Stepping into the fray, Pete Stetina shares his experience and dedication to the Mt. Washington hill climb record. From performance hacks and fueling tricks to reshaping his body for perfection, his story isn't one to be missed.
The term “Feeding The Rat” comes from rock climbing. On its most basic level, it’s the need to break out of normal routine and to pursue a deeper meaning by doing difficult things. Chances are, if you’re reading this on The Feed Insider, you’re an athlete who has your own rat inside. And chances are, it's as voracious as mine. Feeding our inner rat can be a healthy, albeit addictive pursuit, but as of late, I’m also learning it’s important to let it starve.
As you read this, the secret is out: I am hanging up my professional racing wheels in the coming season.
For 2025, my overriding goal was to do it all right one last time; if I did everything perfectly, then I could “put myself to pasture” with contentedness. The all time Mt Washington record became my metaphor of that.
The Mountain
Clocking in at 12.1km at 12.6% average, and boasting the highest wind speeds ever recorded on earth, Mt Washington is perhaps the hardest climb in the US and one of the hardest in the whole world. The road is private, and bikes are only allowed up it twice per year: on a practice day and the official race day. My dad held the record from 1980-1997, and since 2002 Tom Danielson held the record of 49:24. Here is where the record books get a little complicated: In 2020 the 1/4 mile of hard-pack dirt on the climb got paved over and the organizers used that moment to reset the records citing the new pavement section and their instituting of drug testing at the race; alluding to the checkered pasts of Tom and other riders of the “EPO Era”.
Since then, Phil Gaimon had gone out and posted an impressive 50:38 as the “Modern Record”. It was a realization to me that Tom’s record, not just Phil’s, was within reach. Just look at how Pogačar and co. are smashing all-time climbing records in the TdF. With how far science, training, and fueling have come, we are now going as fast as those morally-conflicted years.
And yes, while I desperately wanted the record for the Stetina clan, my overarching and primary goal was to leave it all out there with no regrets, to go the fastest I would ever go up a mountain again.
The Process
I gave all of myself to the process, morphing my body from an endurance gravel racer to a flyweight sugar-burning KOM hunter for a 1-hour effort. With gradients so extreme, I chopped every gram I could off my bike and my body. I got skinnier than I ever had, maybe too skinny…
In the search for acute weight loss, I adhered to a bland, low-residue diet in the days before, and on race morning, knowing I didn’t need deep reserves, I forewent my normal big pre-race breakfast; I didn’t need extra mass in my stomach to digest later. I had a single pack of instant oats and even used instant coffee mixed into the oats so I wouldn’t be consuming more liquid just for the habitual caffeine fix.
I utilized all the performance hacks I could find on The Feed. Before warmup, I took the Maurten Bicarb and just before the gun went off I swallowed an SiS Nootropics Gel. The oats, bicarb system, and gel made sure I had enough morning-of carbs in my system for the violent effort and nothing else. I was also topped off on Swiss RX Nitric Oxide and Klean Beta Alanine.
Finally, I didn’t even bring a bottle. To cut the weight of a bottle and cage, I opted for a single ziplock baggie with a mouthful of Skratch Hydration just to combat dry mouth. I was all in. Optimized in every sense of the word.
The Attempt
And in the end, I would fail in my mission of record time. Severe winds on the practice day had me off pace, but showed the record was possible in calm conditions. But come official race day, while winds calmed, I was still plagued by a sinus infection that my immune system was too compromised at my light weight to fight off even after 10 days of symptoms. One could argue I’d tried too hard, I’d flown too close to the sun.
Disappointment was an understatement.
My failure didn’t sit well with me. My overarching goal was to finish with no regrets, and I hadn’t gotten to put my best foot forward. So, one month later, I commissioned a private run. Again, it wasn’t quite perfect conditions (this mountain is just too fickle!), but it was good enough, and I posted a 50:30, which I am content with (for you data nerds out there, that was 5.83w/kg for 50min and I’m damn proud of that number). I’ve since come to respect the important lesson that no matter how bad we want it, we don’t get to write our own destiny. I accept the Mt Washington record isn’t mine to take, but I don’t regret the process or my dedication to the attempt.
I may return to this revered mountain someday if fitness is right and circumstances line up, but it won’t be with the same dedication as before. I’ve fed that rat enough, and to continue this trend would be unhealthy for myself and my family. Knowing when to stop is as important as knowing when to push harder.
In my attempt to make history, a film was commissioned to document it. But the story that ended up being told was what none of us expected, and one I didn’t intend or initially want to tell. I promised the filmmaker I wouldn’t hold back or hide, and I sincerely hope you’ll enjoy it. I hope it resonates on a personal level and you see yourself in parts of it.
Watch The Film Here
So what’s next: I can’t let my rat starve to death, that would be unhealthy too; rather, I need to let it feast back to a healthier size. In 2026, I will race a limited “Farewell Tour” of the gravel races that I enjoy the most, sometimes with good fitness and sometimes just to enjoy the scene. I’ll dive deeper with select partners, utilizing all I’ve learned in my career to help brands and other riders succeed on their own terms. If Privateering has taught me anything, it’s that we’re only bound by the limits of our creativity. Retirement doesn’t have to be a goodbye from the space entirely. I love this Gravel too much to leave completely and am motivated to continue to foster this discipline in new ways.
Photo Credits: @joevigerphoto
