Originally Posted by
josullivan
I am visiting Arizona on the first week of May and would like to climb one of the "Big Two" mountains--either Mount Lemmon or Mount Graham.
My worry is, as I am a "flatlander" living in Ontario Canada, would the 9000' elevations of these climbs be too much with no acclimatization period? Would it be dangerous combined with such exertion?
I'm a lifelong lowlander and flatlander from the US side of Lake Ontario. A few years back I committed to a ride "The Epic Century" on the Front Range of the Rockies. One of the other attendees suggested a "warm-up" ride earlier in the week to climb Mt. Evans, at 14,130 feet, the highest paved road in North America. I said, "Sure."
I had the same concerns. Can I climb for miles and miles and miles without respite? Can I breathe up there?
The longest hill I could find in reasonable distance is only 200 feet in a half-mile. I figured 35-40 repeats of that hill would be equivalent for training purposes. My first time out I was able to do four. I never did get up to more than a dozen or so because it was just plain mind-numbingly boring.
As for breathing, bought a heart rate monitor and I started really pushing myself so that I was riding right on the cusp of level 5 a lot. I got so that I could ride miles and miles that way.
Between the two, I made it up both mountains. I arrived in Denver on a Monday night, and climbed Evans on Wednesday morning. I had to stop and rest a few times, but I made it. On Saturday, we rode the "Epic" up to Rocky Mountain National Park. After Evans, that one was easier, even though I was still a bit sore from Wednesday.
So yes, it can be done. Do you have to train for it? Probably. Do you need to train the same way I did? I have no idea. I did what I thought would work and what thought I could do.
Note too that different people react differently to the altitude. Just because I had no issues doesn't mean you won't. My dad gets altitude sickness out there riding in his Buick.