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Tips for riding up Mount Teide?

Hey all, I'm planning to ride up Mount Teide in Tenerrife next month from Pueto de La Cruz. (28 miles up, 7k ft climb). Any tips from anyone else who's done it? 

  • ways of training in advance (in the UK)? What, how often, how hard?
  • clothing to wear (how to handle potential large swings in temp.)?
  • food at the top, around the cable car?

 

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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22 comments

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martinsynapse | 2 years ago
6 likes

Hey folks, I just wanted to loop back and say THANK YOU for all the great tips here. 

I successfully completed the 28 mile climb up (and then down) from Puerto de la Cruz to the base of Teide thanks to all of your advice. 3h 42 mins to the peak at 2300m, about 90ish minutes of downhill to the sea after.

What was this like?

It's flipping amazing! Beach > town > pine forest > volcanic Grand Canyon-scape & back.  

Lunar volcanic crater in full sun 🤯. Down hill through the pine woods with clouds blowing across the road.

28 miles of nothing but up was quite something; flow state down through the curves. It's never very steep, but just moderately hard for a very long time - and that can get you in different ways.

Surface wise, once you get out of the two main towns by the coast, the road through the forest and up into the old crater (see photo below) is incredible. Smooth and brand new. Getting next to no rain has its advantages I guess!

Packing

In terms of packing, based on your tips I went as light as possible and brought:

  • water + camelback: it's long, you'll be thirsty

  • lightweight jacket: big temp swings are expected

  • shorts for the lower climbs with leg warmers: as above

  • gloves

  • clear glasses

  • gels

  • small knogg blinder rear light: pretty useful in the fog section.

  • iPhone Quad lock (essential for directions out of the town)

In the end I didn't use the leg warmers but got quite close to needing to down hill in the 10 mile forest section: my friend covered his legs.

Tactics

If I was to summarise the advice here, all these resonated:

  • "It's hot going up but cold at the top"
    • actually for us, it was cold in the middle (forest) with actual fog/clouds, but really sunny once we got out of the trees. But the point stands: you could need a wide range of clothes for this. from 20C to zero + rain/fog.
  • "Take calories in"
    • I consumed a whole bunch of gels on the climb
  • "Hydrate"
    • I only took 1l with me on the up, but was able to fill en route. It wasn't that hot, but the exercise demands it.
  • "Pace: go easy early on"
    • The steepest parts (~7%) are in the first 8 miles, so this was great advice.

Advice to anyone else doing this

While I've done climbs with 20-25% grades in the UK, I think it speaks to the quality of cyclists here when some of them said "it's not that hard, it's just very long." That is true, but 28 miles and 8k ft elevation gain is NO JOKE.

I cycled 6 times a week in preparation, and did 2 interval sessions of an hour on 10% climbs for 12 weeks and still had full cramps in the last 25 metres and again shortly after lunch. Nasty - much much harder than the 104 mile day I did in the UK or loops I have done in the Lakes or Great Dun Fell.

So my summary is don't downplay how hard this HC is, unless you have already done something of this size.

 

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Steve K replied to martinsynapse | 2 years ago
1 like

Well done - sounds wonderful.

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TheBillder replied to martinsynapse | 2 years ago
3 likes

Thanks for a really interesting write up. I was hoping you'd let us know how you got on, having read the tips with interest. It's a huge achievement and if you never do another big climb, you did this one. Brilliant.

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Secret_squirrel | 2 years ago
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I've just come from doing the Dragon Ride in Wales (200km along and 3k up) and whilst I thought I was pretty well prepared the one thing that caught me out was the sheer mental impact of seeing the seemingly endless curves stretching out in front of you.  Very shocking for me whose used to the relatively short and sharp <1mi climbs of the Chiltern's. 
 

Silly thing is I've done Spanish mountain roads before but  mentally wasn't expecting to find them in Wales  and the combo of boredom and fatigue completely side swiped me.
 

 

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Chris Hayes replied to Secret_squirrel | 2 years ago
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The Dragon Ride is hard, and the road surfaces don't help.  It was the otherwise innocuous hill through the housing estate on the way back that almost broke me.  My legs were still in screaming down valley mode.

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Chris Hayes | 2 years ago
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Depending on your power to weight ratio, ensure you have adequate gearing: 50/34 chainset with a 34 cassette are about as low as you can go with conventional equipment.  Teide isn't that steep, but it's long.

As many have said, there's not much you can do to prepare for a 20k plus climb in the UK apart from ride up the hills we have, perhaps using interval training to push yourself into the red to see how you cope.

Then gilet / armwarmers, your liquids, bananas, gels if you get on with them, and a good breakfast.  

I sometimes tape gels and chewy food to my bars so I'm not fiddling around in my back pockets when I'm at my limit. Eat small and often and start earlier than you normallly would.

Then it's just man versus mountain. Enjoy. 

 

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martinsynapse replied to Chris Hayes | 2 years ago
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Any tips about bars or general food intake? 

I watched a GCN video recently where they did 200 miles in a day (Bath > IoW > Bath) and there was mention of eating carbs, which didn't feel like your regular gels/bars intake... unless those gels have carbs as well as sugar.

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Chris Hayes replied to martinsynapse | 2 years ago
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Unless you're intending on incorporating Teide into a longer ride, I wouldn't worry too much about it.  It's a relatively short distance, albeit all uphill, so probably a 2hr uphill ride followed by 30 minutes downhill (at 4x the speed).  There only so much your body can process in this time, though you should replace what you're using.

Assuming that you're going there for a week or so and are intending to ride it more than once, treat the first ascent as a recce, i.e. take it easy and then plan a faster ascent once you know the road and where you'll be tested and where you can recover or press on.  

If you've got the correct gearing, stick within your riding limits, drink and eat little and often, you should be fine.   Another good tip is cutting bananas in half, that way you don't eat too much at once, don't have to peel them whilst cycling, and can just squeeze them into your mouth...

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Hirsute | 2 years ago
2 likes

I found the cable car quite convenient.

Cold at the top as the people just wearing a t shirt found out (we were in our fleeces).

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HoarseMann | 2 years ago
1 like

For a long descent, it's worth doing some finger grip strength exercises with something like this.

We think about braking technique (not dragging the brakes & alternating front/rear to allow rims/rotors to cool), but not often about training hand muscles to prevent cramp, which can be a problem on a very long descent.

Also, I'd have a practise somewhere safe at the emergency braking technique of putting your heel on the back wheel.

Damn I'm jealous!

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CXR94Di2 | 2 years ago
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I've cycled up Mt Teide many times, but always from the south side of the island. I've descended down the climb you will be attempting. It regularly gets cloud cover and can rain for a big part of the ascent. Take water proof clothing, gloves and leg warmers (for the return descent) It gets bloody colder at speed. I've come down that side at least 8 times. Only once was it dry!

Once you climb out of the clouds you will invariably get beautiful clear skies. It can be quite cool but also been known to be very warm.

Pace yourself in a low gear, take plenty of fluids and several pack of food.

Use lights especially a good rear.

Enjoy one of the biggest climbs in Europe

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PRSboy | 2 years ago
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I've not climbed Teide, but I've done Ventoux, Stelvio and a few other big ones.  Training wise, I'd suggest fast efforts e.g '2x20' minutes on flat roads but up on the hoods is a reasonable simulation for the sort of effort a long climb like that is.  Make sure you get out of the saddle from time to time and shift your weight about a bit, for a break.  I've found a HRM handy to avoid getting over-excited early on and overdoing it, only to pay the penalty an hour or so later...

If you have Zwift, a few goes at climbs like Ven-Top and Alpe du Zwift wouldn't do any harm.

Clothes... I've generally found that the heat generated from the effort has kept me warm in summer gear, even when there was a metre of snow at the roadside!  However, make sure you quickly cover up at the top if you stop as your sweat soaked clothes and the wind can be chilling... keep a rain jacket, arm warmers and gillet in your back pockets.

Just to add to the good advice below,  make sure you look up from your stem and pause from time to time to take in the changing views which I'm sure will be great... and then look forward to the descent!

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Daveyraveygravey | 2 years ago
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I haven't ridden up Teide, but I have ridden a couple of the Alps and one in Abruzzo that are 2000m of climbing and 20-30 km long. 

If you've never ridden one of these climbs, it can be a bit of a shock.  Spending an hour or two in your bottom gear, the only relief you get is either stopping or getting out of the saddle for a few metres.  When you add in possible high temps and direct sunlight, it can be a bit of a mind over matter job.  However the sense of achievement at getting to the top, and the views on the way there will make it all worthwhile.  Bear in mind it could be 30 degrees at the bottom, and 10 or lower at the top.  I have found in the past that temp drop is ok so long as you are climbing, but if you stop at the top you will get cold quickly, and the descent will also be cold. 

You might also find the descent less enjoyable than expected.  You'll likely be on the drops all the way down, with your weight going through your wrists.

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martinsynapse replied to Daveyraveygravey | 2 years ago
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That's great advice, thank you! I have ridden up Great Dun Fell twice + a bunch of the big climbs in the Lakes (Honister, Wrynose, Hardknott, The Struggle etc) so I expect this to be like those but a) much longer and b) lower gradient.

Great Dun Fell & Honister are less enjoyable on the down because they are single track with tight curves, so you could easily find yourself doing 35+ mph into blind bends + facing tourist car traffic head on. Teide is at least one lane up, one lane down (the route I am taking). 

Great shout re the temp drop: mountains are powerful and changeable. I'm planning to pack gloves + glasses. I'm just trying to think about how I pack something long sleeve without taking on too much extra weight.

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Rendel Harris replied to martinsynapse | 2 years ago
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martinsynapse wrote:

Great Dun Fell & Honister are less enjoyable on the down because they are single track with tight curves, so you could easily find yourself doing 35+ mph into blind bends + facing tourist car traffic head on.

No tourist cars on GDF, surely? Suicidal sheep, yes...we did it on a day there was a 60kph wind blowing directly in our faces up the climb, absolute hell, but the descent was extraordinary - that dip around the middle, just got blown up and over it without pedalling, combined with the perfect road surface I hit 79kph and could have got more if I hadn't been so frit.

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martinsynapse replied to Rendel Harris | 2 years ago
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Yeah there's definitely cars up there, I've driven up there several times too. You can't drive the last, very top section but that's fine anyway, it's open. 

Its the middle section in the valley that seems most lethal to me: sheer drop one side, single track, cars, corners you cant see around, easily possible to get above 40mph, dozy sheep...

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Pilot Pete | 2 years ago
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I've ridden it. Started at the bike shop by the airport on a hire bike, and it is uphill from there!

Training wise? Well, nothing specific. If you just ride your bike plenty on flat and hills at home you won't have a problem. It's just a relentless long steady drag. None of it is particularly steep, just a steady gradient, so once you hit the climb proper, just stick it in a low gear and twiddle away.

The surface was fantastic smooth tarmac (was about 5yrs ago mind you) as I recall. I rode along the ridge past the radar station and turned back down a wonderful twisty descent towards Güímar and back along the coast. All in i think it was nigh on 100 miles.

It was misty and chilly on the top, I stopped at the restaurant for refreshments and some food, from what I recall the food was crap - just a plate of pasta with a watery Bologna sauce, but I needed it! I did stop at a cafe on the way up for a coffee and cake and to top up my water bottles.

Clothing wise, I just had summer kit plus arm warmers and gilet. The first part of the descent was a bit chilly, but bearable. It was late January when I did it.

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duncanap | 2 years ago
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That should be a really cool experience. I have never done that climb but have done plenty of long climbs in the alpes etc. I think that the reality is that a month is not long enough to train to improve your performance - but perhaps riding the long climbs on zwift could get you used to long sustained efforts but I would say not more than once per week to avoid building too much fatigue unless you are already training seriously.

For me on a long climb the key is pacing, to know how hard I can push and stay in an aerobic zone - if you have a power meter then do you know what power you can hold for an hour or more? If not then at least having a heart rate monitor would help you to pace yourself and avoid going too hard and spoiling the experience. The advice to stop and take a break is definitely good advice as well.

Pay attention to weather forecast, don't forget your sunscreen, and take plenty of water/drinks. I would say 2x 1 litre bottles.

it looks from the profile on line that there are a couple of 8% sections - do you have gearing you can manage that kind of gradient easily? I use 50/34 chain rings, and an 11/34 cassette, but your choice will depend on your fitness and how much you weigh.

If there are other cyclists on the climb, you can use them to help yourself keep going if you are struggling - but be careful not to get sucked into racing someone who is climbing faster than you can manage.  

I hope you have a great experience.

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duncanap replied to duncanap | 2 years ago
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Clothing is a very personal thing. I find I can climb in just a base layer/jersey/bib shorts down to about 10 degC if it is dry.

For descending I like to be a bit warmer so generally carry wind proof gilet, arm warmers, thin full finger gloves, and thin gore toe covers. But I have also seen people descend with just a newspaper down the front of their jersey on big descents like tourmalet.

I use a top tube bag to carry gloves/food/arm warmers if my pockets are getting a bit full. If you are going to do this make sure you can climb standing without your knees hitting the bag, thats just annoying on a long climb where you need to move from seated to standing every now and then for comfort.

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martinsynapse replied to duncanap | 2 years ago
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Duncanap wrote:

I think that the reality is that a month is not long enough to train to improve your performance 

So, I ride about 70 miles a week but I started recently adding two sessions of just loops of the steepest hills around here for an hour. Given when I started and when I'm going, I should get two sessions of 1h a week in for 8 weeks. The "neuromuscular" bar in the Estimated Power Zones histogram is twice the size of my normal rides, so I'm hoping it's doing something...

Just trying to find out from folk who have ridden Teide before if that's enough or I should do more?

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bobbinogs | 2 years ago
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Bearing in mind that I suspect you are not in a race...when you need a break, take one.  Phones are good for this since you can pretend to be taking some nice piccies and feel no shame from anyone passing!  Ultimately, it's a big hill, get over it 

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martinsynapse replied to bobbinogs | 2 years ago
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Yes! Oh I have no ego about the time to do this, it's doing it all that matters, not getting some kind of time-record. 

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