Overcoming A Challenge: Taiwan's KOM Breakthrough to Worldwide Recognition

By the late morning on October 20, the sixth edition of the Taiwan KOM Challenge winner circle was in the books while the remaining masochists on two wheels lurched toward the summit of Wuling Pass for several more hours. The effort may have been an immediate triumph for those fortunate enough to stand a meter or two above the 3275m summit atop a small wooden podium, it was also a victory for each participant brave, dumb or crazy enough to commit their names and bodies to the event.

More than this, it was a triumph for the event as a race in general.

For well over a decade Wuling has played host to numerous locally sanctioned, and some not so sanctioned, hill climb events from both sides of the mountain. Most of these events had been organized (and dis-organized) by local cycling clubs. With the explosion in recreational cycling beginning in 2006, the strain on organizers, infrastructure and interests groups threatened to turn any Wuling climbing event into a dangerous Tour de-farce. I recall a couple of events where traffic control was pulled while hundreds of riders remained on the roadway. Other events were held with dangerously low levels of medical support.

In 2012, just as Wuling rides had reached a critical mass, the inaugural Taiwan KOM Challenge was held as an open event with only 380 riders of all levels scrapping for the same prize--a KOM jersey and about $USD2600 for the men...and about $USD330 for women. The initial run was a mere 100km, and was won by the Danish rider, John Ebsen, who has essentially been adopted by Taichung as a hometown hero.

Thinking back, it was a really big deal. Ebsen held off some Protour riders with grand tour pedigree in Jeremy Roy, with other top contenders in Anthony Chartreau, Peter Pauly and the former Tour of Taiwan GC winner, David McCann.

For Taiwanese who constantly have to struggle for international visibility against China's desire to have Taiwan's lands, peoples, cultures and systems subsumed by a neocolonialism with Chinese characteristics, the attention and recognition by an accomplished anybody from abroad who can recognize Taiwan as an entity in and of itself is already enough to make headlines. This was pretty sweet stuff in 2012.

For 2017, the Taiwan KOM turned things up to eleven. The freshly minted 2017 race was built upon the nearly 600 participants who threw themselves at that mountain for 106km, with over half arriving from abroad to compete.  In six short years the event has broken away from being a scrappy local race into the punctuation mark at the end of the international cycling season.

This year the Taiwan KOM was won by Vincenzo Nibali (3:19), the stringy Italian who made his name as a tenacious climber in the 2010 Giro di Italia and has spent the past seven years battling at the head of the GC leaderboards of all the grand tours with GC victories in each of the big three. Nibali is seen as one of the most talented riders of the post-Armstrong era... and he chose to close out his season in Taiwan. Its is enough to make any cyclist in Taiwan get all rosy cheeked. The fact that one of Nibali's major sponsors at Bahrain-Merida is a major Taiwan bicycle manufacturer may have been the nudge he needed to postpone his vacation until late October.

"It was a hard race because we went from sea level up to 3,275 metres. I've never ridden such a long and hard climb before in my entire life," Vincenzo Nibali--Cycling News

The second and third spot were taken by dueling KOM winners Oscar Pujol and John Ebsen with Cameron Piper, Edmund Bradbury and the famously unretired Phil Gaimon in the final podium spot.

Moreover, cleaning up at the 10th spot was the 40yo. Cadel Evans, the winner of the 2011 Tour de France, which is one of my favorites of recent memory. The retired Aussie, who now serves as a brand ambassador for BMC, was treated to tea with President Tsai Ing-wen.

Taiwan's Peng Yuan-tang finished 17th as Taiwan's top finisher.

The women's race was again headlined by the former British road racing champion, Emma Pooley, who successfully defended her title in a resounding fashion with a gritty 3:52. Pooley led a near British sweep of the women's podium with Hayley Simmonds and Emily Collinge in the second and third steps. Claudia Lichtenberg from Germany held up the fourth position with Brit Helen Jackson and the Japan's 51yo. sensation Yukari Nakagome in the sixth spot.

Aside from the illustrious resumes and glittering palmares held by the top participants, what really stood out about this year's race was parity between the men's and women's categories. While men's sports in general tends to  use guidelines taken from the Old Testament when appraising the value of a woman, the initial 2012 running of the Taiwan KOM saw a naked disparity between the awards in the male and female categories. In recent years the monetary value has increased, but the disparity remained. Until this year the women's winner could take home $USD6600, while he men's winner could claim approximately $USD30,000 in prize money. The 2017 Taiwan KOM set a major precedent in establishing parity in the prize money awarded, setting the amount at $USD16,000 each.

But the KOM is an unusual race. Not only does it seek parity in gender, it also is open to any rider willing to pony up the entrance fee and make the time to race on a Friday. While they have an elite level, like a Grand Fondo, there is nothing to stop Joe and Mary Saturday from making a charge for glory at the finish line at Wuling Pass if they can qualify during the Road to KOM races during the Spring and Summer. If I  had not just come back from three months off the bike, I may have thrown my hat into the ring just to have a semi-factual tale to tell about racing against Cadel Evans, Vincenzo Nibali and Emma Pooley. I wouldn't have been lying.

It has been a real source of pride as a cyclist in Taiwan to watch as we give our gift of Wuling to the world and the world fully accepts it.

There are no caveats about Wuling. It is not a hard ride "for an Asian race". It is a hard ride for any race. And for Taiwanese it adds a dash of validation that we are "world class".

Aside from the topography and participants who really make the KOM, a lot of the credit needs to be handed to the event organizers. They have done a fantastic job in transforming this event and this mountain into something more than Taiwan's local favorite. The Taiwan KOM is gaining the mythic status often reserved for European monuments like the Alpe d' Huez, the Iozard and the Galibier.

Moore than that, to top off the goodness from this year's event. The race organizers were even able to lure GCN, the professional cycling broadcasting outfit to Taiwan to televise Taiwan's KOM. The entire thigh snapping spectacle can be viewed in English HERE.

Yes, this is more than a bike race. This is Taiwan's soft power hard at work. With full televised coverage of the KOM, cyclists around the world can watch the image of Taiwan as a mere production facility dissipate into the thin alpine air to be replaced with enough of a dream to entice one more rider to take the next step in discovering the complexity and beauty of Taiwan. Lets face it, recreation cycling is an industry built of fantasy and Taiwan is just learning how to tap its potential.

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For anyone sick of the KOM coverage, here is a link to another type of ride in Taiwan.
The intrepid Michael Turton from the View from Taiwan has a fantastic piece from Taiwan's East Coast. 

Tempest in a Tea Kettle: Typhoon Day on Wuling

With a tropical storm bordering on typhoon bearing down on Taiwan threatening to flood the weekend with boredom locked inside and nothing to do but eat Oreos (which is what is done on typhoon days) I did the math and figured Saturday would probably be the day to get a ride in.

The typhoon seemed to be behind schedule and wouldn't be arriving until late Saturday and early Sunday. I figured that would probably mean the moisture would be sucked up by the typhoon and we might have clear skies.

I figured I might just have enough time to make a run at the 3275m Wuling Pass-- the very road that utterly destroyed me a few weeks back.

As I eased into my ascent, I was nervous with fresh memories of suffering high up on the foggy ramps high above central Taichung. My pedal stroke felt easy and slick. I was loose... without the pressure of a race.



The mountains clung fast to a wall of clouds that threatened to burst through at any moment and drench the pass with rain.



I moved upward as my shades filled with misty drops of water from a passing cloud. In my mind I had a threshold for physical exhaustion or inclement weather that would preclude an immediate escape.



I passed various landmarks of recent woe buoyed by the notion that I night just make a good day of it.



I climbed higher and higher. Occasionally I would glance at the altimeter to watch my burning legs devour chunks of altitude in satisfying doses.



I was happy to pass other cyclists on my way up with the understanding that my photo stops were merely that-- opportunities to take pictures for this blog.



As I closed on the summit, the great wall at Kunyang towered over the roadway. It is such a marvel of roadway that I had to make more of an effort to photograph it. 

Somewhere near Yuan-feng the air suddenly changed from the usual balmy summer air that has the consistency of over boiled spinach, to a crisp , coolness that shot directly into my lungs. It almost hurt to breathe...in the most satisfying way. No, it actually did hurt to breathe. I could feel my lack of conditioning disturbing. I only hope I can bring my VO2 max back up. That is really the killer of one of these high altitude rides in Taiwan. If you are not getting enough oxygen into the muscles, you are going to suffer. 



Layer over layer over wiggling fold, I capped Kunyang with a clear line of sight toward the summit.



At last my pain had come to an end and I had plenty of energy remaining...suddenly. I snapped my obligatory picture and scared a few tourists along the way as I grumpily lined up my shot while they fiddles with iPad photography. 



Any chance to enjoy Taiwan's mountains is worth the effort.

Never Say Never: Never Stop Wuling Hill Climb 2014

It was two thirty in the morning and I was wide awake stuffing my face with a peanut butter-honey-raisin-banana sandwich. How's that for the beginning of a blog post? 

Once again, I was signed up to do the Never Stop Wuling Hill Climb; a quad-snapping ascent to 3275m. over the highest mountain pass in East Asia. I have done this ride before, but never as disastrously epic as this one.  

 

I joined with Team Mosaic and met at the T-Mosaic store on Taichung's Liming Rd. It had been a while since I last rode with Mosaic and I was missing several of the familiar faces I had grown accustomed to racing with. 

By half-past three we were on a mini-bus headed down the freeway toward Puli, where the race was set to begin.



The last time I rode this race, I finished in pretty good time despite not taking things too seriously and taking lots of pictures along the way. That race was also going to be my last Wuling race as the organisers had flooded the course with over 6000 riders and another thousand unregistered riders who had come to join the circus. 

That day ended with dangerous traffic jams near the finish and awful delays on the return trip. This time was much better. The race was pared down to only about 1200 riders with delayed starts by age group. This was also my first race in the 40-45 age bracket. 

The riders all milled around trying to be all Cool Hand Luke while preening with the latest, lightest and newest gear. 

I was especially impressed with Team Poo. I can only imagine how their day went (Insert string of obvious puns here). 



The starting pistol sounded over some awful roadside hip hop and I was underway. The first time in a long time. 

I spun easily all along the flatter introduction to Taiwan's Central Mountain Range. y legs felt fine, despite being insane enough to make another attempt on this mountain with a 53/39 crank. Well...it worked before....

One of the highlights came when a group of about twenty ancient baddasses in the "Over 45" bracket came roaring by in a blazing train of fury and spite. It was obvious that being pushed to the back to make way for the young guns had rubbed a few in this group the wrong way and they were going to put the hurt on some young hotshot further up the mountain. Don't mess with experience. 



I made ground on the first real ascent up to Wushe, but lost it just as fast when I couldn't shake the cramp in my left calf. I surrendered and pulled into the Wushe 7-11 to stock up on liquids. You see, I had been sipping on water that had been sitting in my bottles for almost a week. I had erroneously assumed we would be stopping at a 7-11 before the race...just like before. Nope! We simply went to the middle of nowhere and waited. 

With water bottles filled with something better than brackish water and a good stretch, I was back on the road. With a 39-tooth crank, I couldn't help but make time, despite being overmatched for my level of fitness and training. I did briefly consider ditching the race at Wushe and heading off for a lovely ride down the Route 88 to Wujie, but pride kept me in the saddle on a course set for the top. 



It was all pretty ho-hum up the lower ramps, which is where suddenly, in the middle of the pack, the ride turns into a grunting crawl. The action is so slow that a heavy cloud of B.O. lingers over the roadway making for an unpleasant climb if you are anywhere within 10 meters of another rider. All that stank just hangs there and you are unable to move away fast enough. 

I skipped over the lower water and feed stations feeling pretty good on my morning while making time calculations based on elevation and memory. 



Left and right riders were stopping to stretch, rest, pee or smoke. The 7-11 proved to be a popular hang out for many riders who were lacking the energy to continue. 



I felt some fatigue, but I was still climbing at a pretty good pace-- good enough for a respectable time. The views were staggering. I had been preparing for a day of clouds and sprinkles, but the sky was crystal clear. 



The open view of the ridge line is a heart breaker. 



The torture was enough to elicit an unfriendly gesture (in the UK) from some participants as I snapped photos on my way up. 



I had passed 2000 meters and it was almost as if someone had instantly pulled out my batteries. 



I needed to stop and stretch my back...then my hamstrings...then my calves.



I was grinding up the hill on old muscles; muscles that had been built up years before, but nothing new. I had no endurance and kept wondering how much longer it was going to take. 



I thought about calling it a day and letting the team know I would be waiting for them in Ching-jing or Puli or Taichung. Still I kept grinding upward. "It is the altitude fucking with you", I kept telling myself over and over again. Hell, it probably was. 



I knew the team bus was waiting in Kun-yang. If I could only get to Kun-yang I could accept my defeat and declare a DNF. 



I knew my time was well beyond disappointing for a competitor like myself. I watched larger and then smaller waves of riders slip on past up the mountain and I was a touch jealous at the ease in which they were able to climb. 



Te first riders started dropping from Wuling with their time certificates in hand, while I was still well below the death ramps of Kun-yang.



The roadside carnage was mounting as the shoulder began to fill with hobbling and disabled riders. 



I stopped to rest and snap a few pictures. I figured a few more minutes wouldn't make that much of a difference at that point, so I might as well record it. 



Just under Kun-yang the road lifts up like the rungs of a ladder-- one lane stacked upon the next. 



On the last ramp to the Kun-yang parking lot, I was forced to hike. Yes, I was walking my bike up the penultimate ramp on the mountain. 

For my teammates this was the ultimate vision of absurdity. After I had finished at the front of just about every other clime we had done together, I was suddenly the picture of futility and defeat... almost. 

They delighted, this one time, in my moment of painful despair and I played along with it because I knew better. It is a sight I hope they can chew on and enjoy for a little while. 

I almost put my bike down and for the day... but that is not what I am about. I could see the finish line within a kilometer up ahead, so clenched my jaw and slung my leg back over the seat with the deep tightness in my muscles pulling my body apart. 



It was a slow grind up the final ramps before the road levelled off at the finish line. 



The clouds that had been threatening the ride all morning had finally pulled a foggy hood over the pass and the temperatures dropped. 



Riders were milling around, taking pictures with the famous sign, smoking, and some were even tang in some extra oxygen. My final score was a lowly 5hr and 50min.



I was lucky. I had made it. There was one fatality on the day as one 33yo. rider succumbed to cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead later in the afternoon.



While my team and other riders who know me or have followed my riding when I have been healthy, might make light of my less than impressive time, I sorely rode away with the victory I had been looking for. 

Almost one year ago I was unable to climb out of bed. I could barely walk let alone stand for any more than five minutes. I was in a state of excruciating pain for over three solid weeks and constant pain for the better part of a year. I was forced to give p all forms of exercise for eight months and even wondered if I would ever be able to ride a bike again with or without pain. 

I have been slowly training my body back into shape. This all happened at the worst possible time in my life to get back into shape, but now that I have put this mountain beneath me, I don't see any reason why I can't continue to train and bring myself back to where I was at my peak. 

My team is already on notice: Next Year!

Hualien To Iilan The Hard Way: Taiwan Cycling Perfection

My good friend and riding buddy, Dom, is signing off on his life in Taiwan and moving back to New York. The reasons are his own, but it certainly isn't about the lack of any exciting cycling.

He was not going to be allowed out of the country without one last adventure through some of Taiwan's most impressive landscapes, and thus we decided to take a couple of days and ride from Hualien on Taiwan's east coast, to Iilan on Taiwan's northeastern corner.

On a map this looks like nothing for a couple days of riding, until you consider the route would take us from sea level to 2374 meters on the first day... and then leave us spending the second day skimming the 2000 meter mark before dropping us off in Iilan. We covered over 4000 meters of climbing in two days.

We picked the perfect two days for the trip as the wet weather has been sucked out of the area by a looming typhoon. Things couldn't have been better.



The trip had been on and off the calendar for a couple of months. I was the biggest threat to the trip as I had to come back from a sore knee that prevented any serious climbing... and as soon as that was clear, I lost a week to a pulled muscle in my back from stretching. There were several times I thought I would have to cancel.

My back seemed manageable, so I kept with the plan. I had recently only done a few local climbs and nothing over 100k.

My next obstacle was the Taiwan Rail Administration. I originally bought a ticket on the Zi Chiang Train with a bike car. When my wife went to double check to see if I needed to purchase an extra ticket for the bike, they misunderstood and sold my seat. Then, they had to try to get me a new seat on the train, which put my bike in car 12, and I was seated in car 2.

I was fine with this arrangement, but when I went to put my bike on the train, I asked If I could load it in with the rest of the boxes they were loading into the car 12. I was told I would have to enter through the passenger door of the car.

This was a brilliant idea as it was packed and I would be forced to stand with my bike in the hallway until Ruifang.






I finally had a seat and I could roll down to Xin Cheng outside Hualien with a group of girls from make-up camp, which is far less exciting than it sounds.



At Xin Cheng Station there were several groups of cyclists headed out for various projects. There were baseball teams, Taiwanese expat groups, single speed enthusiasts and more. Lots of people using the bike to make a statement.



Our trip was actually two and a half days. I met Dom at the station, and we decided to take it slow and easy up Taroko Gorge. This would ensure we didn't feel rushed for pictures and scenic stops. The plan was to land at Tian Xiang and launch our attack on the mountain from there.



The road through Taroko is metered to a ten minute window every two hours due to the most massive avalanche I have ever seen. We lucked out and the road was closed for lunch and we just ambled through at out own leisure without the storm of vehicles waiting to burst through.



Taoroko Gorge is an awesome spectacle of towering rock. The Central Cross Island Highway chisels its way through tunnels and along cliff sides to bridge the terrain. Taiwan's mountains have an immediacy about them. They are high, like mountains in other countries, but unlike other places, these mountains are compressed very tightly against one another making for some very severe walls and roads to navigate those walls.



We arrived in Tian Xiang with plenty of time to spare, so we thought a few beers might help us load up on carbs for the real climbing.



The second day started after breakfast at the China Youth Hostel in Tian Xiang. These mountain trips are always made fare more difficult by the lack of a good breakfast anywhere. I put three tea eggs on my plate and tried to put as much peanut butter on my toast as I possibly could. It would have to fuel me to Guan Yuan and over 2000 meters.



The second day was as fine as the first. We hit the road beneath another scar from an old avalanche and hit the opening climbs.



The road out of Tian Xiang starts out with an impressive grade for first thing in the morning, but it warms the legs up pretty quick.



We were soon high up above the valley, but still burning in the heat. A cool waterfall can be a great fountain of rejuvenating goodness.



For much of the way, the road is quite manageable. It is still climbing and takes its toll, but ever so slowly.



The next major obstacle is "The Wall"; a massive hump of a ridge with switchbacks stacked one on top of the other. There is a little store right at the base for refreshments and snacks before the climb.



From the top of "The Wall", the climb really starts to impress. The air is a bit cooler and clouds begin to catch on the peaks above.


We stopped for lunch at the restaurant near the God Tree, and then continued on our way. A little mist sprinkled down on us and the pedaling started to get much harder with the altitude beginning to come into play.



We finally rounded a corner to the gas station and our lodging at the China Youth Corps Hostel.



We woke up the next day and got to the breakfast buffet ahead of the annoying camp/club that had been staging some kind of mix between a fascist parade and a hoot nanny. Seeing the breakfast spread, it was decided it would be okay to eat a quarter of the scrambled eggs, in exchange for leaving the pork floss to the other guests. Seemed fair enough.

The worst thing was the lack of drinkable water (or anything to drink) that wasn't scalding hot. Try filling water bottles with plastic melting water....



A third sunny day was ahead as we pushed out into the chilly morning air. I was happy to have worn all the clothes I had packed.



We punched through the mountain at the tunnel and started an amazing descent toward Lishan. Before we could even whorl up our descending smiles, we were forced to stop for some construction. We passed the time letting the road worker ogle our bikes.


Finally, we were in free fall toward Lishan. It was nice to be on the other side of the ridge. I am so used to the Wuling route, I was happy for the change in scenery, which looks a lot like northern California... but more grand.



We hit Lishan; a high mountain agricultural town famous for pears, apples, and tea. It was nice to have phone reception again. It was also nice to sit down for a cup of coffee and take in the morning. We couldn't stay long as we still had well over 100km to cover on our way to Iilan.





The Highway 7甲 starts on a wonderful descent over some uneven roadways. It takes a moment to realize you are still at altitude and this is merely a round ridge between two opposing mountains.



The descending comes to an abrupt end. Suddenly it becomes another day of climbing. Each hill dissapoints in its promise to offer a badly needed descent. The altitude needle bumps 2000 meters a few times, but the descent never comes.



A headwind made things feel all the more desperate. I started to have my doubts. I started to regret the picture taking and coffee breaks.



Then it came. The most wonderous descent imaginable. As far as covering ground goes, I can't thing of a better sight. It was a slalom course to Iilan. It was a natural thrill machine. It screamed 45kph.



We blew down the mountain and through the green cabbage farms. The legs were buzzing. Dom was in excellent shape and would lose me when my power failed to materialize midway through a bump in the road. I would then race to catch up on the low sections.


This carried on for kilometer after kilometer. The speeds were incredible.


We finally lunched with some locals who were happy to admonish their buddy for touching my bike. After a good laugh we were on our way again...



Iilan was in sight and it was as pretty as ever. We made it into the city by 4:00pm and had our bikes loaded up within the hour.

It was as perfect a trip as you can find. I was honored to do one last big ride with a great friend.

This also makes for a great post before I take the show on the road to ride a little in the United States.

Vacation starts here!