Revelstoke Hill Climb

I did this race last year so I thought I would give a few of my opinions and comments for anyone who is planning to do it this year. Remember that these comment are from last year and the organizers may make some changes to this year.

BRING LOTS OF WARM CLOTHING! Last year I think the race started around 8 a.m. so warming up at 7 a.m. during the beginning of September in Revelstoke can be very cool. I would highly recommend using a trainer for warm up. I never had one last year so going up hill for warm up was fine but I froze coming back down. Needless to say I didn't fell like I was warmed up before I started the race.

BRING LOTS OF WARM CLOTHING FOR THE TOP! The sun was shinning at the finish but it was very cold. I was soaking wet and used a towel to dry off before changing into full winter gear. Bring a tuque, gloves, down jacket, etc. They had some warm chili last year so plan to hang around for a while and enjoy the beautiful alpine setting.

The road was closed to traffic during the race except for vehicles that were going to be bringing riders down. My wife was allowed to drive to the top after telling the organizers that she would be driving me back down. No riders were allowed to ride their bikes down the climb. If you are on your own there were a couple vehicles bringing your warm cloths to the top and shuttling you and your gear back down.

The race is not a mass start but rather an individual TT with riders starting every minute (?). There were a lot of recreational riders on all kinds of different bikes. I would recommend requesting a start time near the end so you are going up with other racers of similar ability. My start time was closer to the front which makes it hard to judge how I was doing in relation to the faster riders. Not that it should matter but I found it a little misleading by passing so many riders on mountain bikes, etc., and then realizing my time wasn't as good as I hoped.

Overall the climb itself is not nearly as steep as Silver Start but much longer and consistent. It's sort of like riding a flat TT course were you get into a rhythm and stay consistent. There are no real steep sections nor is there any down hill recovery time.

If you have visited Mt. Revelstoke park you will know how you have to park near the top and then take a shuttle bus or hike up the last section of road to the summit. Remember when racing this course that the race ends at the true summit! Not the parking lot! There were a few riders that thought the race was over when they reached the parking lot only to find the last steepest part of the race was yet to be conquered. This last section is very hard. Once leaving the last parking lot the road is smooth, narrow and STEEP! This is definitely the highlight of the whole climb. Although I was dazed and confused during this part of the race I did notice on the way down just how beautiful this last section of the climb is.

This event was well organized but still quit laid back. I would encourage anyone that is interested to sign up. Its not some hard core race but rather caters to a broad range of riders from slow to fast. Later in the afternoon we all met at a local pub for lunch and received our free T-shits, lots of draw prizes and the award ceremony's. Definitely a must do!