California Firefighter Olympics Stage 2 Time Trial

Zachary Hilton

Nicasio, CA 
Placed:  4th overall GC and Tied for 3rd Bronze Medal in Age Group

Weather:  61 degrees avg. Foggy and wet roads at start, rain back half of course

Start Time:  9:08 am

Total Time: 00:34:12 
Power: No Power on TT Bike

Average Speed: 24.59 MPH, Top Speed 34.09 MPH 

Average HR: 174 Max HR: 184

Elevation Ascent: 174 ft (Too Flat!!!!)

Training Peaks Data

Stage 2 of the CA/FF Olympics is the TT.  I have been riding the TT bike for 1 year now and love it.  It's a totally different discipline, and the advantages of training on a TT bike pay off in road racing.  You are lower, more aero, and use different muscle groups.  I recovered well from yesterday's HC and was feeling good.  I got in an hour warm up on the trainer and included a 7 mile ride to the start line.

We were separated by 1 minute intervals.  I started 3rd.  I settled in to a good position and had to take the first few miles a little slower because we were on unknown roads, and they were wet.  I figured everyone else was probably going to do the same anyways.  I was able to get my HR up to threshold with no problem and keep it there.  I carried one bottle of Hammer Heed.  I caught my 1 minute guy and never got passed up by anyone.  That was an awesome feeling.  I knew there were a few guys that were a threat behind me.  The one thing I love about the TT is its all about milliseconds.  For instance getting out of the aero position to manage a sharp turn, or drinking some fluid.  These all add up during the race and can separate you from winning by only seconds.  I ended up in a tie for 3rd place with Rob Martone, and Dave Stepp beat us by 1 second!!!  If we had better timing there wouldn't have been a tie but hey its all in good fun for this stage race.

I drank some Recoverite when I got back to the truck.  Were all hung out, and had a quick medal ceremony.  I walked away with another Bronze in my age category, and I am sitting 4th overall GC. Time to recover!  

My next race is Stage 3 CA/FF Road Race.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks to Hammer Nutrition!

Thanks to Voler!

California Firefighter Olympics Stage 1 Hill Climb

Zachary Hilton

Stinson Beach, CA 
Placed:  4th overall GC and 3rd Bronze Medal in Age Group

Weather:  63 degrees avg. light rain morning, sunny with clouds for the end

Start Time:  10:00 am

Total Time: 00:57:00 (STOPPED FOR 2 GUYS WITH FLATS)
Power: 194 W avg, 655 W max, 237 W NP

Average Speed: 13.68 MPH, Top Speed 38.49 MPH 

Average HR: 165 Max HR: 190

Elevation Ascent: 2,277 ft

Training Peaks Data

The California Firefighter Olympics are held annually.  It's either up north or down south.  San Francisco Fire hosted this year.  The cycling portion would be a 3 Day Stage Race.  Hill Climb, Time Trial, and Road Race.  I'm riding my 2009 Specialized Tarmac with the new Ultegra 6800 11 speed group set.  I ride a 53/39 11/28 for most races.  I am also racing with my Race Rim 32 Carbon Tubulars.  The HC is the same course we race every year in September at the Mt Tam Hill Climb.  I was very familiar with this course, and excited to see how I would do this time of year.  I had some breakfast when I got out there with Hanns.  Blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, and egg whites.  I have ditched the morning oatmeal for a while.  I created a multi-grain oats with whole wheat flour pancake that I now eat with fruit.

I put on the SJBC Race Team Voler Speed Suit and began my warm up on the trainer.  I needed at least a full hour to get warmed up.  I carried one small bottle of Hammer Heed with me for the race, and packed a bag they would sag to the top of the mountain for us.  This race will be done in less than 1 hour.  I wanted to PR on the climbing portion, and try to set a new and higher FTP (Functional Threshold Power) for the month.

We had around 15 to start the HC.   Mostly smaller fields for the first 2 stages.  Good competition however.  I had no room to carry anything besides a bottle, so I ate a quick Hammer Gel Peanut Butter before the start.  We were off and I was sitting 3-4 wheels back.  The first 4 miles is on HWY 1 and can be pretty windy. At mile 1.5 there was a pothole that 2 guys hit and pinch flatted.  We all agreed to stop and wait.  No big deal after we all calmed down a bit.  Some guys traveled real far for this competition, and good sportsmanship in a small field is always appreciated.  In a real race they would have been out.  In the big picture everything you do counts towards placing higher than your competitors in a race.  How you train, eat, recover, prepare your bike, and race your bike.  One of the guys who flatted Dave Stepp from San Diego ended up being my strongest competitor in the overall GC and our age category.  He finished the HC 1:47 ahead of me and the TT 1 second ahead of me.  Dave became a good friend during the races, and happy to have raced with him.  Good karma always comes back around.   Once we got back on the road I stayed up front.  At mile 3.5 Hanns D went off the front and I followed his wheel.  This was a good place to start ramping up the intensity for what was about to come.  The first few miles of the climb are the toughest and a great place to separate the group.  Rob Herrick came around us and set a fast pace up the climb.  Followed by Rob Martone, Dave Stepp, Hanns Detlefsen, Ken Rodriguez, and John Galvin.  I settled in at my FTP power and decided to stay there.  I would either catch them or not.  This has been my plan on HC's especially at the beginning.  I can attack later.  Rob H, Rob M, Dave S, and Hanns D were all about 20 seconds ahead as I caught Ken R and John G.  The four of them were putting in a steady climb that I couldn't bridge just yet.  I had them in sight which was still to my benefit.  There are a few flat spots where you can try to gain some ground.  Rob H started to drift towards me, and now the three of them where 30-40 seconds off the front.  I then saw Hanns break apart from the group.  Rob M broke away from Dave S in the dark forest where it was really wet this year.  As I came through the forest I spotted them at the top of the first sisters climbs.  Hanns wasn't in sight.  They were now over a minute ahead of me, and Rob H was still about 20-30 seconds behind me.  I settled in TT mode and paced myself over these next 6 climbs.   I wasn't going to catch them now.  The sweeping left turn and uphill finish is one of my favorite.  You can catch someone off guard if they aren't hitting the finish hard!

I PR'ed the hill climb by over 1 minute.  PR'ed on all the sisters hills, and my new FTP is now 272. That's way ahead of where I was this past year.  I am feeling strong and right on track.

I drank some Recoverite when I got back to the truck.  Were all hung out, and had a quick medal ceremony.  I walked away with a Bronze in my age category, and I am sitting 4th overall GC.
Time to recover!  

My next race is Stage 2 CA/FF Time Trial.

Thanks for reading!
Thanks to Race Rim Wheels!

Thanks to Hammer Nutrition!

Thanks to Voler!

Thanks to SJBC Race Team!

Death Ride Tour of California Alps 2014

Zachary Hilton

Markleeville, CA 

Weather:  73 degrees avg. Sunny and temps rising, cold morning, sunny with clouds for the end

Start Time:  6:00 am

Total Time: 09:18:00
Power: 120 W avg, 560 W max, 152 W NP

Average Speed: 13.24 MPH, Top Speed 48.12 MPH 

Average HR: 149 Max HR: 181

Elevation Ascent: 14,606 ft

Training Peaks Data

This is one of the most brutal rides that I have ever done.  When I summited Carson Pass and came through the last checkpoint I wanted to cry and cheer!  I haven't felt that way since Avery was born.  It was such an accomplishment.  It was an epic adventure, and I got to eat ice cream on the top of Carson Pass.  I had a good week of training leading up to the race.  I am just beginning the second phase of my training for the season.  We woke up at 4am for breakfast which was a hard boiled egg (sorry Todd) waffle with strawberry jam, and a banana. I'm riding my 2009 Specialized Tarmac with the new Ultegra 6800 11 speed group set.  I rode a 53/39 11/32 on the back just for this event.  It was like having a big pizza pie on the back wheel!

We drove up the night before and stayed in Minden, NV at the Quality Inn and Suites.  A perfect hotel choice, and they open up breakfast at 3am on the morning of the Death Ride.  Monsoon type weather for the first night.  The morning of the ride was cold, but quickly warmed up as we climbed the East side of Monitor Pass HC.  The peaks would cool us off, and the valleys were slowly heating up during the day.  This is a very well supported ride.  At the top of each pass and at the bottom were rest stops.  Porto potties, real food, sodas, V8's, fruit, and food you could take with you.  There is a lunch spot at the bottom of Ebbett's.  I carried way to much food on me.  One of the blogs that I read before hand really helped me pacing myself and mentally finishing the ride on Carson Pass.  Key point for me was maintaing the 60-70% FTP during the entire ride.  That kept me in check on the climbs.  We passed up hundreds of riders during the ride, and many tried to stay on our wheel or pass us....only to see the ones that didn't know what they were doing burn out and we would catch them.  We also met a few people and talked about getting through the mental challenge of riding through the valley and climbing the 5th and final pass.

The valley's before the climbs were around 5,200 ft elevation and the peaks were from 8,300-8,700 ft.  Monitor Pass and Ebbett's would be climbed both sides, and Carson would be climbed on one side.  If you finished all five passes you would get a 5 pass finishers badge.

I carried one small bottle of Hammer Heed with me, and one water.   I stuffed my jersey pockets with food.  I also was taking Race Caps Supreme every two hours.   We had a cooler with fresh bottles and ice cold Mexican cokes stored in my truck on the way to the final climb of the day on Carson Pass Rd.   That was huge, and a mental victory.  You can see how exhausted we were in the video below.  When you finish the ride on the last pass you are treated to an ice cream and a finishers pin.  The emotions that ran through me when I completed this ride haven't been felt since my daughter Avery was born.  I drank some Recoverite when I got back to the truck, and we had some ice cold Sierra Nevada Torpedo IPA's waiting for us.  That night we treated ourselves to huge hamburgers from Carson Valley Inn Casino (CV Steakhouse) We ate like kings!  Had some DQ for desert and passed out till we woke up.  Time to recover!  

I got an email the same night when we arrived back in town from Todd.  Titled am I crazy to be thinking of doing this ride again.  I responded no not that crazy!!!  But it means you like to suffer and now you want to see if you can suffer with some PR's attached to it.  The day of really hard events and races I always tell myself I'll never do that again.  Somehow I seem to have  short term memory loss when it comes to suffering on rides.  I always sign back up.  The Death Ride however set the bar so high in that suffering category for me.  None of the races that I have done seem to be even close to what I experienced in surviving mentally and physically.  Kind of reminds me about when I went through the drill academy for Oakland Fire Department.  They ran us through the ringer one night during the night drill, and I have still never felt the exhaustion at a real fire, as I did that night.  If you do it again, I'll do it with you.  I won't do this ride by myself.

My next race is The California Firefighter's Olympics Cycling Stage Race July 22, 23, 24th.

Thanks for reading!
Thanks to Race Rim Wheels!

Thanks to Hammer Nutrition!

Thanks to Voler!

Thanks to SJBC Race Team!