Acclimitize to a 14-er

[Snowflea]

I don't think they're allowed to run to the summit any longer. I think it ends at the Portal. Am not sure the race is run anymore - Stinkyfeet would probably know.

Yes, the Badwater race is still run in July: http://www.badwater.com/ It starts at Badwater Basin and officially ends at Whitney Portal although some runners obtain Whitney permits and climb the summit after their official finishes. I have never done--nor have a desire to do--this race. (135 miles on asphalt? Yuck.) Friends of mine have run it on their own, loathe to pay the stiff entry fee and deal with all the hype.

I've been "at altitude" a bunch of times and have done it both the "right" way--acclimating for days--and the "wrong" way--driving from my home at sea level and climbing Mt. Whitney the next day. I felt better after acclimatization but suffered only a mild headache by doing it from sea level. I have never taken Diamox, not even on Denali. (Don't like taking drugs unless absolutely necessary, and for myself don't see Diamox as being so.)

In my experiment of one, what seems to help the most is prudently pushing water, i.e. not to the point of water intoxication/hyponatremia but maybe 30% more than I would normally drink.

 

[WinterWarlock]

Interesting....

So I find this thread interesting and timely....I'm headed to Hawaii in a few weeks and was hoping to get up Mauna Kea. Since the hotels in the area are on the beach, and at sea level, I was a bit concerned about getting up to the 13,800 without any problems.

Has anyone done this, and any tips on acclimatizing in Kona?

 

[erugs]

Don't expect to have a lot of energy or feel like "yourself," I'd say. But be sure to enjoy whatever you are experiencing that's good more than concentrating on the physical symptoms that might not be so good. Be aware of being really off, though.

 

[Snowflea]

I'm headed to Hawaii in a few weeks and was hoping to get up Mauna Kea. Since the hotels in the area are on the beach, and at sea level, I was a bit concerned about getting up to the 13,800 without any problems.

Has anyone done this, and any tips on acclimatizing in Kona?

I did it last November. From Kona, we drove all the way up Mauna Kea in a PT Cruiser rental. It was my 49.98th and final high point. Then we hiked Mauna Loa from the same (saddle) side. Altitude wasn't a real issue for us that day, perhaps because the hike took only a few hours. We did not acclimatize at all.

 

[cbcbd]

...up Mauna Kea in a PT Cruiser rental. ...

But your car didn't get time to acclimatize. Did it feel sluggish and get really bad gas mileage? You're lucky it didn't just pitch off the side of the road with fatigue!