I've decided that Everest Challenge is going to be my main goal for the year. So I'm talking to my Coach on setting up a training schedule with that in mind.

I've got the added complication of living where its flat. So his plan for me is to go to North Georgia and ride Six Gap one day, and then ride Six Gap in reverse the next day.

I'm starting to think maybe I didn't pick the best goal.

Heh.....I was really interested in that after reading about it, but then found LOTOJA and got really interested in that. Then I realized that my tax return is pretty much blown this year, and can't afford to go to either, so maybe next year.

I don't exactly live in mountains either, but it's hilly enough around here to get a decent workout in....I think the other problem will be altitude. Going from sea level to 7,000 feet....you're gonna need to go out there a good 3-4 days in advance and acclimatize a bit first.

You don't need hills to get the fitness. Stick with intervals. My brother-in-law (BF: Houston_Biker) has put in a really nice time on one of Austin's nastiest hills -- and he's ridden it twice. Most of his fitness is from spin classes.

You can also get a good hill simulation by dropping into the 53-11 and just grinding for 1/2 an hour (or whatever gear will take you down below 75rpm riding near LT).

Bologna. It's far too easy for the people who live in the hills to go do a ride like that. Well, "easy" is not the right word - but you know what I mean.

It's your job to show that flatlanders can go vertical too! I'm not a very experienced rider/trainer, but there has to be a way to build up your legs, to some degree, in a way that hills will - right?

I just pulled up the course site and took a quick look. 29,000 feet of climbing? Are you out of your mind? Forget what I said earlier. Kick back and ride the couch instead.

Kidding. Go for it. You can do it.

Altitudes's a problem. There's no way I can get there more than a couple of days in advance. So not enough time for any meaningful acclimitization. Some research I've seen actually suggests if you don't have a week or more to acclimitize, you should get to altitude less than 24 hours before, so some of the negative effects don't set in before the event, and you're not giving up any acclimitization because 3 days or so doesn't help anyway.

Fortunately at 10,000 feet for a high point its not like we're talking about climbing Everest.

I did 98% of my training for L' Etape de Tour in 2005 in Florida, incorporating things like Waterrockets recomends, and did pretty well.

Just make sure you're well-hydrated. The biggest change in atmospheric pressure is in the first 5,000 feet, actually.....beyond that, the change is more gradual.

FWIW, I've been ok at 7,000 feet, and spent a few days there....then spent a few days at a lower elevation, and then went to 10,500 feet of elevation (kinda ran up Lassen Peak in NorCal). I got a bit of a headache due to the fast ascent and I was slightly dehydrated. Performance-wise I was fairly ok.

My legs ache just thinking about it. You can have it.

Oh, cool. I did this last year and got clobbered; I started both days but could barely finish the first climb of the second day due to knee pain. And I live and train in a hilly area. So that doesn't necessarily help

I guess I can't really advise much since I didn't do too well, so take this with a grain of salt. My training included climbing as much as possible, with several endurance events (centuries, 200Ks, double centuries) thrown in for fun. My downfall, I think anyway, proved to be lack of leg strength combined with insufficiently low gearing.

Of course, you are going to need aerobic endurance, too, so do your distance work. Some back-to-back hilly centuries should do the trick. But also work on leg strength. And don't try to be a Real Man...bring a triple or at least a compact with a large rear cog.

It is a hard, hard ride/race.

Yes, as with any endurance event, staying hydrated and fed is essential. It's bone-dry over there (avg 10% RH) to begin with, and it's harder to maintain hydration at higher altitude. Drink, drink, drink. They serve HEED at the feed stations, so I would recommend getting used to the taste of that unless you're going to have your own support car.

But let's not kid around, no one is going to complete this event by "just" staying well-hydrated. Unless you aren't really serious about finishing, you've got to go into it with a considerable amount of training, and even that may not be enough.

I've done this race the last two years, in 2005 I finished both days, in 2006 I finished day 1 (over an hour faster than the year before) and skipped the second day. You're right about acclimating to the altitude, unless you can spend a week up there, it's probably not going to help much. I live at about 30' above sea level and the altitude is pretty harsh on me above 8000'. I try to start training for this in June, I'll start to back off of the crit racing and start ramping up the miles and climbing. For June/July I try to get 15,000' of climbing in per week and keep increasing through August, until I'm at around 20k per week, I try to get in a very big week a couple of weeks before the race with 20-30k of climbing. The training is tough for me, it's hard to get in this kind of volume of climbing where I live (although not nearly as tough as FL ) 'Nother is right about the gearing, both years I've done this with a low gear of 34x27, and there are spots where I could certainly use more. I think it's a great goal, and the feeling after finishing the second day is overwhelming sense of accomplishment.

I guess it's early yet, but we should try to have a (slightly more organized!) BF get-together again this year. I'm sure we'll have at least one more thread on this between now and September

What's the steepest sustained grade? I'd like to do it in a 38x27 (just for practical reasons) but I think that my be a bit ambituous.

Is that where you ride the bicycle UP or down the Lhotse Face?

i think we go up the side from tibet

You definitely need a triple on the Nepal side

Uhh, yeah, probably just a bit

OC can help me confirm, but I remember something around 15-17% for several hundred yards, at least. And this was at the end of the first day, at ~8,500', after having already climbed some 15,000'. So you might want to re-think that gear choice.

That's not to say that it can't be done in 38x27. If you're a very strong climber already (like: you are winning Cat 1/2 hillclimb races on a regular basis), you may be okay with that.

Personally, I was running 34x27 like OC, and it was simply not enough in several places. I am looking into running a 11-32 cassette next time, yes, with my 34 chainring. Ridiculous, perhaps, but for this race, it's better to have and not need than to need and not have. I'm not in a hurry to re-injure my knees and spend 3 months off paying for my mistake again.

Edit: these are the gearing recommendations from the ride organizer:
And here's what they say about the max % of each of the climbs:

Oh yeah and one other thing I just thought of; not training but for the actual race: do not blow the opportunity to put a nice big WARM coat and other clothes in the coat box, to be transported to the top of the last climb each day. In late September at 10,000' in the Eastern Sierras, even when it's sunny, it is COLD. Not to mention your body being in somewhat of a state of shock. They have a small supply of (stinky) blankets and they're in high demand. Also, you have to ride down 20+ miles with little opportunity to warm up.

what is nuetral support like? Is there a wheel truck? I'd like to ride tubulars for the weight advantage, but I don't want to have to carry a spare tubular.

From the website:
FWIW, I saw and talked to several folks who flatted (some of the roads are not in the greatest condition) and they ended up waiting a long time for support. My gut feeling is that any advantage you think you are gaining by going with tubulars and not carrying a spare will quickly vanish if you have a flat -- and it's very likely you will have one. Of course, you could try to get your own support car, have a look at https://everestchallenge.com/supportvehicles.htm for more info on that.

Out of curiosity, what Category will you be racing?

There's neutral support, but since the gaps in the fields are huge (a couple of hours between the leaders and stragglers), the support gets spread pretty thin. I rode my tubulars last year, but my teamate had his family driving support for the 2 of us. Next year a different teamate and myself are hoping to bring someone along to drive support for us, I don't think I'd ride the tubulars without knowing that a spare wheel was only a couple of minutes away, it's also nice to get bottles of my own drinks, instead of HEED. Most of the riders and volunteers at this race are friendly and willing to help (quite a contrast to the local racing scene), I'd see if you can make arrangements with one of the support vehicles, to carry your extra wheels.

As far as gearing goes, I would strongly recommend using a compact. I know people that have done this with 38x27 gearing, and they didn't make it the start line the second day. On the first day the last climb has an extended section (~2 miles) at an average of about 10%, and the last mile or so of the race has a very nasty stairstep section in the 15-17% range, I can barely push 34x27 up that section at the end of the day. The last 3 miles of the second day are switchbacks that have an average grade of ~10%, not to mention the miles of very steep rollers at the start of the last climb. I could tackle any of these climbs on their own with a 39 up front, but when you hit these after riding 80 miles and 13,000', they become monsters. This is the only ride/race of the year that I use my compact, I put it on about two weeks before race day, to make sure that it's dialed in, and it comes off the week after the race. If you can mash gears endlessly, and not destroy your knees, than go for the 38.

That goes without saying....

that's what i've heard as well, that getting there three days before is the worst thing you can do as your body is in the middle of adjusting and that two weeks is needed for proper acclimatization.

Once you get beyond 10,000 feet, you can gain around 2,000 feet per day without issues. Below that, acclimatizing happens much more quickly, and having 3-4 days to adjust is certainly better than 0 days.

Train high, sleep low.

cptips has some additional info on that.

Some interesting bits:

Interesting about the Hct and EPO levels, within 24-48 hours. I have heard this saw about "the worst is 2-3 days before", but I haven't seen anything backing up the statement. This article, while it does say that several weeks are needed for maximum benefit, does not really suggest to me that 2-3 days before is detrimental -- it's just not as good as a longer time at altitude.

And it's worth noting that a good chunk of the route is under 8,000' (base elevation of Bishop is ~4,000'). Only the first climb of Day 1 and the last climb of Day 2 go over 10,000' (and just barely over at that).

It would seem that one's training and other preparation will greatly outshadow any benefit derived from acclimatization, though of course if you can get there 2-3 weeks ahead it probably wouldn't hurt anything.

From personal experience don't ride tubulars unless you have your own support car. I rode tubulars last year, and was caring a spare. I flattened on a second climb of the first day. The car that had my spare wheel was nowhere to be found. Actually I didn't get my wheels back untill the second day. I almost gave up on getting them back. I did had a spare tire. Someone elses support car stopped, after at least three other "support" cars just drove by, and the guy helped to change the tire. Which was a b*ch. Bottom line unless you have your own support car ride clinchers. The "neutral" support extends to a car maybe stopping and helping you. As far as giving someone your wheels, you won't see that car untill the end of the race or the next day. Unless you are riding with whom ever that car is supporting.

On a side note, HEED and that other drink they had with protein tastes horrible! By the end of first day I was almost throwing up every time I took a sip.