Mulholland Double Report

[wanderingwheel]

I think I’ve sufficiently recovered from the Mulholland Double Century this weekend to finally give a report. Please feel free to blame Vlad for anything that follows since he asked me for a ride report. :p For those familiar with the area, the ride starts in Calabassas, plays in the Santa Monica Mountains, and includes the major climbs of Topanga/Old Topanga, Rock Store, Cotharin, Potrero, Grimes Canyon, Balcolm Canyon, Decker, Encinal Canyon, and Piuma/Schueren (thankfully, rather than Stunt itself). Maybe some of those are little more than bumps, but by the time I got there they were HC climbs.

The long report will be in the next post, but if you want to skip it, here’s the short version: it was windy, warm, and hilly. I rode myself into the ground as did everybody else. Just over half finished and the times were very slow. My only goal was to finish in daylight, and I didn’t make that by about 20 minutes. Devil Mountain Double will feel like a recovery ride after this. Anybody else riding it?

[wanderingwheel]

This was the hardest day I’ve ever spent on a bike. As usual I was dumb and tagged along with the faster riders. On Topanga a group of 10 of us formed at the front including some of the local ultra-distance luminaries. I didn’t realize it at the time, but this was the first stage of the California Triple Crown Stage Race, an informal competition for the lowest overall time on three of the hardest double centuries. This year the Stage Race is Mulholland, Central Coast, and the Terrible Two. Of course, it meant that many of the riders I was now with were out to scorch the course. Oops.

I buried myself to stay with this group out to the coast at about mile 60 so that I would have a group to ride with on the flats. Being slower than most, I allowed myself to yo-yo on the climbs and used the descents and technical roads to catch back on. We blew through the first through checkpoints, and it was only after descending Deer Creek to the coast at mile 60 that I was able to refill a (one) bottle before we sped up the coast. Uh-oh.

I held on as we rode up the coast, around Point Mugu, but then we headed inland into a fierce Santa Ana headwind and I was blown off the back. The wind continued to fight us up – and down – Potrero and all the way to Simi Valley. I found out that is possible to go less than 20mph downhill even while riding hard. Finally the course turned and headed back to the coast with a great tailwind, but not before throwing Grimes and Balcolm Canyons at us. At the base of Balcolm I caught up with 4 or 5 from the morning, but it was short lived since I had to stop and refuel while they were on their way out. As I got close to the coast again, flying at 30 with those Santa Anas on a flat, straight road, the wind suddenly switched I found myself struggling to go 14 within seconds. Oof-da.

Made it back to the coast and a cross/tailwind mockingly pushed me to the next challenge, Decker Canyon. Up to this point, I had been wistfully thinking about a lower gear or two, but once on Decker I began to really lust after a triple, maybe even a mountain bike. Somehow I made it to the top and refilled the bottles without passing out. Only one obstacle left. Thankfully, the double route had been re-routed to go up the longer, gradual climbs of Piuma and Schueren rather than then brute of Stunt. After those 190 miles, I can’t even imagine trekking up Stunt. Had to put my lights on at the top and rode in to the finish. One of my friends teased me at the start for lugging a light around, but the day was so brutal I’m glad I had it.

Jus to prove it was a tough day, only 70-some finished, over 50 DNF’d. The first rider cam in at “only” 12:15, which is almost an hour slow. At the same time, a century was run on the same course, just without Potrero, Grimes, and Balcolm. The first rider on that came in at almost 7 hours, again a good hour slow. I came in at 13:50 and was the 7th finisher. Ouch!!

[Too Tall]

WOW. Total awe of your accomplishment. You one tough SOB. Congratulations.

[znfdl]

Excellent ride and great effort.

[flux]

That's awesome! In my opinion it doesn't get any better than those climbs. Some of the best riding on the continent.

[wanderingwheel]

That's awesome! In my opinion it doesn't get any better than those climbs. Some of the best riding on the continent.
No question. The route is great, it was just the conditions this weekend that made it a struggle. I'm a little faster and better at more thoroughly wrecking myself than in past years, maybe that also contributed to the challenge.

[znfdl]

Full Results for the ride:

http://planetultra.com/mulholland/Results/2008%20Results.htm

[Waldo]

Sean,

Congratulations with the result! You're lying 7th in the stage race! Awesome. DMD as a recovery ride. I'm shaking my head in awe. :beer:

[wanderingwheel]

You're lying 7th in the stage race!
Nope. Now you're assuming I have some intention of riding the Terrible Two. I've beat my head against that wall enough times to finally know better. :crap:

[Too Tall]

hehehe MAYBE if you trained a little dot dot dot?

Looks like a brutal edition. I've ridden many thousands of miles with CA doubles riders and they are some of the most consistently fit people I know. A little nuts too ;)

[Fivethumbs]

That's awesome!!!. I live in Simi and this last weekend was HOT and windy. It was darn near 100. I can't believe you did a double. Amazing.

[jeffg]

Great job under very tough conditions!

Even if I did train top 7 would be well beyond me ... kudos

[Blastinbob]

Congrats on a job well done. The temps on the ride ranged from 39 to over 100 degrees last Saturday. Fortunately I only experienced the cold and the not yet hot as I crashed out of the century at mile 25.

[swoop]

thats like a 4 days of really tough climbing in two days! you are a stud. even the descents require tons of focus....

i'm impressed!

[wanderingwheel]

BlastinBob, I'm sorry I missed you on the ride, and sorry to hear about your crash. Mile 25 sounds like an unusual place, was that towards the end of Topanga or up on Mulholland somewhere? I know many who have crashed later in the ride on Little Sycamore and Deer Creek...including me on previous rides.

[Blastinbob]

BlastinBob, I'm sorry I missed you on the ride, and sorry to hear about your crash. Mile 25 sounds like an unusual place, was that towards the end of Topanga or up on Mulholland somewhere? I know many who have crashed later in the ride on Little Sycamore and Deer Creek...including me on previous rides.
Pilot error on the decent on Old Topanga. Got into the marbles when I turned around to see where my jacket flew out of my pocket to. A bunch more crashed at the North end of the course in the area your taking about, that one tight downhill bumpy left (on Yerba Buena I think, maybe little sycamore) gets its' share of blood on it, almost got me last year.

[shoe]

sounds like a great ride///man to finish those hellish days is a great feeling...congrats...dave

[cadence231]

These kind of rides really get my imagination going.
Good going! You're hard.
Granite.

[Bud_E]

Jaw dropping! I'm amazed by the strength of some riders. Interesting - I don't think of Piuma being so much easier than Stunt given that they end up at the same place - although Stunt does seem more exposed to the elements.

Out of curiosity - what was your low gear ? Did you take a Camelback with you ?

[wanderingwheel]

I think my low gear was a 36x25, maybe 36x23. Regardless, something much lower would have been nice. I'm a spinner and climb much faster at 90rpm than grinding at 60rpm. The effort required to spin my low gear on those 15% and 20% grades, even if I could, is not conducive to finishing 200 miles in good order.

No camelback, I just carried two bottles. Part of my struggles was going to mile 60 before refilling, then only filling one and hoping it could take me 30 miles into the Santa Anas and up Decker before getting more water. I was suffering the effects of that choice for the next 100 miles or so, and just as I was beginning to come around Decker reared it's head...or grade. Buried again.

Maybe it was only my addled mind that thought Piuma was easier than Stunt, but my legs were finally back and I was finally able to ride a comfortable tempo up what felt like a long, gentle grade. I could have sworn that Stunt is significantly steeper than Piuma.

[Bud_E]

Thanks for your reply. Lately I've been increasing my riding in those canyons and I've gone to a 36x27 low gear which is great. Every so often someone will spin right by me while I'm grinding up a long steep climb so I'm ready to give a 34 tooth chainring a try. I was curious about the Camelback because my 2 large bottles ( sorry Swoop ) have only run dry a few times up there but it was plenty ugly. I realize you were on a supported ride but sometimes they don't put the refill station where you most need it.

Thanks again for the ride report. :beer:

[Jack Brunk]

Thanks for your reply. Lately I've been increasing my riding in those canyons and I've gone to a 36x27 low gear which is great. Every so often someone will spin right by me while I'm grinding up a long steep climb so I'm ready to give a 34 tooth chainring a try. I was curious about the Camelback because my 2 large bottles ( sorry Swoop ) have only run dry a few times up there but it was plenty ugly. I realize you were on a supported ride but sometimes they don't put the refill station where you most need it.

Thanks again for the ride report. :beer:
Always keep an eye out for the different water stops in the canyons. There's probably 20 or more decent stops to fill your bottles from Mulholland down to Las Virgines.

[swoop]

bud, there are the secret ways of the driveway water spouts of malibu and the valley. there's the guardshack across from seven minute hill, the hose bib at the second of the three bitches, the fountain 300 meters from the top of stunt...

there is a way to maintain one's deepest aesthetic principles and still hydrate!


*evil laugh*

[Jack Brunk]

bud, there are the secret ways of the driveway water spouts of malibu and the valley. there's the guardshack across from seven minute hill, the hose bib at the second of the three bitches, the fountain 300 meters from the top of stunt...

there is a way to maintain one's deepest aesthetic principles and still hydrate!


*evil laugh*
I got the owner of the property on the three bitches a xmas basket last year. She always so pleasant. Don't forget the drinking fountain outside the residence at the first dip before you decend westlake blvd.

[Bud_E]

By the three bitches I'm assuming you mean Decker/Mulholland and I've heard of the one near the top of Stunt ( but I've been too cross-eyed to actually spot it ).

Didn't know about the one at 7-minute hill -- I assume you mean at the top where Mulholland and Dry Cyn Cold Creek Rd. intersect.

I also know about Rock Store and Neptunes Net on PCH. I'll have to train myself to keep an eye out.

Thanks for the info -- feel free to add to the list. Hot weather's a comin' ! :cool: