Banff Bikefest Hill Climb

Today was the start of the Banff Bikefest. The first event for me was the Hill Climb up Hwy 93. The race info kept the distance switching between 6 km and 7 km so I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. I hoped at least that the elevation profile would be correct since the end would be near once it started to level out. I didn't know how much the gradient would affect my speed so I couldn't predict my time. I knew it wouldn't be that long of a race so I knew my usual strategy of keeping my heart rate at 170+ bpm was going to work again. I had a little advice from the ultimate climber before the race. Marg said to expect a fairly constant gradient but it would feel tougher if there was a headwind. There was a headwind.

Due to the slow speed of the climb and wide open highway, I could see a few of the riders who started before me. I caught one fairly quickly but he was quite a large, though not tall, man who was definitely struggling on the climb. He was weaving back and forth and pedalling at a very low cadence. My confidence was high at the start because the riders I could see in front weren't getting away very quickly. I think I suffered through the middle as the climb went through its steepest section. I sat for the entire climb but, in retrospect, I should have stood for some sections. On my commute, I have one steep section during which I always stand and it seems easier than the rare time I sit the whole was up. The next hill climb I do, I'm going to try mixing my sitting and standing more in a burst and recover format. Since this climb was fairly constant, there were no real sections to convince me to stand. It did level off towards the end and I was able to put in a sprint and pass another rider who I had slowly been catching for most of the ride. Another strategy would be to get a lighter bike. There was a weigh-in at the top and the official just looked at my bike and said it made the weight. I think I saw one person fail the weigh-in while I was at the top. I really wanted to ride back down but that was forbidden. After a short wait, I was driven back to the parking lot in a van.

The race was only 6.2 km and I finished in about 22:25 for an average speed of 16.5 km/h and a maximum of 33.4 km/h as I sprinted for the finish. There was 275 m of climbing and my GPS recorded 1.3 m of descending! I averaged 172 bpm with a maximum of 180. The time trial is next on Saturday. A very enjoyable course but lots of rolling hills for the first half.