Cougar Mountain Hill Climb Race Report (Climb4Cancer)

I opened my big mouth and tried to recruit JFT2 members to ride this race and therefore forced myself to partake. That was not the best idea I’ve had over the past year. Since June 24^th I had only ridden twice and I had run once. That is nearly 6 weeks without any real effort.

Well, I had also scheduled a 45 mile backpacking trip the week before the race. The problem there became twofold. First, we tend to put down a ton of hooch (good scotch) while out on these trips and thus become very lethargic by the end of the trip. Second, I was carrying a very heavy pack over poor terrain and I ended up with some nasty little blisters on both of my heels and my right foot went partially numb. That’s enough for my intro and excuses as to why I didn’t catch Lang this year :-)

I arrived at the race very early and with a good breakfast of eggs, oatmeal, banana and two cups of coffee. We (Savannah volunteered) got there early enough that I picked up a pumpkin scone from SB. I intended to warm up for 30 minutes, but this led to that and I only got in about 15 minutes prior to getting into line. Mark, Shannon, and Jill were at the start line too.

I started off pretty good and hit the first steep part of the ride standing for about 30 seconds. I then decided to sit and focus on catching the person in front of me. That didn’t take long because at the first corner he shifted and lost his chain into the rear spokes. He swerved to the left just as I was passing so we nearly missed a collision. Good thing this wasn’t a high speed race. I was definitely sucking wind, but I figured that I’d only suffer for about 15 minutes. I continued to push, but I didn’t feel that my strength was being maintained…I was slowing down. At the steepest part of the climb I looked back and I could see that the rider who started a minute back from me was closing in. I couldn’t muster any more power and if I could’ve, I wouldn’t have made that last hill.

I backed off a little after cresting the first section of the climb and got my HR down to 178. I turned onto the last straight section and decided to push a little harder. As I neared the top, I heard the inevitable…the person who would pass me. He went by me with out lookin’ back and he did it fast. This guy saved something for the end and used it all up. I got closer to the top and there was Savannah screaming out numbers. “Number 25!” “Go Daddy!” That was great. I crossed the line with an average HR of 181 in a time of 14:33. I’m happy with the results and I’ll be happier next year when I can keep my fitness and break the 14 minute mark.

This website is dedicated to the sport of triathlon, particularly in the Pacific Northwest. Jill Fry is a triathlon coach and an athlete who competes in triathlons ranging from Sprint Distance to Ironman. Jill and many of her athletes and friends have also formed a team, Team JFT². Information on Jill's coaching services can be found under Coaching Services & Info. On this site you will also find a large number of personal race reports, as well as event reports, with many event-specific photos.