Get a late-season boost in Big Bear Lake, Calif.
By Brad Culp
July 10, 2008 -- Located 120 miles northeast and 7,000 feet above San Diego, Big Bear Lake, Calif. is best known by locals as a convenient ski resort during the winter months. When the snow melts and the temperature begins to heat up, Big Bear is transformed into a giant sporting playground and last week I went up there to play.
I kicked off the weekend of high altitude training with an eight-mile trail run alongside Heather and Ted Devito, just two of the many fitness nuts who live up on the mountain. Immediately upon checking out the pair’s uber-lean physiques, I knew that I was in trouble. I warned them that I don’t do hills or altitude, both of which are impossible to avoid in Big Bear. Most of the trailheads start near the lake (Big Bear Lake, a massive mountaintop reservoir), and the only way to run is straight up the surrounding hills. In the interest of keeping my breakfast in my stomach, Heather and Ted took it easy on me.
“Sorry if I’m holding you back a bit,” I said a few times. “I’m really not used to hills like this.”
They assured me that I wasn’t holding them back, but I knew the truth. Ted’s stride resembled that of Big Bear’s most famous resident, Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall, and I doubt that his heart rate even broke into triple-digit range during our run.
Courtesy Dan McKernan
After the trail run I was scheduled to spend an hour or so kicking around on a kayak with someone named Karen. I just figured Karen was some local who had a kayak to spare. Karen turned out to be Karen Lundgren, one of the world’s top adventure racers and a member of Team SOLE. We only spent about 40 minutes out on the lake and there was no hiding the fact that I was seriously holding Karen back. She was going faster than me even when she wasn’t paddling.
I spent the rest of the afternoon recovering at the Big Bear Mountain Brewery, a “dive” in every sense of the word, which mixes up some seriously potent brew. It turns out a 12-percent doppelbock his you a lot harder at 7,000 feet.
The next day was what I really came up to Big Bear for—a few hours of climbing on the road followed by a few hours of downhilling on the trails. I met up with a pair of Big Bear’s most infamous cyclists known simply as Iron Mike and Rev. We kicked off the road ride with a 30-minute descent down to the little town of Running Springs. If you’re looking to build a little confidence when it comes to descending, Big Bear is the place to do it. There’s a wide shoulder/bike lane headed down Highway 18 and motorists are pretty scarce in the early morning.
From Running Springs the only way to go was up (unless you want to bomb all the way down to Riverside), so we swung around and began a steady 90-minute climb back to the lake. The grade hovers around five to six percent, so it’s doable for just about any rider and a great way to get in a killer power session. My knuckles were a little too white to bother taking in the views on the way down, but the scenery definitely took my mind off of the climb on the way up. The views are nothing short of legendary and I spent most of the ride gazing at the 10,000-foot peaks above and lush green valleys below—not a bad way to get in a few hard miles.
Courtesy Tom Wolcott
I ended the trip with a little off-road tour of Snow Summit Mountain, one of Big Bear’s two ski resorts. The lifts run all summer and the cost of a day pass is about as much as a spare tube and CO2 cartridge. If you’re training for XTERRA, it’s hard to find a better place than Snow Summit. There are plenty of technical sections for honing your handling skills and a number of quad-crushing hills to keep you honest.
If you’re going this year…Pick a weekend with a race. Cal Multisport is hosting a pseudo triathlon on July 27, which has athletes mountain biking trail running and paddling. (
www.calmultisport.com).
There’s also an XTERRA American Tour race at Snow Valley, located only ten minutes from Big Bear (
www.mountainmultisport.com).
If you’re a true glutton for punishment, give the Big Bear Marathon a try on September 6 and you’ll get to run on the same roads that made Ryan Hall the runner he is (
run-bigbearmarathon.com).
Getting thereBig Bear Lake is an easy drive from Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas or Phoenix. If you’re coming in from out of town, the Ontario/Palm Springs Airport is you best best (only 40 minutes away), but you’re likely to find cheaper fares into LAX or Orange County.
Where to stayI set up shop at the 3 Pines Lodge for the weekend, which is a perfect spot for a cyclist. My tiny log cabin was within five minutes from a dozen trailheads and there was even bike stand and hose outside my cabin to keep my ride running smooth. Pick out your cabin online at
www.threepineslodge.comIf you prefer something different (and cheap), a hostel was recently opened up, and after a brief tour, I can assure you that it’s nicer than any European hostel you may have stayed at in your early-20s. For rates, check out
www.bigbearhostel.comFor more information on Big Bear Lake, log on to
www.bigbear.com