I've concluded that rowing and cycling have many things in common. Of course they are both endurance sports, that favor less the sprinters and more the ones that can just keep going and going. While the motions are different in each sport, they both operate largely in two planes. And finally, of relevance to this climb, I get through tough pieces by counting off strokes and pedal cycles. When I see a big hill with an 18% grade, I tell myself, well its probably 150 pedals and I will be to the top, or the next curve. Cycling a big mountain like Mauna Kea is all about breaking it into little pieces, otherwise you become overwhelmed.
The visitor's center, at 9,000 feet, is above the clouds. Its a strange feeling to be so high, like you are cycling on top of the world. You look down and watch the clouds go by. Kind of like when you were a kid and laid down on your back, looking up, just here you only need to turn your head right or left.
The last stretch is 4.5 miles of gravel, which I will walk with my bike, then 3.5 miles of paved road. I'll probably walk a little and then pedal as much as I can. The lack of oxygen makes this an amazingly hard thing to do.
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