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Cycle to the Sun Race (Haleakala), Advice Sought
Last Post 07/04/2014 11:27 PM by Mike Madvax. 4 Replies.
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Dave Stohler

Posts:13

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06/26/2014 07:36 PM
Has anyone done the Cycle to the Sun race up Halekala on Maui?  I'm planning on doing it in 2 days, would like input on how the race typically unfolds.  I've ridden Haleakala before, did the climb on a crap rental in a tad under 4 hours.  Stopped briefly a couple times for maybe 10 minutes and was in a fairly serious storm from around 7k feet to the top.  Also wasn't too fit.  This time I brought a good race bike, am fit/light as it's in the middle of my race season and I figure the times will be quicker riding in group(s).  Then again, I'm 10 years older (47)...

My plan is to try and line up in front, stay with a reasonable lead group on Baldwin to Makawao, then let the seriously fast guys go.  I figure I'll save a lot of time not fighting through 200 people if I follow this plan, plus gain serious time drafting a fast group.  After that, I think I'm going to try and ride totally within myself and attach on to a reasonable paced group as I'm not a pure climber and haven't trained for anything this long (just my normal 50-75 mile rides with maybe 6k climbing).  Figure if I go slower than necessary I can always add speed in the last third but if I go out too hard the last 45 minutes could be a mess.

Anyhow, I'd love to hear from anyone who's done the race or ridden the climb in around 3.5 hours (my vague target). 

Aloha!
longslowdistance

Posts:2881

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06/26/2014 08:57 PM
Bump
No advice from me but thanks for livin' the dream. Please provide a ride report!
KootnaMoots

Posts:47

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06/27/2014 11:05 AM
Told my wife about your ride and she says start at the top. She did that and there was no problem. Have a great ride
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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06/27/2014 11:53 AM
Your plan is sound; this is how I've approached similar events. Much easier to find the right group starting from front than to have to fight your way to that group.

One potential downside is that if you start with a really fast group and then have to let that group go, you may be riding some considerable time by yourself until the next group shows depending on how far apart they are. Two years ago I spent 1/2 hr riding by myself in local Pacific Populaire after getting shelled from first group in crosswinds, before the next group showed. That was a big price to pay for a brief moment of weakness.
madvax

Posts:50

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07/04/2014 11:27 PM
I did this race last Saturday (June 28th) and it was really fun. The weather was picture perfect and the views during the race were breath taking. My time was 4:18 to summit, but I think I started out a bit too slow. It definitely would have helped if I had caught a group of faster riders.

If you ever get a chance to do this race, don't hesitate to go. The vacation in Maui was wonderful, the biking was great, and the race was the topping on the cake!

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