I’ve been riding a relatively short time (~2 years) but have logged some very tough rides. This ride, however, is far and away the toughest I’ve experienced. The Alta Alpina 5-pass challenge is the same course as the infamous Death Ride held 3 weeks later, although the passes are ridden in a different order in the 5-pass challenge, which, according to veteran riders I chatted with during the ride, makes it even tougher than the DR. This ride is challenging for any rider in top condition (even the kids!); 135 miles, 5 passes to climb, about 17,000 feet of climbing, all at about 5,000 to 8,400 feet elevation. Even in the best conditions, by the 4th and certainly the 5th climb your legs are spent, and it comes down to you and your pain, and how deeply you are willing to push into it. The 2013 event however, was particularly tough due to one factor outside of our control – HEAT! A record setting heat wave had set up over the western states a couple of days before the event, and organizers and riders where all saying it was one of the hottest events on record. The overall temperature was about 95, and my Garmin registered 102 going up the steepest part of Monitor West – brutal. Starting at 6:30 AM, all was well, cool temperatures, gorgeous early morning sun on the mountains, fresh legs, feeling privileged to be out there. Going up the first pass, Carson, I felt so good I could not resist doing what I always do; chase down and pass everyone I see in front of me. Stupid, stupid, stupid, did I mention stupid?. Although I set some segment benchmark times, I should have been mindful that it was going to be a long, long day with many, many more climbs. Great, fast decent down Carson with some speeds >45 mph, then back to Turtle Rock Park (start/finish) and mile 48 by 9:45. After a quick snack, the push south to what I assumed would be the toughest climb of the day, Ebbetts East. It is a tough climb, they all are, and Ebbetts East is one lane through the middle section with mostly 7 to 10% grades (with some benches to recover a bit). Although I made pretty good time for an old guy, by the top (that never seemed to arrive), already at 70 miles on the day, the body was politely starting to ask whether that might be enough for the day. No such luck, from there we dropped down to the west about 6 miles to Hermit Valley, and the climb to the east back out really began to hurt as the sun was now high and the heat, now in the upper 90’s, began to rob the legs of power, and every bend in the road just brought more uphill pavement into view. Back at the top of Ebbetts, I needed 20 minutes to recover, including a nap on a rock that felt like a featherbed, while the rest stop staff were mercifully handing out ice-water soaked towels to put around burning necks. The decent of Ebbetts East was the best part of the day (especially looking at the poor suffering souls who were just starting up it!). A couple of youngsters passed me coming down at speed toward the base of the steep part - intolerable. I caught, then passed them, and then led a group of four riders flying down the remaining (more gently sloping) 6 miles to the Monitor Pass junction at speeds between 28 and 35 mph – wild. Then came Monitor. It was now about 2:30 PM, and as I turned up the west facing slope, fully exposed to the sun, no shade, the real suffering began. The bottom half of Monitor contains an approximately 3.5 mile stretch of 7 to 10% grade. The Garmin was registering 102 degrees, salt was crystallizing on my jersey, and I realized my legs had nothing left; they were screaming at the brain to stop. Although there is some relief on Monitor West about half way up with a short level bench, it soon turns upwards again with some 11% pitches in the last 3 miles. Monitor West was 8 miles and 75 very painful minutes of wishing my current pedal stroke could be my last one; really, really tough on exhausted legs. One problem I have is my natural cadence on hills. On fresh legs, I have built up to a cadence on 7 to 8% slopes that equates to an average of about 7 to 8 mph. Even on my spent legs, the cadence my legs are accustomed to had me doing about 6.5 mph going up Monitor West. Desperate to drop my heart rate from a steady 170, I tried to slow my cadence and speed but that turned out to be even more painful. Finally, the top of the pass, broad and flat on that road, cool breezes down into the mid 80’s at 8,100 feet (thunderheads were forming at that point), drinks, food, chairs – ecstasy. Although I really had had enough, I had come to do 5 passes, and against my better judgment I got back on the bike and pressed east; the decent of Monitor East. The road dropped 3,000 feet over 10 miles all the way down to the intersection of Route 395 just south of Topaz lake. Although the decent was a blast, and the scenery spectacular, there was also the constant realization that I would have to climb back up every inch of this drop. And that climb, the final climb, was perhaps THE most difficult thing I’ve ever done physically in my life. I was hopeful for the first couple of miles, as my legs seemed ok, and I thought I was getting a second wind. But then the pitch steepened, and there followed a 6 mile stretch of unrelenting 7 to 9% grade. A 10 mile climb with those kinds of grades is itself not that big of a deal, as long as that is the only thing you're doing that day!. But after 4 big climbs and 115 miles, my body was trying its hardest to reject this particular request. The temperature was still about 90, I was sweating profusely, my back was killing me from being stooped forward climbing all day, my heart rate was at least 170 and nothing I could do would lower it, and my 54-year old legs and brain were at war. All I could do was to stare at my tire and use shear will power to beg my legs for one more pedal stroke. Even with all this I was doing 5.5 to 6.0 mph, and I actually passed some kid who used me to pick up his own tempo by pacing behind me. Now all bikers know suffering to various degrees, but this was truly excruciating and went on and on and on non-stop for a solid, endless hour. Each time I looked up all there seemed to be was yet another uphill bend in the road, forever up. Finally, mercifully, the road leveled off somewhat to 2 to 4% on for the last 2 miles of the climb. Even that required my lowest climbing gear at that point. I was practically delirious and swerving back and forth across the road at the slightest lapse in concentration. When I finally got back to the rest stop at the top, I’ve never felt such utter relief at the simple act of sitting down in a chair – ecstasy. After a good ½ hour rest chatting it up with everyone around me in wonderful breezes that dropped down into the 60’s, I descended Monitor West (downhill bliss), and actually did find a second wind tailing some youngster at 25 to 30 mph for a few miles, before the final 1.5 mile, 3% climb to the finish, which to my surprise felt effortless. I finished at about 8:15, there were cowbells and cheers for everyone who rolled in, needless to say, we were all very ready to step off the bike. Finally, despite this drama story of my 5 pass experience, it must be noted that there were many, many riders, including it seemed old women and children, who rode the even tougher 8 pass challenge that day; 200 miles, and 20,000+ feet of climbing, one of the toughest double centuries on the planet no doubt. My guess is they know how to ride smarter.