal like the Leadville MTB 100, your body and mind are stretched to their limit and you experience one of the best moments in your life.
I’ve seen this many times with athletes of all levels and it’s one of the biggest reasons that I coach.
In these moments of stretching of body and mind, we often find ourselves so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter. In these moments, we are in the experience. This is Flow.
I ride for health, to push my limits, for creativity, for many reasons, but the experience of flow is like none other. And I can reach flow states off the bike but I do find it much easier on the bike.
Recently, I rode one of my favorite rides along the border with Mexico. It’s a climbing, twisting, turning, descending gravel road and it has a good 30 minute Strava segment that I like to use for testing myself. Before this ride, my mind had many questions including the dread of a pushing myself for 30 minutes at race pace.
As I started to ride, my creativity sparked immediately and clear thoughts flooded my mind. My mind was exploding with ideas, so I stopped several times to dictate these ideas to my phone. I hardly ever stop on a ride, let alone to stop to express my thoughts, but these thoughts mattered and I wanted to express them so that I could digest them later. I stopped, spoke to my phone and the local cows, and continued to the climb.
The climb started and I increased my effort. I held back knowing the effort would be close to 30 minutes. The climb is steep and mostly up but has a few short downs which would affect my power. I pushed and found my rhythm. Eleven minutes into the climb, the suffering began and I started to question my reasons. I searched for those reasons but the thoughts of just stopping, this is not my day, and I don’t need to do this kept coming back.
I had not pushed myself on this climb in a years time and after a bout with COVID. Before Covid, I had put in my best time. After Covid, I have not been able to match that time. This realization became my reason. This thought and the thought of improving my time became my motivation to push my limits.
I found more reasons to keep pushing and then felt a surge of confidence in the last minutes. I bettered my time and my power for that distance. The effort pushed me into a Flow state. Everything became clear and everything seemed possible. I was in a state of ease, and I was able to feel the place I was at. I had become one with the environment. This state and feeling is hard to explain, but this is why I ride.
The Training
From a training standpoint, I had switched from the Ronnestads intervals to focus on Zone 3 climbing. My climbing mostly consisted of 20 minute intervals as that fit my terrain the best. However, I did do a few rides of of just sitting in Zone 3 on each climb that I encountered- whether that was 20 minutes or 5 minutes.
The idea behind the Zone 3 training is to build upon my ability to sustain the 4.5% increases from my time with the Ronnestads. Zone 3 training can be tough because it’s a medium intensity. Its not easy and its not hard. It’s almost easier to just go harder. You really feel like you are holding back.
With this training, you create fatigue but not like fatigue from Zone 4 or 5 so you are able to continue building volume. Plus, this zone is very specific to Leadville. This is the zone you want to find yourself in when climbing at Leadville.
When I started my Leadville training, I managed 220w at 130hr or less for 3 x 20. Now, I was pushing 245-250w at the same heart rate. That’s 8.8% increase, which 4.5% of those gains were made early in the training, and now I was close to another 4.5% increase.
Along with these intervals, I continued to push my volume out aiming for rides above 3500 kilojoules. My first one included an incredible bonk which is frustrating but, at the same time, I have seen incredible recoveries from myself and other athletes after a big bonk ride. I’m not suggesting we all go out and make ourselves bonk, but maybe I am?
The next big ride, which was 10 days later, I felt fine for 6+hrs and even tested myself at 3 watts per kilogram on the last climb. This climb went well and I feel I have done the work.
The only thing I had left was to prove to myself that I could do 4 watts per kilogram for an hour since I had felt this metric was needed to do my job of guiding my athlete to a sub 9hr finish. I picked a local climb and held 272 watts which is just over 4w/kg for me(I’m at 66.5 kg). Unfortunately, the climb ended at 50 minutes however I did not feel under duress for this climb.
From the graph below, you can see that I have exchanged my short term power for long term power. The red line is the current power duration curve.
At this point, “the hay is in the barn” for me. I’ve tested everything from myself to my bike to my nutrition to my shoes and gloves. I have controlled the controllable and will continue to do so till race day. Next weekend, I will race the Leadville stage race and begin to acclimate to altitude.
The only thing left to do is shave my legs. 🤔
The Race Report
My Leadville experience is now three months behind me. I’ve needed time to reflect on my journey, especially considering the significant life changes that followed. In the lead-up to Leadville, I assumed the role of Head Cycling Coach at Western Colorado University. The day after completing Leadville, I relocated to Gunnison, Colorado, where, just two weeks later, I found myself coaching the team at its first collegiate MTB race of the year. This position has proven to be immensely challenging, and the reasons behind taking it are another story altogether.
Review
When I started preparing for Leadville, I set specific goals for power and weight. On the weight front, I anticipated shedding pounds through increased volume and abstaining from alcohol, which also significantly aided my recovery. In terms of power, I aimed for 4 watts per kilogram for one hour, a level I believed sufficient for achieving a sub-9-hour time at Leadville.
In the weeks leading up to the Leadville and the Leadville Stage race, I deviated from the training plan crafted with my coach, Rose Grant. I can’t pinpoint the exact reason, perhaps a feeling of having done enough. While I continued riding, the structured speed work was replaced by longer “tests,” lasting 15-20 minutes, driven by the body and mind’s readiness. I used Strava segments for motivation for these efforts.
Ten days before the Leadville Stage Race, I felt the need for a final test of one hour at 4 watts per kilogram. I rode south to the Mexican border and ascended Duquesne Pass. Despite the sand and rough conditions, I achieved an average power of 269 watts, providing satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment. Now, the coming races felt like the icing on the cake, having positioned myself to perform well.
I met Pavel in Leadville two days before the stage race. Pavel, not primarily an MTB rider, prefers smooth climbing pavement on a road bike versus descending rough dirt roads. Our pre-ride down Powerline provided him with insights into the challenges we would face on the Leadville course.
The stage race went well overall. Pavel navigated the descents, and I learned to leverage his strengths and exercise my own patience. Although we finished in 8 hours and 3 minutes, securing the big buckle, we missed the sub-8-hour time for a higher corral start. Despite this, we celebrated our performance and anticipated reuniting for the final Leadville preparation.
The Final Prep
After the Leadville stage race, Pavel stayed in Colorado to acclimate, while I moved to Gunnison for the new position at Western Colorado University. My riding decreased during this period of transition and recovery, and the ten days before rejoining Pavel included a significant drive from Leadville to Arizona and back along with packing and moving to our new home.
For Pavel, his focus included staying near Leadville, working on his MTB comfort, acclimating to high altitude, and mixing in recovery and longer sub-threshold rides.
Buena Vista
Arriving in Buena Vista, our go-to town for Leadville events, provided a quiet setting at 8,000 feet for final preparations. The atmosphere and amenities made it an ideal choice over the hustle of Leadville during race week. I highly recommend this town for its good eats, relaxed setting, and multiple options for riding. It’s also 2000 feet lower than Leadville which allows better recovery.
Race Day
Rain greeted us as we packed our bikes for the drive to Leadville. I was quickly reminded about my only other Leadville experience which started in rain. At the start, the rain was light but I did wear a rain jacket and warmer gloves. Unable to change my corral start, I started in the Silver corral and Pave was in the green corral. When I started, I stopped at the top of the first hill about ½ mile from the start and waited. Five minutes later, I saw Pavel and we began our adventure.
Down, down, down into the rain I pushed the pace. The first 3 miles of the event are downhill. It was cold and wet and I stayed in the front to stay warm. As we started the first climb, I set our pace at 3 watts per kilogram but I kept losing Pavel in the crowds of competitors. At first, I was getting frustrated but realized that the amount of people, especially at the beginning can be nerve racking along with rocky terrain for an athlete not accustomed to MTBing. I settled in behind Pavel and found this to be a better strategy. We normalized about 2.9 w/kg on the first two climbs and Pavel found new confidence in his descending Powerline. At the bottom of Powerline, we were in a good group with a few riders that I knew had finished in sub 9 hrs in previous Leadville races.
On the flats, I did my job and we jumped from group to group all the way to Twin Lakes. We arrived at Twin lakes in 2hr 45 minutes which was about 10 minutes faster than expected. The course conditions despite intermittent rain were the best conditions I had ever seen at Leadville. The dirt and temperature was perfect for racing.
Now the big test loomed above us – Columbine. Columbine is roughly 8 miles climbing 3200 feet which is about an average gradient of 7.4%. However, the gradient in the last two miles averages over 11%.
Again, we set our pace and gradually fell off that pace as the altitude went above 11,000 feet. The amount of competitors again became an obstacle. Where we rode almost all of the climb in the stage race, we walked over 30 minutes of the climb on this day. It only takes one person to bobble and that cascades down the line of athletes climbing to the top. It’s not impossible to ride through the melee of people but very difficult especially with athletes coming down the same double track as you ride up.
We descended well but did stop a few times. Pavel had started getting intense headaches. This is a symptom of high altitude sickness and not something to take lightly. Going down is your first course of action. Once we got back to twin lakes, we accessed the situation and found that Pavel had only drank 1 bottle on our 3hr trip up Columbine and back. Small details can have big effects at altitude.
At this point, we were still motivated to continue and the headache had subsided. Pavel got some fluids and we pushed on. I knew at this point, finishing in sub 9hrs would be a challenge.
Again, we moved from group to group to the base of Powerline. We were still riding at a good pace and again eating and drinking well. Powerline is the hardest climb of Leadville in my opinion due to the fact that it’s at the 80 mile mark and starts with a 20% gradient for over a kilometer.
We had plenty of fans cheering us as we rode and walked to the top of the steep section and continued up. Again, we climbed well, normalizing power at 2.5w/kg for an hour. Again on the descent, we had to stop twice as his headache returned. We accessed and the headaches stopped when the rocks stopped and the terrain became smooth.
Back on the pavement, we climbed steady again but we both knew we would fall outside the 9hr time cutoff. We settled into a strong pace but not a desperate pace.
As we turned right on the “Boulevard” portion of the race, the 9hr mark passed. We enjoyed the ride to the finish and Pavel finished with a time of 9 hrs and 11 minutes. Hugs and celebrations were abundant.
The Review
After races, I always encourage my athletes to think about two things:
What did I do well?
First and most importantly, we finished. This cannot be overlooked. Leadville is hard and many things can go sideways quickly.
We persevered and overcame the obstacles of the day.
And finally, we stayed strong through the day. Never did we discuss quitting and we did not bonk.
What could I do better?
More time on the MTB for Pavel comes to mind. This could be done by simply riding the MTB more and possibly doing a few MTB events to experience riding with people around you on unstable terrain.
We could have also communicated better on fluid intake. I was unaware that Pavel only took one bottle up Columbine and he did not communicate to me he needed more water. I had plenty of water and we could have stopped at the top to refill his bottle.
As I write this review and I feel satisfied that we finished and performed our best which is the ultimate goal, however at times, I still feel somewhat disappointed. I feel I let Pavel down and in speaking with him, he feels he let me down when in truth we let no one down. It’s only our ego driven outcome goal of 9 hrs that keeps overshadowing our achievement.
This many times leads to signing up again and again and again striving to make that goal. I understand this motivating drive but in this case, I don’t have this feeling and neither does Pavel and that feeling is a satisfying one.
Never say never but I only see myself supporting athletes on the side of the course in future Leadville events.
