Categories: General

Haleakala, Rematch: Some People Just Don’t Learn

Some of the elevation markers display a V at the center of the sun.

When Icarus flew too close to the sun, it was more than just the heat from the sun that caused his mighty fall; it was also the brilliance of his pride. As I contemplate my next ride up the Haleakala Highway and Crater Road which leads to the summit of Haleakala, I can’t help but wonder if the Road to the Sun together with my own pride won’t carry me too close to the sun as well.

It’s amazing how much of a climb is forgotten despite the fact that every meter is intimately experienced as we turn our pedals slowly up a grade; one gets the impression that each detail is forever burned into our memory. Riding parts of Haleakala in training, I am amazed at how inaccurate my memory of the climb is; sections I thought were short are many kilometers long; sections I thought were easy were in fact steep. Our memories are deeply distorted by our efforts and as such are not to be trusted.

This past Sunday, I did a reconnaissance ride from somewhere around 1,000′ to somewhere around 7,000′. As I rolled onto Crater Road to start the ascent along the shoulder to the crater itself, I was horrified to recognize how low the first switchback was where my body sent a palpable message to my brain to stop moving my legs during my January assault. It was at barely 3,700 feet – about a third of the way up the mountain. By 5,000 feet, I had completed the transition from suffering to death march. At 7,000 feet, with Gianni and my VMH becoming increasingly concerned I would climb in the car at any moment, the only thing keeping the pedals turning (albeit in squares) was the weight of my stubbornness.

The Trade Winds blow strongly on Maui in the summer, and the last thing I find myself craving is a headwind on the lower slopes, where the easier gradient is supposed to allow me to settle into a rhythm and ride into some sort of form. Based on weather reports, we have selected this Thursday, August 11 as the date for Frank vs. The Volcano, Part Deux. I have learned many lessons from both my previous effort and my reconnaissance. The only thing that remains to be done is to apply them, follow the plan, and pray to Merckx that I find good legs.

Last January, I rode the climb in four and a half hours. I hope to accomplish two things this time round: first, enjoy the climb a bit more (or at all) and second, improve on my time.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

Mikael Liddy says:

Aug 15 2011 at 3:50 pm

@Mikeweb

Awesome job smashing your PR like that! I see that you're 'shortness challenged' like I am, maybe more so. Is the route up on any of the tracking sites? (MMR or my preference, Strava).

http://app.strava.com/segments/623325 is the Cycle to the Sun route, Frank's time puts him in the top 10 although neither Vaughters' nor Weight of a Nation's times are there.
mcsqueak says:

Aug 15 2011 at 4:11 pm

@Mikael Liddy

On the other end of the spectrum, the slowest person on Strava took 9 hours... can you imagine suffering up that for 9 hours? Good on them for finishing though!
scaler911 says:

Aug 15 2011 at 5:21 pm

@mcsqueak

@Mikael Liddy
On the other end of the spectrum, the slowest person on Strava took 9 hours... can you imagine suffering up that for 9 hours? Good on them for finishing though!

No shit. Last time I sat on the bike for 9-10 hours, I wanted to kill myself.
mcsqueak says:

Aug 15 2011 at 5:32 pm

@scaler911

That's because you didn't have this!
Dan_R says:

Aug 15 2011 at 6:22 pm

That seat has got to be breaking rules somewhere...
Mikael Liddy says:

Aug 15 2011 at 6:54 pm

@mcsqueak

@Mikael Liddy
On the other end of the spectrum, the slowest person on Strava took 9 hours... can you imagine suffering up that for 9 hours? Good on them for finishing though!

Yup, that's some serious Grinta for not getting off & turning around.
Bianchi Denti says:

Aug 15 2011 at 10:12 pm

@Ron

Nice one, Frank! You managed to not disappoint the Followers.
What? Gianni shirked his duties? He needs to go before The V-Board for that one.
Oh, as an aside: am I the only one whose feet do not agree with the Sidi Ergo 2s? Had mine for awhile, they look awesome, but hurt my feet badly. Tried all sorts of combinations of socks, insoles, cleat movement...nothing seems to work. I LOVE my Genius 6.6s, didn't think a model switch would matter. My soles hurt, my feet go numb, everything.
Anyone else have this issues? A friend did tell me that many PROs don't like 'em either, sticking with other models. (I use LOOK Keo pedals if that matters. But no issue with my other Sidi models.) Been waiting for over a year from them to break in, but no luck. They look so boss would hate the have to sell them, but they put me in the pain cave every time I wear them.

@Ron Yes Yes!! I bought some about 3 months ago, also use them with Keos, and they kill me riding long distances and/or super steep hills. Dull pain across the arches. Could be them punishing me for pedalling squares when fatigue sets in (in which case, chapeau to Sidi for an excellent design feature!!), but I doubt it. I specifically chose Sidis on the recommendation they would suit my narrow girly foot too. Still, they helped me to my first ever win last week, so I'm continuing to look for a solution. I'll let you know if anything works.
brett says:

Aug 15 2011 at 11:37 pm

@Bianchi Denti

What size are you Richard? I'll swap you for my Specialized Pros if you're a 43 or 44...
Bianchi Denti says:

Aug 16 2011 at 1:20 am

@brett
Sorry mate. 42. I told you - girly feet!
Chris says:

Aug 16 2011 at 1:44 am

@Mikael Liddy

@mcsqueak

@Mikael Liddy
On the other end of the spectrum, the slowest person on Strava took 9 hours... can you imagine suffering up that for 9 hours? Good on them for finishing though!

Yup, that's some serious Grinta for not getting off & turning around.

That's less than 4mph, that's some serious balance for not falling off!