O.K. so I've been too busy finishing to be up-to-date on the updates. And yes, once again our ride in the Rose Parade didn't get TV coverage even after Odyssey2000 was mentioned in TV Guide.
So, back to Hawaiian updates. We had one full riding day on Maui. Riding 30 miles from the airport, even on the breathtaking Hana Road, doesn't count as a riding day. But one day was full enough.
As soon as the clear sky contained enough blue light to pedal safely, I was back on the Hana Road. The tropical twisting rolling road with a 15mph speed limit was more strenuous going north than it was coming from the airport. It took almost two hours to get to the turnoff 17 miles and 1600ft up and down and up and down the road.
From the turnoff, the climbing was mostly steady ... forever. The first seven miles passed houses and woods then thru the quaint hippie hangout town of Makawao before climbing into open pasture lands.
At this point, I started to see the first of a ship-load of downhill riders. These were clearly not "cyclists" and that included each group's leader who often rode sidesaddle, sometimes with no hands. A van followed each group with the lead bozo on the radio with the van. I was amazed at how many people paid some $60+ to coast DOWN an unearned descent S L O W L Y wearing a full face motorcycle helmet and some of the worst choices for cycling I've seen since the Burke-Gilman Trail in Seattle. Cut-off Levi's and t-shirts are not the best clothing when the temperature on top is 40 degrees. Granted, at their speeds, there wasn't much of a wind chill factor, but since those who weren't supplied with company jackets and pants also weren't provided with gloves, it must have been a numbing experience.
While they had been driven quickly and warmly to the top earlier in the day, it took me 4-1/2 hours to pedal to the turnoff onto Highway 378 after 31 miles (ele 3450ft). That's where the last store and homes were located and where the switchbacks started. From there, I ONLY had 21 miles, 6573ft and countless switchbacks to climb.
It was 70 degrees when I passed the 4500ft sign. I looked down to see the asphalt switchbacks in open green cattle pastures. Below, lay the flat narrow isthmus of Maui and the towns of Makawao, Pukalani and Kahului surrounded by field of pineapples and of sugar cane. I could still make out the ten foot waves crashing as they approached the beach. Beyond the isthmus was the older much more carved features of the northern volcano's remnants which formed Maui. Clouds were forming on the jagged tops across the isthmus and on the slopes of Haleakala above me. As I rode into the clouds I had to put on a jacket because paradise was too cold.
More switchbacks brought me to the 700ft entrance of Haleakala National Park. The terrain got rougher and the vegetation more sparse. Green life was replaced by black volcanic rocks. But through it all, the black asphalt kept rising and I kept pedaling ... and breathing more deeply.
At 1:30pm I saw the second Odyssey rider, Racer Bob, coming back down; Trueheart went by over two hours earlier. I had trouble recognizing some of my fellow riders because they were bundled up against the cold during their descents.
As I passed 9000ft, I was creating enough heat to be warm but I wasn't getting enough oxygen. I had to stop occasionally to take 40 slow breathes to get some oxygen back to my brain. When I climbed the mountain of death in Costa Rica, I started at 5000ft. Haleakala was a 10000ft climb from sea level. I wasn't the only one who noticed the difference in acclimation. Fortunately, I was stronger than I was eleven months ago and could climb faster. Still, it took almost three hours to climb the final eleven miles to the top at 10,023ft. I barely had time to take pictures and put on warm clothing before plunging 35 miles in less than 1-1/2hrs.
The clouds were thicker in the dimming light on the way down. The cattle, which had been all but invisible on the climb up, were munching grass next to the fenceless road and even wandered across the asphalt in front of me. No worries, I was going a mere 32 mph.
The 21 miles that took five hours to ride up, took just 40 minutes to coast down. At that point Amanda, my Rainbow, asked if I wanted a sag ride back to the YMCA. I knew I could make it back to the Hana Road before dark and hadn't planned upon repeating the ride out to the YMCA I had done the day before. When I reached the junction at 6:15pm I had ridden 87 miles and climbed 12,320 feet, a personal record for climbing! Even with my lights, I didn't need to risk my life in the twisting darkness.
No way would I have made that climb before this year. As it was, my left knee hurt for a week from the struggle. But that was small pain far outweighed by the rush of what I had accomplished during the Best Year of My Life.
Keeping the rubber down and the spirits high,
Bruce