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TELONICS FACTORY RACING. Lake Forest California.
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Hilo to Mauna Kea! 🌋 last big effort of the season, and I managed to snag the QOM, which was pretty sweet!

A couple years ago, I climbed Mauna Kea from the Waikoloa side and set the women's record. It's since been broken by a few incredibly strong ladies, which is so inspiring! Ever since that ride, I knew I wanted to come back and tackle the Hilo side. Shorter, but steeper.

They call this the world's hardest climb. From sea level to nearly 14,000 feet in just under 43 miles. It took me 6:02 of moving time, plus about 5 minutes of stopped time.

I wanted to complete the entire climb on the same bike, so I rode my @ari.bikes shafer with @verumvelo RD28 climbing wheels and @ircbike_official formula pro SL 28s for the pavement. At the visitor center, @adamspahr47 did a quick wheel swap to verumvelo GR30s with IRC Boken Pro 47s for the gravel section. The gravel was actually in better condition than the last time I was here, but I still lost traction a couple of times. 

One of the hardest parts of this climb is how much the conditions change on the way up. The first few hours were spent riding in the rain, followed by heat on the access road and a ton of wind as I made my way toward the summit. You pass through so many different microclimates, by the time you reach the top, it feels like you're on another planet.

If you ever get the chance to do this ride, I highly recommend it. I'll probably never do it again, but it's such a cool experience and I'm glad I got the chance to come back for it.

📸 @adamspahr47
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