# Leith Hill & Box Hill promoted to Cat 2 climbs...?



## Fasta Asloth (4 Aug 2013)

Just catching up on the london-Surrey classic livestream on the BBC, was surprised to hear that the routes they are going up LeithHill and Boxhill have been categorised as Cat 2, on Strava they are either 4 or a 3, have I missed something.....??


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## dodgy (4 Aug 2013)

lol at your cute ickle hills down in the South East.


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## Hill Wimp (4 Aug 2013)

dodgy said:


> lol at your cute ickle hills down in the South East.


 

They are MOUNTAINS i tell you


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## ComedyPilot (4 Aug 2013)

Pop and have a look at Chimney Bank in Yorkshire - more climbing than Box hill in about half the distance.


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## Hill Wimp (4 Aug 2013)

ComedyPilot said:


> Pop and have a look at Chimney Bank in Yorkshire - more climbing than Box hill in about half the distance.


 

I daren't i would have to lie down in a dark room


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## ComedyPilot (4 Aug 2013)

I just have, and it's only a cat 3 or 4.......?

One of the nastiest, steepest climbs I've done on a bike (some sections are 1 in 3) and it's a cat 3???


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## Hill Wimp (4 Aug 2013)

ComedyPilot said:


> I just have, and it's only a cat 3 or 4.......?
> 
> One of the nastiest, steepest climbs I've done on a bike (some sections are 1 in 3) and it's a cat 3???


 

What on earth is a 1 then in the UK if indeed we have one ? Ben Nevis ?


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## Puddles (4 Aug 2013)

Hill Wimp said:


> What on earth is a 1 then in the UK if indeed we have one ? Ben Nevis ?


 
Probably coming back up from the river on the one way system, that hill has to be, when I was ickle cars had problems getting up it.....

And people wonder why not only do I push the bike up it but I make User76 get out of the trailer & walk up it too


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## Andrew_P (4 Aug 2013)

I searched Strava for a UK HC climb and didn't find one.


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## ComedyPilot (4 Aug 2013)

There are about 8 in the UK and Ireland.


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## Fasta Asloth (5 Aug 2013)

ComedyPilot said:


> There are about 8 in the UK and Ireland.


which ones? Bealach na Ba, regarded by some as one of the "toughest" UK climbs, is "only" Cat 2 so I'd love to try an HC-rated climb in the UK...


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## ComedyPilot (5 Aug 2013)

Fasta Asloth said:


> which ones? Bealach na Ba, regarded by some as one of the "toughest" UK climbs, is "only" Cat 2 so I'd love to try an HC-rated climb in the UK...


Just go onto Strava, click 'Explore' and move the slider to only show HC-rated climbs, then pan the map out.


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## Fasta Asloth (5 Aug 2013)

ComedyPilot said:


> Just go onto Strava, click 'Explore' and move the slider to only show HC-rated climbs, then pan the map out.


 
Ah, so none....that at least can be done by any sane person on a road bike on tarmac....since all appear footpaths from what I can view..........


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## Flying Dodo (5 Aug 2013)

Leith Hill is a bit steep, but Box Hill is a gentle little slope compared to it, so there's some "grade inflation" going on if someone's calling them Cat 2.


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## Fasta Asloth (5 Aug 2013)

Flying Dodo said:


> Leith Hill is a bit steep, but Box Hill is a gentle little slope compared to it, so there's some "grade inflation" going on if someone's calling them Cat 2.


That's what I thought too, was being shown as Cat 2 on the TV and also the commentators were calling them cat 2....bizarre...


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## Longshot (5 Aug 2013)

I can go up Box Hill and I'm fat and crap at hills. It is NOT a Cat 2.


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## HLaB (5 Aug 2013)

They will be Cat 2 if you start in the Underground; its due to be extended to Surrey in 2099


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## asterix (6 Aug 2013)

In all likelihood these categories can be tailored to suit the region and are therefore relative. For the Tour de Holland a typical stage would be about 25km, a cat 2 would be any climb that reached sea level and the K-o-M would be the fastest rider over the canal bridges.


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## Globalti (6 Aug 2013)

What tyres for the Dutch Alps?


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## Hacienda71 (6 Aug 2013)

Strava doesn't categorise climbs purely on steepness. The local Cat2 climb where I am is when done in full 7 miles long but I have averaged over 15 mph up it so it really is not steep.


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## jowwy (6 Aug 2013)

i thought the categories of climbs wasn't just measured by gradient, but also by the length of the overall climb


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## dodgy (6 Aug 2013)

jowwy said:


> i thought the categories of climbs wasn't just measured by gradient, but also by the length of the overall climb


 

And also when they are tackled in a stage. There's pretty much nothing scientific about stage categories.


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## GrumpyGregry (6 Aug 2013)

If owt in the Surrey Hills is Cat 2 then the ayrshire alps are all HC


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## jowwy (6 Aug 2013)

GregCollins said:


> If owt in the Surrey Hills is Cat 2 then the ayrshire alps are all HC


i know what you mean - i must cycle HC climbs everyday here in the welsh valleys


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## nickyboy (6 Aug 2013)

jowwy said:


> i thought the categories of climbs wasn't just measured by gradient, but also by the length of the overall climb


 

Correct. And this leads to much easier hills getting "harder" classifications. For example, around here Snake Pass (full) is Cat 2. It is 5.3km @ 6.2%. Winnats Pass is Cat 3. It is 1.9km @11.0%.

Snake Pass is easy enough. Winnats is just plain hard.

The Strava categorisations seem similar in style to Grand Tours. The key is not whether you can cycle up them, it is how hard are they climbed at race pace.


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## lukesdad (6 Aug 2013)

There is an hc up cader idris
Mtb s only I'm afraid.


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## Sittingduck (6 Aug 2013)

To summarise - it's all a load of old cobblers.


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## Mapster1989 (7 Aug 2013)

In races the category of a climb also factors in at what stage in the race the riders arrive at the climb (if my memory serves me right).

On Strava you cannot do this therefore Strava just uses a calculation, which can throw up some odd categorisation of certain hills.

EDIT: Just found this... http://everythingvelo.com/road-cycling-blog/how-are-cycling-climbs-categorised/


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## HF2300 (7 Aug 2013)

I think there might also have been some confusion on the tele - I heard them referred to as Cat 2 but earlier (perhaps in a different programme) they were said to be Cat 4


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