Maungakotukutuku Road Hill Climb x 30...

From “Stepping Up”. (By Stu Downs).

Chapter 1 – Maungakotukutuku Road Hill Climb x 30 (...and “Hors Catégorie” complete).

There is properly no history, only biography.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82), U.S. essayist, poet, philosopher.

Over the last 5 weeks I have had time to think about both cycling (and my life) 'post-Taupo'. It would be fair to say that I needed time to recover both physically and mentally from the Maxi Enduro. Thus, the Christmas break has been an opportunity to reflect on my efforts in 2008. However, there is a fine line between recovering and going soft. So it was auspicious that an unexpected event ensured that I was not to become complacent about life. Our observations, even the most subtle, (if we choose to look), can guide our way. And it was to be that the briefest of moments gave me an insight as to where my path could lead...if I was to follow the wide path.

Of all places I was at the end of year Christmas work function. An enjoyable lunch out with colleagues was underway, when I realised that at the next table was a guy who shared our student flat a number of years ago. Without sounding disrespectful he was on the unhealthy side of overweight. (Even this may be a generous assessment of his wellbeing). This view may seem a little unfair if it were not for an important point. Before moving into the flat in Wellington all those years ago he was a semi-professional cyclist based in the US for 2 years. Thus, this guy had been health personified ‘back in the day’. I was left with an important message. We are either going forwards or backwards...and there is no in between.

Post-Taupo. Sitting on the same foreshore as I had 48 hours earlier...how things had changed in 2 days.

So on New Year's Eve I decided that it was time to knock off a climb that I had mentioned (jokingly) to a friend several months earlier. I got thinking that because it's not a joke to try things outside of our comfort zone I would have a crack at a larger task to kick off 2009. ‘Start as you mean to carry on’, and all that.

The "Maungatuks" are near Kapiti, but on the other side of a reasonably large hill, so to get to the hill you have about a 5kms trip. The climb that many cyclists use for training is actually the first 1.9kms (and only sealed section) of Maungakotukutuku Road. The relatively short climb actually has an average gradient of 9.77%. Pretty staggering stuff and a worthy venue for the Kapiti Cycling Club's (KCC) yearly hill climb time trial.

The hill also acts as an opportunity for KCC members to qualify for the Personal Challenge. Each Personal Challenge has a specific distance to complete in a single ride, also cyclists must complete a specific number of climbs in a single day. This gains an award ranging from Merit (2 climbs), Bronze (5 climbs), Silver (10 climbs), to Gold (15 climbs). I suggested a "Maxi" level (as you do), and this would consist of a 600km ride, along with 30 climbs of the Maungatuks. The idea was pooh pooh'ed (and rightfully so), but while others may have forgotten about this conversation, I did not. Hence the (unofficial) category name of "Hors Catégorie". If it wasn’t to be considered, then I could only take it as a challenge. Maybe that's all it ever was.

I have only ever gone up the Maungatuks on about 7 or 8 occasions and never done any hill repeats. Thus, the prospect of going up the hill 30 times in a single outing was large enough to appeal to me. My game plan was simple, and consisted of each climb seeing me ramp up the tempo until I was at 80% of my maximum heart rate (HR), and once at the desired HR range I would attempt to stay there for the entire climb. On the way down I would just free wheel and would use the time as recovery. That was the plan anyway.

The other plan I had was to stash most of my drinks at the top of the hill after the first ascent, so it was not a surprise when I reached the top for the first time in a sluggish 13:16. I did however start to wonder how long the outing would last. Drinks were hidden under some grass next to the fence and I grabbed another drink after about every 4th climb. I really wondered on the first descent what could actually be reported on when the outing was simply hill repeats. There would be plenty of action however, although for the first 5 climbs nothing occurred that warrants any mention...apart from me not getting into any kind of rhythm.

My times per climb.

The 6th climb was different, and while I acknowledge my speed was never going to lead to a sonic boom, it was my first sub-12 minute climb of the outing. Now would be a good point to mention that I weigh 91kgs. The tone was now set, with the next 6 climbs all seeing me go under 12 minutes, and I would have a run of 9 climbs out of 11 that were sub-12 minutes. It was a subtle trap however, as I slowly got closer to 12 minutes on each subsequent climb, my 80% maximum HR often became 84% to 85% to hang onto my relatively good run of times. This all left me feeling pretty cooked.

During the run of climbs 6 through to 16 I had a single purpose of going under 12 minutes, and once this goal presented itself there were distractions aplenty, including a harrier race (Anne Bould leading on the way up the hill), a 4 wheel drive going down the hill driving on it's rims for a rear wheel (I wish I was joking), and Dietrich Pretorius (along with his son) doing several hill climbs.

Climb 14 saw me lose power. Not the beginning of the end (I still felt good), but certainly the end of the beginning. Then, on Climb 15 I knew my much enjoyed shade (covering the entire road up until now), was soon going to be gone shortly. This would make the climbs decidedly uncomfortable later in the day. Climbs 16, 17, and 18 had me getting some company for a while with Adrian McKenzie (and his son Will) riding up the hill. Adrian also took a few photos of my efforts.

Then I pretty much had the hill to myself. Apart from the occasional group walking up the hill. This wasn’t to mean the ride was to get boring however. The day (and road for that matter) were getting decidedly hotter, and additionally my food was running out rather quickly due to the outing taking longer than expected. Add to this, on Climb 20 my legs finally started to feel fatigued.

Climb 22 was the first time I really acknowledged that the heat was oppressive. Not in a ‘melted road Taupo’ kind of way, but enough to have me ask myself several times why I was going up and down this hill all day. The answer, (as always), is because I know that someday I’ll be too old to care. Until then, I’ll strive towards all of my goals, knowing I will overcome each obstacle if I am passionate about the task at hand.


The Maungatuk Hill profile - Take this profile with a pinch of salt, as I am yet to locate any downhill sections!! (Profile is from www.mapmyride.com).
Ruth received an SOS phone call during Climb 22. I had half a bar to last me 8 climbs, and it would not have been clever to have tried completing the remainder of the outing on this sole morsel of food.

At the start of Climb 24 I had 4 more bars and an extra bottle of water. This would see me through to the end with no problems. Climb 24 was the first climb where I really had problems holding 80%. By now I was occasionally slipping below 80% of my maximum HR, but on this climb it was a real effort to get to, (let alone stay at), 80%. At this point I felt like I was having to push the pedals hard to get any kind of speed. Later, once home, I would realise how much I had obviously done this all day, as my feet were stinging for a while once my shoes were removed.

Climb 25 gave me my first climb with a time greater than 14 minutes. I was rather disappointed by this poor effort and decided to hold 80% to 82% of my maximum HR for the whole of Climb 26. This was carried out to the letter, with me completing Climb 26 1:37 faster than the previous climb. I was buggered once at the top, but didn’t care, as I had given a final (semi) respectable effort. I knew that it was all about survival now. I collected my last drink from my stash at the hill top and descended reminding myself that this outing was 80% a mental test. I needed to remain positive and also needed to think about my approach for each climb, as I knew I would end up with a 15 minute climb if I took it too easy for too long.

The next 3 climbs had a single purpose...stay under 15 minutes. I was pretty sure that this wouldn’t be a problem on Climb 30, but for the others an all out effort would be a disaster. Climb 27 had me sit on 78% maximum HR (14:37), but the heat by now was absolutely stifling. The winds also seemed to be non-existent in the exact places where they were needed the most. Climb 28 had me hold 79% maximum HR, and I had a 'comfortable' 14:05. However, I was totally out of breath after this climb, despite no all-out effort near the top. This was concerning. Climb 29 saw me seriously risking a 15 minute climb, so for only the third time in the day I clicked up a couple of gears for the final 200 meters. I stayed under 15 minutes, but the time of 14:41 was closer than it looks.

A montage of photos from my hill climb. (Photos kindly taken by Adrian McKenzie).

So just 1 climb to go. I held a good tempo to the top and pushed a little harder from the short section with pine trees on the right of the road (5 minute mark), and finished with a sprint...and a sub-14 minute climb. No relief or excitement. I simply wrote down the time for the last climb and freewheeled to the base of the hill. The task was complete.

It was with amazement that I noted that I was racing along at 25kms per hour (headwind) heading back to Kapiti. I had forgotten I could go this fast!! I also made a mental note to get my brake pads replaced within the next week. They were shot. You get that when you descend 60kms in a single ride and brake for almost every meter of each descent. So all in all it was a good outing. I had no cramps (used Endurolytes), and my food was great, apart from simply underestimating the time it would take to complete the ride.

These were my experiences of the Maungatuk Hill climb. I hope this inspires others, but I suspect the openness of the update will simply have others grateful they are found other things to do on the day. It should be remembered that we cyclists are a fortunate bunch. On a good day we are the Kings of the Road and I challenge anyone to find another sport that gives you this feeling.

I have a number of very clear aspirations for 2009, but this time around I will not announce them to the world. Instead, they will unravel, as should happen on all agreeable journeys. I wish you every success for your 2009...especially if you also choose to follow the narrow path.

Ride safe.

Stu.




Some statistics from the ride...
Distance for each climb = 1.92kms
Total distance of climbs = 57.6kms

Net height of each climb = 187.5 meters. (Net height calculated from MyRide.com)
Total net height of climbs = 5,625 metres

Average gradient = 9.77%



Splits for each climb...Climb 1 - 13:16
Climb 2 - 12:53
Climb 3 - 13:18
Climb 4 - 12:48
Climb 5 - 12:15
Climb 6 - 11:55
Climb 7 - 11:42
Climb 8 - 11:55
Climb 9 - 11:58
Climb 10 - 11:47
Climb 11 - 11:58
Climb 12 - 11:57
Climb 13 - 12:40
Climb 14 - 12:30
Climb 15 - 11:48
Climb 16 - 11:39
Climb 17 - 12:03
Climb 18 - 12:33
Climb 19 - 11:58
Climb 20 - 13:15
Climb 21 - 13:23
Climb 22 - 13:45
Climb 23 - 13:22
Climb 24 - 13:47
Climb 25 - 14:33
Climb 26 - 12:56
Climb 27 - 14:37
Climb 28 - 14:05
Climb 29 - 14:41
Climb 30 - 13:49

The 30th descent was also timed at 4:25. (This would be representative of most descents).


Averages for climbs...
Mean 12:49
Median 12:40
*Mode 12:00 (*All times firstly rounded to closest 15 seconds).