Words by Marco Merati
Northern Italy has experienced record cold this winter! My average temperatures on my last few rides averaged out at very low numbers – I am sick of seeing temperatures as low as -7 degC on my EleMNT BOLT display!
As I am feeling fairly fit right now, I thought…
“Why not give Virtual Everesting a try?”
Let me elaborate: Virtual Everesting works just like outdoor Everesting: simply pick any hill anywhere around the globe and ride repeats of it until reaching 8,848 meters (29,028 feet – the equivalent height of Mt Everest) with KICKR Smart Trainer or KICKR CLIMB on Zwift – much like traditional Everesting does outdoors! The difference being this journey takes place indoors rather than outdoors!
An Everesting attempt can take many forms; some prefer doing it with friends; some seek sponsors; while still others organize fantastic content or film projects around it. Though I consider them all noble causes, I decided to go it alone.
“Sit back, relax and ride solo – higher and longer than you ever imagined – for no other purpose but your own enjoyment and pain relief. No distractions from behind-the-scenes; only you, your bike and an endless journey towards reaching the top of that hill.”
Last night I meticulously prepared my pain cave. Starting off by performing a KICKR “spindown”, and connecting my CLIMB, which made virtual climbing feel as real and provided accurate data and ride feel as on real pavement climbs.
At 6 AM I set off for my Virtual Everesting attempt. For my Virtual Everesting ride I chose Alpe du Zwift as it emulates one of the world’s most famed climbs – Alpe d’Huez! Alpe du Zwift features 12 kms with an average gradient of 8.5% for elevation gain totalling 1036 meters! And with 22 iconic switchbacks acting as reminders that every hilltop brings challenges.
Friends asked why I wanted to start this attempt; unfortunately I could never give an adequate response because there are no easy answers for me. Climbing mountains on my bike comes naturally to me and is one of the best indicators as to if I am truly “real climber” capable of undertaking such efforts.
After I began, the initial climb proved challenging; my warmup wasn’t sufficient and my legs felt cold with heart rate sky high. Unfortunately, Alpe is notoriously steep at its initial sections with gradients reaching 10% in many sections; thus making a gradual approach necessary in order to warm my legs while controlling heartbeat and get my heart under control.
As I made my initial ascent, numerous thoughts and doubts flooded into my head:
Are You Feeling Confused and Afraid of Alpe du Zwift Climb? —
mes mes I am questioning if my abilities will allow me to handle this course.” “Am I Going To Have Trouble To Keep Climbing Alpe Du Zwift Climb?” I Have some Muscle Pain-What Should I do Today!
Once I focus on climbing in my usual way, time begins flying by quickly and repetitive ascents become effortless. My legs become efficient at moving upwards without hesitation or breath control issues and no doubts arise about my attempt; I am in my zone!
Nutrition and hydration were of utmost importance on my Alpe journey, since each climb required exertion that included ingestion of roughly 750ml water/minerals per climb ascent. My descent after each ascent provided an opportunity to recharge with fuel before my next effort began – also providing time to assess how I had felt and whether any adjustments are required before embarking again on another ascent.
Time slips away quickly as ascends are ticked off effortlessly, prompting feelings of excitement to quickly dissipate into doubts:
How long am I expected to live?”
At that precise moment, I started realizing the challenges involved with virtual Everesting. An overwhelming feeling came over me of feeling lonely in my pain cave – like being trapped inside an underground tunnel that leads nowhere and still not having seen light at its end.
“Imagine you’re climbing toward a finish, yet all that can be seen ahead is darkness… No lights at the end, no cars to meet on your journey home from school, no people you care for in town and no trees or noise from city streets… All is quiet despite your best efforts…”
“NONE!”
But my legs still felt good and with encouragement from fellow Zwift riders I managed to put any negative thoughts behind me and keep progressing toward 8,848 meters – my wife Selene brought some welcome support in form of coffee for added motivation as we returned into that tunnel once more for my final two climbs up Alpe d’Huez.
Close my eyes, it is pitch black around, I can feel my breath and hear every heartbeat; feel the movement of my legs up and down in smooth cadence; track every drop of sweat rolling off my forehead; sense the flow of the road underneath me with my bike; experience satisfaction upon reaching 8,848 meters… and so the journey continues until my next ascent! Success.
