If there’s one ride that’s worth writing about this year, it is the Greylock Century. It’s named after the highest mountain in Massachusetts – Mount Greylock – at 3000+ ft above sea level. Of course the route includes climbing up Mt Greylock. But this ride is so much more than just that climb. Both physical and mental challenges filled the entire ride.
The start of the route is in Dalton, a small town in the Berkshires. I booked a hotel suite at Berkshire Mountain Lodge, which is fantastic. There’re even two DC fast chargers for EVs at the hotel. I arrived first, after a stop at Hot Tubes to pick up the repaired carbon frame for another bike. It was an over 5 hour drive for me that day, and I was tired. I also felt my stomach was upset. And I was right.
Before my cycling buddy Zee arrived around 9:30pm, I went out for dinner at a Pho place. I didn’t expect much from an Asian restaurant in a small rural town. It was ok. I bought some Pepto for my upset stomach, but it didn’t really help much. I started having diarrhea throughout the night. I offered to sleep on the sleeper couch, and Zee stayed in the bedroom. I had a horrible night of sleep. The sleeper mattress was so rough I felt like I was sleeping directly on the springs. I had to wrap myself with the blanket to have a bit more cushion. And of course, I woke up several times to use the toilet. My sleep score that night was 30 out of 100.
The next morning, I needed to decide if I wanted to start the ride or just DNS (Did Not Start). I was leaning onto just giving up, but Zee kinda convinced me at least starting. And my stomach kinda settled a bit. And I felt like I already drove that far, and I needed at least to try my best. Though I didn’t finish my morning coffee or breakfast, and the overall energy level was just really low.
By the time we arrived at the start, it was lively. There were about 60-70 riders signed up for the century. Everyone seemed to be in a good spirit. I checked in and got ready. I didn’t forget to use the bathroom (oh yeah I should mention, it was real fun to go potty with a cycling kit on) before starting. We rolled out with a motorcycle leading. It did feel like a peloton, and Zee and I were chatting happily.
The first few miles rolling out of town was flat and even a bit downhill, so I felt OK. I even managed to get up front. It is always a good idea to stay up front in a big group to minimize the risk of being caught in someone’s crash. But the first hill came in about 4 miles from the start, and it was already pretty steep at 8-10%. I managed to keep up with Zee for that one. But the rolling hills after that got really exhausting for me, and Zee went up the road with the fast group, and I stayed behind.
By then I already felt the impact of the bad night of sleep and the food poisoning. I didn’t have the strength to climb and my legs were just not willing to do any work. My heart rate went up to 170 on these little hills. I figured I’d ride to the first rest stop at mile 27 and see what I should do. I managed to keep up with a moderate paced group for the most of it and it was actually fun. But they dropped me on a steep gravel section. After that, I was on my own for the whole day.
There were some long descends before the first rest stop, and I felt pretty good arriving there. I caught up with the group I was riding with, but they left before I finished my break. At that time, I decided I was gonna just ride at my own pace, and take time. The goal was to just finish the ride. However there was no porta-potty at the first aid station. I had some water, ate some snacks and went on my way. A lady came by and asked me, did you ride last year and crash? I said, no, this is my first time, and I’m having a bad day and not sure if I’d finish. She said, just believe you can, and you will. That encouraged me a lot, and made me mentally stronger.
The second rest stop wasn’t too far out, but there was a long, moderate grade climb before that. I managed to feel not bad after that climb, again, going at my own pace. The second aid station has a potter potty, so I had some fun using the toilet while in a cycling kit. I knew nothing about what lay ahead, and left with a smile on my face.
It was brutal – Kimberly Hill. There was a little hill about 5-8% right after the aid station, but turning right onto the Kimberly Hill was another thing. The road shoots straight up, and I was still so naive that I didn’t know how much it took to climb up that thing. I tried staying up, going at it, breathing so hard. I didn’t have a plan for that hill, and I should. I should’ve just gone zig zagging that hill from the beginning, and metering my effort. My head unit showed 24% grade. I was like, fuck, I am going to blow up. I was breathing so hard that I was like a fish gasping for air out of water. I didn’t think I could take it any more, so I stopped at the flatter section (maybe only less than 10 ft, but enough for me to stop) and tried to take a break.
I started coughing hard as soon as I stopped. My throat got irritated a lot from breathing too hard. It had never happened to me before. At that moment, I thought, my ride today was over. A pick up truck driver came by and asked if I were OK. I said yes, I just needed a break. He drove away, and I immediately regretted looking at him driving further. I should’ve asked for a ride.
After 10 mins or so, I decided, enough is enough. I turned around and descended back into the 2nd aid station. The guys there were super nice, and they were kinda surprised to see me there. I could either ride back, or ask for a ride. But there was no easy way to ride back at that point. I would have to climb back up every descent. So I told them I wanted a ride back. The guy tried to find help right away, but there was no cellular coverage. But another guy came around and told me to wait for 4 more riders to stop here and he could take me back. So I waited there and had some cola. While I was waiting, a big muscular guy came around, and he went on his way after having water and snacks.
I waited for about 25 minutes, and there was no one coming. I started feeling ok-ish. In just a few minutes, I decided to give it a try again. I’d walk up the steep part that I already rode, and started riding from there, so I can still claim I rode the whole way while saving my effort. The guys gave me a lot of encouragement, and told me they’d be on the course and they’d check on me. So I resumed my journey.
Even walking up that section made my legs sore. I clipped in where I stopped, and started zig zagging my way up. It was by no means flatter than the steep section I rode, but knowing what I was getting into and having a plan to meter my effort helped a lot. I didn’t blow up and got up the hill. It was still very hard, and my legs still hurt from that. But it was mostly descending now to the next aid station, except one very long (1.5 miles maybe) but moderate grade (6-10%) climb. I caught up with the big muscular guy on that climb. I could see he was struggling approaching him from behind. It was a bad day for me on the bike, but I could still climb up that moderate hill with a moderate effort, meaning I could maintain a mid-zone 2 power for a while. But he was properly struggling. He was riding so slow on this moderate hill. While I was passing him, I said hi, and I decided to stay with him on this hill to the top. We chatted a bit about this ride. I told him the story at Kimberly Hill. He told me he walked up that section – no shame on that really. I didn’t know if he was bonking or his legs were empty. He did a coastal century ride before from Newport to Cape Cod and he felt really good, so he signed up for this ride. I was laughing so hard – this ride is a completely different monster. He must have regretted it. He wasn’t enjoying it at all. I said, you’re really at a disadvantage here because you’re so muscular (in a positive way). I told him I was only pushing up 137 lbs uphill. He was like, Holy fuck, I am 225 lbs. LOL. One of the guys at the previous aid stations drove by us and asked if we were doing okay. We both said yes. I didn’t think he was telling the truth.
He didn’t have a bike computer, so I told him we were almost done with the steepish part. I think that encouraged him to keep going for a while. We had actually about half a mile to go. But he did need some encouragement. When I told him we were almost there, he blew up. He yelled, you said that a mile ago! Haha. Well. This time was real. But he already made up his mind so he stopped, took off his shoes, and started walking. I turned around trying to comfort him a bit, but he was really empty, and frustrated. I understood that. So I said goodbye and good luck, he thanked me for my companionship, and I was on my way.
The descent into North Adams was super fun on Mohawk Trail. The big hairpin turn with the fantastic view of the mountains was spectacular on the bike. But happiness didn’t last long because a few miles into the town, we were at the bottom of Mt Greylock – the crown jewel of this ride. There was the aid station #3 there. I was the only one. I talked a bit with the super friendly guys there, and took up their suggestion to keep half a bottle of water to spray on my head when it got hot, which turned out to be a fantastic idea. No wonder all pros do that on the grand tours.
Just when I was leaving, the muscular guy arrived and he asked for a shortcut to go back. He was gonna give up on Mt Greylock. I could see he was having a way worse day than me.
Mt Greylock Climb
The first part of the climb was really steep at 15%. I could deal with that and zig zag my way up after the long descent and some rest at the aid station. The road condition was horrible though. I am glad we didn’t have to descend down on that side. Once I turned onto Notch Road, the condition got much better, and the grade started getting a bit moderate at around 8-12%. That was consistent all the way up to Mt Greylock for about 5-6 miles. There were a few flat-ish sections to ease up my effort and maybe get out of the saddle to rest my butt. But with 3 miles to go, my butt really started hurting. I caught up with two riders around there, and I solo’ed my way up to the top.
I did my choir at the aid station at the top, and did the acrobat of using the toilet in a cycling kit. I saw the guy who was at aid station 2 where I almost gave up. And he was really glad to see me there because I didn’t give up. He gave me a fist bump which made me super happy. Then I saw these two riders. They were using flat pedals! They were so brave. They must have wasted so much energy during the day. The white girl can speak Mandarin which really surprised me. What was even more surprising was that I could actually understand 90% of her mandarin!
I got a picture of me holding up my bike in front of the tower, and started my descent. Two other riders (that were not on the century ride) asked me how my century was going. I said, brutal. They laughed, said, at least you had a smile on your face, and that’s a good thing. That was great to hear.
The descend
The descent is on the south side of the mountain which is less steeper, and road conditions are pristine. It was super fun descending. However, I saw a crowd of motorcycle riders on the road at a corner, and I looked around trying to figure out what was happening. Two riders who were riding flat pedals were at the side of the road in the woods, with the girl on the phone and the guy laying on the ground. I could clearly see some blood on his face and his legs, with his bike throwing by his side. Apparently he got into a crash while descending Mt Greylock, and it was confirmed by one of the bikers, who also explained to me that the girl was on the phone with 911, and the guy seemed to be conscious.
What happened next was beyond my imagination. 911 was going to send an ambulance for the guy, and the girl said, could you please wait for a few minutes before we decided if we wanted an ambulance. The 911 operator insisted on sending an ambulance, because it is their job to put the safety of that guy first. The girl went on and covered the phone saying, we don’t want to spend money on an ambulance if there’s a free way to do so because it would be so expensive. I think they are students at the nearby college in Williamstown, so they must not have very good health insurance. I was thinking, Oh yeah that is American healthcare in a nutshell. I told them the guys at the aid station on Greylock were leaving and they might stop here. The girl called the ride support, and I think they’d come and get them. So I left and went on my way.
At the bottom of the mountain, I saw an ambulance going up followed by a police car. I guess they eventually accepted it. Later I learnt at the next aid station that the ride support found there was a crack on the guy’s helmet, so they had to get a medical professional to check on him, but he turned out to be okay.
The ride to the next aid station (No. 5) involved a few climbs which were very exhausting, especially after climbing up Greylock. But I knew I was getting closer to the finish, and the rest of the route would be mostly downhill (on average…). One thing this ride was doing great was the ice pops at the later aid stations. It felt so good to have one when the weather was hot. I suggest every century ride in the summer provides those.
The final torture
I didn’t stop long at aid stations #5, I really just wanted to get this ride done. But what came next was cruel. I heard that at aid station #2, but I didn’t get a sense of how horrible it would be. But here it is: At mile 90, after you have climbed 10000 ft, the route throws you a 3 mile long climb, with the first 2 miles averaging 10-12% constantly with sections 20%. I learnt my lesson on Kimberly Hill, so I was metering my effort, but the long climb at mile 90 was just brutal. Even more brutal than the Greylock in my opinion. It was completely a suffer fest for the first 2 miles, and I was just hanging on for the last mile. The road condition was also horrible for the steepest part. Every pothole on the road wastes your energy, shakes your bones, and hurts you more.
The final aid stations #6 came right after the descent from the big, cruel climb, and it was only 15 miles away. I filled up my water bottle and went on my mission to get back. It was mostly descending and flat for sure, but everything started hurting on my body. I didn’t know why. They just suddenly started hurting left right and center, including some places that never hurt before on my rides. But the only choice for me was to push on. I got closer and closer to the town, and I turned onto the street we used to leave, and finally, I turned into the parking lot where everything started for the day. There were still a bunch of cars there and some riders changing and hanging out. I was definitely exhausted and empty. I don’t think I’ve ever been that tired and empty before.
I took my time to change. Luckily there was a nice bathroom in the building, so I could change my cycling kit out and into regular, civilian clothes. I barely had energy to put my bike in the car. My mind wasn’t working very well, so I had to double check that I didn’t leave anything out. I was worried about the 2.5 hours drive back to Boston, which would be dangerous if I was that tired.
Zee already left and was on his way back to Boston. I went on my way home soon. I even got sleepy before I reached MassPike, but the assisted driving on the Taycan was doing a fantastic job on the highway, so I only had to use my limited energy to pay attention to the road and cars, not doing the driving itself. Surprisingly I was awake most of the drive, and didn’t even feel sleepy. When I got home, I went directly inside, leaving my bike and bags in the car. I would deal with those the next day, but Josh brought them in the house for me.
I signed up for this ride with excitement to finally conquer the highest mountain in Massachusetts, but reality threw me a curve ball. I was the last few ones to finish the ride, but I am proud that I didn’t give up and I rode every inch and climbed every foot of this route. When I decided to try for a second time at aid station #2, I told myself that I’d regret it badly if I gave up easily. And I still think that’ll be true. This ride, together with the sickness, pushed me to a new limit, and I’m glad to find where it was. The riders I talked to, the ride support guys, and everyone who even tried this ride are all valuable in my memories. The guy at aid station #2 said, if you can finish this ride, you can do anything. And I agree.
Would I do the same ride if I were that sick? Maybe not.
Would I do this ride again when I’m feeling great? Maybe, maybe not.
Would I recommend this ride? Yes, when you feel good about yourself.
Would I recommend the climb up Mt Greylock? Absolutely. It is challenging, but not too bad, and the view at the summit, and the photo op with the tower, and the feel of achievements are definitely worth it.
See you on another ride!
