Shanghai'd

As many of you may know already, we are planning a trip to Tibet. This will be our last harrah in China, a kind of go out with a bang, save the best for last, final chance to see something majestic that is at our doorstep right now. Tibet recently re-opened to tourists. As the torch relay went up Everest, and China wasn't taking any chances and it was closed for months. We were a bit nervous for a while, but now we are almost sure we will be making the trip this October.

We will be joining a tour group for this one. We signed up for a 3-week trip, starting in Lhasa, and mountain biking over the Tibetan Plateau up to Everest base camp, descending into and ending in Kathmandu, Nepal. It will be 16 days on the bike, averaging 65km/day, camping out along the Friendship highway, with time at each end in the cities (in hotels with beds!). See below for the altitude map:


Yes, those altitudes are in meters. (1m=3.25ft) Riding starts on day 6. Yes, this is our idea of fun - check out the downhills on the last few days! Needless to say, we are going to need to do some training to be ready for this one. Now let me show an altitude map of Shanghai:

0m _____________________________________

Yes, that is also in meters. But it could be feet, or inches. Shanghai is at sea level. Pudong, where we live, is sinking. How, you ask, can we train to ride in the Himalayan Mountains, at altitude, in arid desert conditions of the Tibetan Plateau, for October temperatures (close to freezing at night) this summer? Shanghai is flat as a pancake, at sea level, 90+% humidity, and 85 degrees at 6am through September. This is the challenge. The one point that will feel will be comparable is the oxygen level; Tibet will have oxygen deprivation due to altitude, in Shanghai we get it through pollution.

We are getting in a lot of saddle time, riding to and from work, and using weekends and at least one morning during the week to get in some extra kms. At least we won't be saddle sore. The biggest lacking component will be the hill training, but I think we figured out something that might help us prepare, and we tried it this morning.

Simulated Hill Training in Shanghai, How to:
1. Wait for a Typhoon to strike Taiwan. The winds will pick up.
2. Check a flag or laundry hanging from neighboring apartment to confirm the direction of the wind. Most likely it will be coming from the south.
3. Head south. Preferably a road with a lot of overpasses or bridges (provide a few inclines).
4. You are now riding "up hill". Turn around. "Down hill".

We trained in today's typhoon. Not only the the unfortunate weather make for good training, it also makes for very clear skies. While Taiwan was getting walloped, our skies were pollution-free, with big puffy clouds. The humidity dropped. Last night's full moon was so bright, crisp and clear, it rivaled the sun's showing most days (sad, but true). It's now Saturday afternoon, and while the wind remains, the clear skies are gone. It's starting to sprinkle, and the Typhoon Kalmaegi will hit us soon. We don't expect more than some wind and rain. Hopefully nothing to prevent us from riding Monday :-)