RIDE TIPS - PAIGE HANDY
2022 MAMMOTH GRAN FONDO WINNER
Paige was born and raised in Los Angeles. At age 6, she was introduced to riding by spending summers mountain biking in Mammoth with her parents and older brother.
Participating in the Mammoth Gran Fondo is especially meaningful as she spent a lot of time growing up in Mammoth and marking special family life milestones here. Paige first got on a road bike when she was 15 and would ride the Santa Monica mountains with her dad. Upon returning to LA after college, Paige’s love of riding grew as she began logging miles to train for her Ironman in 2016. That year Paige joined the Serious Cycling community in Agoura Hills and her love of climbing in the area infinitely grew as she got to spend more time riding with and learning from local, experienced cyclists.
Paige now enjoys participating in endurance events such as Belgian Waffle Ride and will be participating in her first Leadville 100 mountain bike race this August 2023.
Paige’s Tips for the Mammoth Gran Fondo:
Whether your goal is to race it, have fun with friends, or complete a challenging day on the bike, make sure to manage your effort. Altitude plays a major factor in your ability to recover from a high heart rate so pace yourself and trust what’s right for you.
Hydrate plenty before leading up to the Fondo and I’d recommend waiting until after the ride to enjoy the delicious local beer.
You may encounter lots of headwinds on the course, so while you’re out there try to find groups of similarly paced folks to take turns drafting off of each other and help to take pulls for the group when able.