Having completed all three of the "Day 1" climbs of this event (over a 2-day period), all I can say is... we'd better eat our Wheaties!

Climb #1: http://ridewithgps.com/trips/75950
(w/photos!) There is ONE roller on this climb. Other than that, it's uphill grind for 22 miles. Nice descent, but road quality is bad for 9 miles coming down.

Climb #2 and #3: http://ridewithgps.com/trips/77133
Pine Creek is steeper but pleasant. Good road! South Lake was a complete grind, with 24% at end.

The more training I do for this ride, the more I realize this is gonna be hard!
The Death Ride seems easy compared to this.

Thus far, the most thorough ride report I've seen for Everest Challenge is here:

http://www.dailypeloton.com/displayarticle.asp?pk=15777

It's clearly written with an eye toward fellow riders/enthusiasts of the author's Bay Area cycling club, but it does offer a sense of what the climbs are like.

Also, I'm pretty sure I'm going to get whooped hard in the Masters 35+ category; I should probably move over to Cat5 instead, where there is a remote chance of finishing ahead of last place...

The closer we get, the more unsure I get. I've thought long and hard about my goal, mostly just to finish the course :00:01 ahead of the final cut off time. I'm begining to believe that my goal and satisfaction should come from showing up, and attempting both days, regardless of the outcome.

I think it may help to take a look at the official finishing times from last year... in there, you'll see some rather 'late' times, some which would seem to be pushing the envelope. Given the feel-good nature of the ride (seems that way, anyway) I tend to doubt that any rider will be officially kicked off the course, which means the true challenge is ultimately the rider vs. the course, not the rider vs. the clock; I suspect the main limiter here is probably just daylight.

I don't know if I feel better or worse after reading this guy's description, especially on the final climb:
"I was weaving across the full width of the road like a drunken paperboy on a steep driveway."
okay then

ROTFLMAO! Cyclists sure do know how to paint a picture...

Not sure when you guys are leaving but I wanted to wish you all good luck! Be sure to let us know how it goes!!

Thanks Jeff! We'll likely post a ride report after the first day of the event. That is, if my fingers can still type at that point :)

Yeah, thanks Jeff...this is gonna be freaking hard!

Thanks Jeff!

Here we are in Bishop, the temps tomorrow are for record highs...nice.

Believe both Frank & Bill will post their own updates!

As for me, I completed climbs 1 & 2 today, and stopped before climb 3 (you pass by the start & your vehicle at that point).

So, for me, the day was 81 miles, 10,589 feet, 7:14 riding time, 8:11 total time.

I knew when I hit the truck I had neither the strength nor the time to complete the last 20 mile 5,500 ft. climb.

Tomorrow I will decide how much to try, most likely I will choose 2 of the 3 climbs.

At this point I think we are all questioning our sanity. To say this is a "really hard ride" doesn't really even nick the surface of what this was like. At present, i don't really have the words to provide an accurate or just description. Maybe later, if there's anything left of us to scrape off the asphalt, I can attempt a reasonable ride report. At the moment, I'll just say I finished the three climbs of Day 1--but that's it.

Who's idea was this again??

After 10 years of cycling, lots of climbs & century rides, I will say that climb 3 today was the most difficult climb I've ever done. Maybe not by itself, but after the other two it hurt.
Long, grueling climbs -the final climb is 20 miles- with elevations close to 10,000 feet all topped off by full sun exposure at 95 deg & headwinds. Today was not fun, it was only suffering...until Frank & I bombed the last descent with a max 54 mph...that was cool.
Can't say I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

Thinking of you fellas, love the race reports. Good luck tomorrow!

I spent some time looking at the 3 climbs for day 2. Doing 1 & 2 would be about the same distance and climbing as doing only climb 3. To simplify, ensure I'd be at aid stations when they were open, I chose to do 1 & 2.

45 miles, 6500 ft. The end of each climb takes you past your vehicle, so I planned on a full rest stop between 1 & 2.

Not as hard a day as the first, but hot, hot & some decent grades. Also damn cold at the start.

Will this be on my calendar again... good question!

Ride description: SUFFERFEST
My final stats: 167.9 miles, 22,585 feet of climbing
I bailed on the last climb that starts at 4,000 feet & ends at 10,100 feet.
Strange things were happening to my body at that point & knowing what was ahead -the hardest of the two days with a 6,000 foot climb in 95+ temps, decided I had enough.
This ride was taking the joy out of riding for me, it was not enjoyable, only torturous.

I completed Day 2 after slogging up the last climb at 3-4 mph. It was decidedly NOT fun. Although I felt much better on Day 2 than Day 1, the last climb nearly defeated me. In the end, I did finish, but the feeling was not one of a victorious accomplishment—it was more like a sense of relief after fulfilling a misguided obligation.

The only real happiness I had all day was when Rob and Bill drove up to meet me 3 miles from the finish and urged me onward, because I realized I wasn’t going to have to descend for an hour after the end (timing stops at the summit). What, miss out on a screaming 20-mile descent? Yep, that’s how badly I wanted off the bike.

Lesson learned: is one thing to grind up one of our local Auburn hills @ 8%, 10%, 15-20%, etc. over 1-5 miles. It is quite different to slog away @ 7% for 20+ miles. Even without the other variables (wind, heat, elevation, nutrition/hydration, fatigue) that kind of climbing places unusual physical and psychological demands on the system. The bottom line is that even though I tried to prepare for this event for 6+ months, I still underestimated the Everest Challenge.

End of Ride Report :)

Great job guys, you guys kicked a$$ , did way better and more than a lot of us (me definitely included) are capable of doing ...for sure a race format is not for "general consumption" ..hard core stuff!!

Just want to add, Frank's Day 2, Climb 3 was nothing less than an AMAZING feat of endurance, grit, and soul depth fortitude. I will never forget walking down 500 ft at 15% to encourage him on the last few strokes, seeing the strain & pain he was enduring, and watching as he stood and from somewhere deep within found the strength to sprint the last 150 ft! One doesn't often wittness such a triumph, and it's an image I will always have.

Thanks Frank for sharing your victory, and for all the encouragement you gave me during the ride, for sharing the road on some of the climbs, and being my inspiration in my future attempts at any 2 wheel challenges.

You guys are amazing! Congrats on your accomplishments!!