Altitude Sickness Prevention

The best way to prevent altitude sickness is to allow your body to adjust to the decreased levels of oxygen in high-altitude locations:

If you are traveling from sea level to a destination above 8,000 feet, try to reach higher altitudes over the course of a few days.
If you are traveling to very high altitudes, stop at 8,000 to 9,000 feet before moving on to allow your body to adjust.
Sleep low. The fairgrounds are several thousand feet lower than the mountains you will be riding on during the day.
Take medication:
If your doctor recommends it, consider taking acetazolamide (Diamox) to help your body adjust to rapidly increasing altitudes.
Avoid alcohol.
You should not consume alcoholic beverages for at least the first two days you are at a high altitude.
Exercise. Relax before engaging in anything more than mild exercise.

Green Creek Pavement

Two types of altitude sickness to be aware of:

Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS).
AMS is the mildest and most common type of altitude sickness.
AMS affects an estimated 25 percent of people who travel to and sleep in locations above 8,000 feet.
Symptoms of AMS may include headache, fatigue, appetite loss, nausea, and vomiting.
AMS usually occurs within 2 to 12 hours of arriving at a high-altitude location and goes away within one to three days of being there.
High-Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE).
On rare occasions, people who have AMS develop HACE.
HACE can result in extreme fatigue, drowsiness, confusion, lack of coordination, and pulmonary embolism or PE.
HACE is severely life-threatening, so anyone who experiences these symptoms should immediately go to a lower altitude and seek medical attention..

Mountain Goat

Altitude Sickness Treatment

If you do develop altitude sickness, the following treatment options may help:

Over-the-counter pain relievers. These can help ease altitude sickness-related headaches.
Move to lower ground. For any type of altitude sickness, the best treatment is to immediately move to a lower altitude.
Wait it out. If your symptoms are mild, taking it easy as your body adjusts to the higher altitude may help.