Tombstone Backpacking

I got out for my first backpacking trip in a long time on 15 and 16 August. I went with Peter and Rod up to the Tombstone backcountry campground near Tombstone Lakes in Kananaskis. It was about ten years after Jesse, Rod and I got lost in David Thompson Country so it was about time to get back out. My little Edmonton gaming group is a good collection of outdoor adventurers but only three of us were able to find the time to go.

After a bit of debate, it was decided that we needed a fairly short, in and out, one-night trip that wasn't too far from Calgary. A little searching the web and talking with some of the hikers in my office led to picking Tombstone. It lies on the junction of the Little Elbow – Big Elbow loop and a trail in from Elbow Lake. The short route is to park on Hwy 40, just north of the summit of the Highwood Pass and hike the 6 km or so past Elbow Lake. We watched the weather all week as it was cloudy and rainy but the forecast for the weekend suggested some improvement.

Peter and Rod showed up at my house on Friday evening so we could make final arrangements and head out the next day. We expected a short hike so we didn't rush through waffles for breakfast and had our packs ready around 11:00. The initial part of the hike is quite steep as it climbs away from the highway. It was comfortable walking because the skies were mostly cloudy and the temperature was cool. We met a few groups coming down from the lake but the trail was almost all ours from the lake to the campground. The trail also descended slightly all the way from the lake to the campground. The scenery was excellent as we walked along the open trail through a gap in two mountain ranges. The peaks were white as the rain in Calgary had fallen as snow at the tops of the mountains.

We were set up in our campground in the late afternoon so we decided to walk up to Tombstone Lakes. We only visited the larger, lower lake. The wind was calm so the lake was perfectly flat with ripples occasionally made by fish coming to the surface to snatch bugs. Rod decided to keep his mountain bathing tradition alive so he stripped down behind some trees and jumped in.

Back at camp, Rod and I enjoyed "One Grand Stew" even though it had leaked a little in my pack. We eventually got a fire going despite the wet wood and were able to sit around it, enjoying 56 herbs of medicinal goodness, and chat while night came. We got a little rain through the night but Rod was comfy in his new bivy sack and Peter and I were dry in my tent. The slope of the ground and lack of friction between his mattress and sleeping bag meant Peter spent most of the night sliding to the foot of the tent.

We woke to more clouds and lots of mist in the valleys. Again, we were in no hurry so we ate breakfast and packed up at a relaxing pace. The weather was a little cooler and we got a few more drops of rain on the way out but it was a pleasant walk. This day we encountered a few more groups on the trail although they were just there for the day. I was a bit surprised because there was no real destination between Elbow Lake and the campground. We even encountered a group out on horses and I spotted a moose who quickly went crashing back into the trees because of the noise of the horses.

All in all, it was an easy, enjoyable hike and good to get back out with friends. We hadn't even got back to the car before plans for our second hike were being laid. The actual trip ended up to be 7.62 km each way and the one-way trip up to Tombstone Lake was 2.2 km. It took us 2.5 hours for each leg of the backpack though we were only in motion for 1:40 each time. The elevation gain was just under 400 m.

Highwood Pass

I finally did the Highwood Pass today. It's almost a must for any cyclist living close to it since it's the highest paved road in Canada, or so I'm told. It's where Lance Armstrong rides when he's in the area and it's been on my to do list for some time.

Crankmasters organized a group ride today to tackle the pass. About 30 riders started from the Ribbon Creek area near Kananaskis Village and would need to cover 45 km and climb 800 vertical metres to get to the pass. I started out with the lead group but as the road started to climb right away, I decided not to burn myself out and dropped back. Two riders came up behind me and I fell in with them. Brad (I think) did a great job of doing long pulls and I did quite a bit of work too but our third was just hanging in. A few more riders came up behind us and we also swept up a few who couldn't keep up with the front group. We stopped for a short rest at the gate which closes off the Highwood Pass. The road really starts to go up at this point so I was off the back of my group and spent my time to the top chasing Brad. It was a tough climb for me and the 7% grade for 2 km slowed me down to about 10 km/h. Just before we reached the top, all the riders in front of me started down.

Brad and I took a short rest at the parking lot and then started back down. Our speed definitely increased which is why I didn't see a small pothole and suffered a pinch-flat. Together, we were able to change my tire which was super-tough for me alone in the Spring. I think the tire might have stretched a tiny bit. I also got to try out my CO2 pump for the first time. I got a cool refresher in thermodynamics when the temperature of the canister dropped quickly as the pressure inside dropped. We found out later that three riders just ahead of where we changed my tire had a young, male grizzly bear run out just behind them. I'll have to keep this in mind as I plan to return close to the area next weekend for some backpacking. The rest of the ride back was fast but tough. My legs really were suffering as this was the longest ride I've done all year and had a ton of climbing.

According to my GPS, I covered 91.69 km in 3:17:07 (plus 23 minutes of resting and tire changing) for an average moving speed of 27.1 km/h and a maximum of 67.5 km/h. It was a social ride but with lots of climbing so I averaged 159 bpm with a maximum of 180 bpm. My GPS also totalled up 1100 m of climbing during the day.

C4 mini stage race

Way back on 29 July, my Wednesday night race series wrapped up with a little stage race. The prologue was a short time trial followed by a road race and then another, longer time trial.

For the prologue, I clocked 4:32 over the 2.68 km course for an average speed of 35.3 km/h and a maximum of 46.5 km/h. I averaged 159 bpm with a maximum of 174 bpm. That was good enough for seventh out of seven but I see that I was five seconds out of second.

For the road race, it was the usual story. I was splintered off the group during the climb and finished two and a half minutes behind the leader. I spent the last 15 km or so alone but had a group of three C racers just a few hundred metres behind me the whole way. I slowed a lot on the last little climb and one of them was able to sprint and just beat me at the line. I did the 29.2 km in 48:30 for an average speed of 36.2 km/h and a maximum speed of 63 km/h. I had an average heart rate of 158 bpm with a maximum of 176 bpm.

I was pretty tired for the final time trial and it was mostly climbing so I was only able to cover the 8.26 km in 15:30. That's an average of just 32 km/h with a maximum of 50 km/h. I averaged 162 bpm with a maximum of 174 bpm.

I really enjoyed the race series. The previous few years, I did the Midweek Mayhem criterium races. While the venue is close to my home, doing the exact same race each week is boring. I really liked alternating between time trials and road races and how the road races had different formats. I really need to improve my climbing because it's an obvious weakness for me. I ended up doing three laps of the Millarville loop during two races and was dropped from whichever group I was with at the exact same place each time. I really need to get my hip healthy so I can hit the weights more. I can also stand to lose 10 kg more while trying to increase my leg strength. More leg strength and less weight will also help boost my average speed on the flats.

C4 WNS Time Trial

Last Wednesday was my usual Wednesday night race and it was a Merkx time trial. That's their name for a time trial ridden on your usual racing bike: no aero bars, no disk wheels, no pointy helmets. It was a very warm night at 30°C so I decided to carry water for such a short race. I would finish it before arriving back to the car after the race. I was the second rider to head out and I tried to catch the first rider. I didn't catch him but I did catch two other riders; one guy warming up and one guy who was supposed to be the marshal at the NW corner of the course. Unfortunately, this series has been so well run and I didn't know the guy I passed was supposed to be a marshal that I would end up flying through that corner and only thinking that TWP 262 sounded very familiar. I wound up getting 2:22 and one kilometre of extra effort on the night. I was credited with covering the 16.2 km course in 27:42 (although some people maintain the course was 16.8 km). That gives me a speed somewhere in the 35 – 36 km/h range despite being slightly demoralized by the extra scenery I enjoyed. My maximum speed was 65.9 km/h. I did help three other riders who all approached the same corner together just ahead of the marshal as I was coming back up the hill to get back on course. I noticed one of those riders got on my wheel after he turned around and let me help him part of the way to the finish. I think I was able to ride away from him and open up a proper time trial gap after a short time.

Calgary hills

Last Saturday, I did a little tour of Calgary. I wanted to explore a little route onto the Nose Creek path and then wind around to check out the route from Edworthy Park up to Edgemont. With all the people and dogs walking wherever they please on the paths, I don't advise ever doing serious training within the city. When Julie is able to do longer rides in the trailer, I'll need to know these scenic routes a bit better. I was out for just over two hours and did 52.8 km for an average of 25.7 km/h. I got in the climb up Edworthy but the path to the east back down to the river wasn't suitable for a road bike so I had to circle back to the main road up the park. I also climbed Home Road and up 53 Ave through Edgemont for a total of 470 m of climbing.

C4 WNS Team Road Race

Wednesday, 15 July was a team race just south of Calgary going down towards Millarville. We started with three teams of seven but a late arrival meant a team of eight. The winning team would be the first one to get their third rider, not including their team leader, over the line. Before the race, our leader discussed strategy. Trev is a very strong Speed Theory rider and he was going to be able to move where he wanted in the pack or catch breakaways. We were counting on him to get in amongst the other teams and disrupt their plans. He mostly wanted to isolate riders at the back of any escape and open up a gap which would require the other rider to spend extra energy trying to get back on. It sounded like a good theory but I wasn't there to see how it all worked out.

As is typical for my races, I hung nicely in the pack but tried to stay towards the front. I got caught out once but Trev was able to open a little gap in the middle of the pack and I jumped back in to shelter. As per usual, something happened and I suddenly went from being comfortable to being above my redline. There was a little confusion on the corner after Millarville to head back north. I had to work a bit to catch back on to the group and this got my heart rate rising. The pace also picked up as we started to climb and this usually spells disaster for me. I seem to be able to maintain 90% of my maximum heart rate but closing the gap and starting the gradual hill pushed my heart rate from under 170 bpm to over 180 which is over 96% of my maximum. I caught back on but the hill continued and I was split off the back. Eventually, I was swept up by a few riders and we worked together and broke up a few times over the rest of the course. I would even lose this group the next time we started climbing and had to ride myself back to one lone team mate who had completely used his energy. He and I had been working in the smaller group and he left me on the start of the climb on the second lap so I was a bit surprised when I got back to him and ended up pulling him most of the way to the finish.

I ended up doing 53 km in 1:29 for an average speed of 35.7 km/h and a max of 62.3 km/h coming down from the top of the course. There was 367 m of climbing during the race. I averaged 162 bpm with a maximum heart rate of 184 bpm while trying to stay with the peleton on the first lap. Our team finished second.

Stampede RR

12 July was the Stampede Road Race put on by Crankmasters. I wasn't expecting to do well since it's a Masters race and I was therefore in Masters A and required to do 120 km. The course was rolling and I'd spent the previous week at home with my new daughter and some baked goods.
I felt good at the back of the pack for most of the first lap and was surviving the climbs but I let myself lose contact on some of the descents. Usually my superior mass allows me to catch the pack on the downhill but, with the wind that day, I had to do some work to get back and that proved my undoing. I also started to feel uncomfortable in my stomach and weak in the legs so I was split from the group just before turning south on the first lap. I had hoped to hang in a little longer but it wasn't possible. To get some training in, I continued on for an extra lap until I found a few team mates chatting in the final corner of the lap. I joined them and we eventually rode back to the feed zone to let Corey know we were done for the day. Well, we did have enough energy to sprint back to the parking and enjoy some of the first burgers off the barbecue.
In total, I did 49.33 km in 1:46:12 for an average speed of 27.9 km/h and a maximum of 63 km/h. I did 550 m of climbing. My heart rate monitor was a little flakey but it thinks I averaged 161 bpm with a maximum of 186 bpm. That's not the first time I've beaten my calculated maximum of 183 bpm.