Cycling 2020 - The Year of Te Mata Peak

 

Cycling 2020 - The Year of Te Mata Peak

Jason Kelly

My cycling plan for 2020 was to target around 300 complete Te Mata Peak climbs for the year. With the Gentle Annie (Taihape – Hastings) ride scheduled for late March and the National Cycling Championships soon afterwards, the training plan to start the year was to work towards a peak of Te Mata Peaks before the Gentle Annie and then ease off for the Nationals and the rest of the year.

The cycling year started typically enough for me with an early morning ride from Omarama on 1^st January with the first Te Mata Peak climbs not recorded until 14^th January. The number of Te Mata Peak climbs slowly increased with a peak of six in one day being recorded in late February and early March.

However, once COVID19 hit New Zealand, this saw events postponed and the imposition of a Level 4 lockdown in late March. As such, the original plan was abandoned and Te Mata Peak climbs continued almost daily. With the lockdown rules and guidelines being literally made up as lockdown progressed, riding was limited in area and ultimately the specified maximum distance advised as 10km from home. This distance easily encompassed the top of Te Mata Peak so repeats were in order to get time and distance.

I had no specific goals in mind but with only work and cycling to fill my days, plenty of time to think. It soon became a daily game to pick a Darwin Award winner for the animal(s), person or people mostly likely to remove themselves from the gene pool due to being total oblivious to everything around them and walking randomly in front of cars and bikes.

The words from Les Miserables also came to mind and a re-worked version of the prologue drafted.

COVID19 NZ - Work Song Lyrics (to tune of - Les Misérables - Original London Cast - Prologue Work Song )
Locked down, locked down	Citizens
In your family bubble	Yes, it means we're free.
Locked down, locked down
In your family bubble	Jacinda
	No! It means you get
1st New Zealander	Your limited ticket-of-leave
The mind is strong	You are a kiwi.
It's cosy in our bubble
	Citizens
Locked down, locked down	We've done no wrong
there's four weeks to go
	Jacinda
2nd New Zealander	You stockpiled from the supermarkets
I've done no wrong
Sweet Jacinda, hear my prayer	Citizens
	We bought all the flour
Locked down, locked down	We were close to running out
Sweet Jacinda doesn't care	And we were hungry
3rd New Zealander	Jacinda
I know she'll wait	You will go hungry again
I know that she'll be true	Unless you learn the meaning of the levels.
Locked down, locked down	Citizens
The government's forgotten you	I know the meaning of those 33 days
	A slave of the levels.
4th New Zealander
When I get free	Jacinda
You won't see me	Twenty eight days for a start
'Ere for dust	The rest because we could
	Yes, fellow kiwis.
Locked down, locked down
Don't look 'em in the eye.	Citizens
	We are New Zealanders
5th New Zealander
How long, O Jacinda	Jacinda
Before you let me free?	And I am Jacinda
	Do not forget my name
Locked down, locked down	Do not forget me
You'll always be a kiwi	Citizens
Locked down, locked down
You're standing in your bubble.	Locked down, locked down
	You'll always be a kiwi
Jacinda	Locked down, locked down
Now bring me the citizens	You're standing in your bubble.
Your time is up
And your Level 3 has begun
You know what that means.

Other means to keep my mind occupied while riding were to name the number of climbs – 3 times was Triple Peaks, 4 times a Quadrapeak, 5 times a COVID, 6 times a Grand COVID, 7 times an ANZAC Special (being 2 + 5 = 7, first done on ANZAC Day) and 8 times a Double Quadrapeak.

While the news media was focused on flattening the COVID19 curve, my attention turned to my Te Mata Peak cumulative climb curve. With near ideal riding conditions for most of the Level 4 and subsequent Level 3 lockdown, this ended up being as below.

Over the seven week period, 246 Te Mata Peak climbs were completed with the maximum being 10 on one day. With the total number of climbs being substantially more than planned, the possibilities for a huge total for the year were wide open. However, I did not want to set an unrealistic target and so just planned to see what happened. 

Once lockdown was over, events were rescheduled with the Nationals in mid-July and the Gentle Annie in late November. As such, Te Mata Peak climbing was reduced in preparation for the Nationals. The total Te Mata Peak climbs recorded for the year totaled 486 prior to the July Nationals held from Waipukurau.

Held in wet and cool conditions, the road race at the Nationals saw me knocked off and out in the final sprint. This resulted in me being battered, bruised and unable to ride for a few weeks. As such, the Te Mata Peak tally did not move again until August and finally reached the 500 mark for the year on the 22^nd August. 

Having had time to consider options and plans for the rest of the year, I decided to ride the Gentle Annie (see The “Not so Gentle Annie” – Tandem style http://jasonscyclingstories.blogspot.com/2020/12/2020-gentle-annie-cycle-ride-from.html) on a tandem with fellow glider pilot Abbey Delore and look to complete a total of 732 peak climbs for the year – being an average of two climbs per day as 2020 was a leap year A further goal was that if my injuries recovered well enough, to complete an outdoor Everest climb (8,848 metres of climbing in one ride on one hill) to complement my 2018 virtual Everest climb completed on Zwift.

By the time of the Gentle Annie, I had surpassed my base goal of 732 peak climbs and an Everest challenge seemed achievable. As such, I reset my schedule to include a day of 28 Te Mata Peak climbs (Everest 10,000m+ challenge) and to reach a total of 932 climbs for the year – being a neat 200 over the initial 732 targeted.

Thursday 17^th December was chosen as the Everest 10,000m+ day (see Everest 10,000m+ challenge - http://jasonscyclingstories.blogspot.com/2020/12/everest-10000m-challenge.html) and 28 Te Mata Peak climbs completed to take the yearly total to over 900. The Strava profile is below.

Peak climbing for the year was completed on Boxing Day as I left that evening to go to Omarama. The final tally for the year was 932 Te Mata Peak climbs as targeted.

The graph clearly shows a slow start, the COVID19 lockdown period, the reduction towards the Nationals then some flat lining while I could not ride before picking up again with a near vertical spike on the Everest 10,000m+ day and a gentle arc to finish the year.

 

Looking at the numbers for the year:

a. Total days Te Mata Peak climbed during the year: 274 out of 366 (74.9%)

b. Average climbs per day Te Mata Peak climbed: 3.4

c. Maximum number of Te Mata Peak climbs in a Monday – Sunday week: 46

d. Maximum number of Te Mata Peak climbs in a rolling seven day week: 52

e. Maximum number of Te Mata Peak climbs in a calendar month: 157

f. Total vertical climbing on Te Mata Peak: 322,472m

g. Maximum number of Te Mata Peak climbs in one day: 28 (Everest 10,000m+ day)