Ditchling beacon single speed?

[BalkanExpress]

I've seen it done on a bmx. And a tall bike.

These are not necessarily recommendations, but they were quite something to behold.

Pictures or it didn't happen...

...Ohh wait: see 1 minute in


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oK6volZa2cA


And here is the climb from car park to summit in real time


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIuqsH2XkFo

 

[rb58]

I remember that one - can't believe it was over three years ago though! I love the way @User10571 looked so casual when being scalped by a BMX at the top. Lots of shots of my rear end on the ride back to London, mostly trying to keep up with @martint235 . I can't remember if that's the time the rear derailler on @arallsopp 's velomobile exploded before Handcross and he had to do the rest of the ride home as single speed. That was a night/day to remember.

 

[ianrauk]

I remember that one - can't believe it was over three years ago though! I love the way @User10571 looked so casual when being scalped by a BMX at the top. Lots of shots of my rear end on the ride back to London, mostly trying to keep up with @martint235 . I can't remember if that's the time the rear derailler on @arallsopp 's velomobile exploded before Handcross and he had to do the rest of the ride home as single speed. That was a night/day to remember.

That was the vintage vehicle run.
I wasn't on the BMX FNRttC for some reason of which I forget.

 

[_aD]

I've seen it done on a bmx.

I was one of the people clapping madly as you made it to the top. If you were that nutter on a BMX.

 

[theclaud]

I was one of the people clapping madly as you made it to the top. If you were that nutter on a BMX.

Nope that was @iLB!

 

[_aD]

Nope that was @iLB!

There's more than one of your type of nutters? Hoots, mon!

 

[theclaud]

There's more than one of your type of nutters? Hoots, mon!

I've not got a bmx! I'd secretly rather like one, but it would be a bit silly. @User has been seen on one, which was more than a bit silly. For future reference, I don't believe I am easily confusable with @iLB in terms of appearance.

 

[User10571]

Hi,

Yes, well up and down is a bit like how long is the coastline, the harder you look the longer it is.

Its a ludicrous statement it monotonically increases, that there are no downs.

http://veloviewer.com/segment/770191/Ditchling Beacon

Completely disagrees.

rgds, sreten.

Picking a day with the wind in your back would be a good idea.

Love the graphics sreten.
Especially the one with the graduated reflection of the profile.
Onna slightly different note... a few on here will remember Pascal (those who do, will doubtless have stood up as a mark of respect, having read these few words - yes, really)
Pascal picked us up one FNRttC somewhere roundabout Battersea.
He'd gone out to get a pizza on his BSO, bumped into us, was clearly charmed by the idea of riding overnight to Brighters and was still with us at the top of The Beacon - albeit somewhat pooped, while at the same time elated - but then again so were quite a few others....
Indeed, he was still with us at the Madeira.
My point is, Pascal did it onna whim, and lived....
Once you've done The Beacon two or three times, and remembered what to expect, it really isn't that big a deal.
The 'flat-spots' are there for getting your breath back, the 'horses' sign is a provincial myth - you need to reach the chevrons to know you're safe and have completed it. The 'Horses' sign is not the end of the ascent, it is near it.
The single speed rider, referred to earlier as having reached the summit, turned round to go back down and then ascend a second (or indeed, third) time is probably anothersam on here.
There are a few on here who have completed the ascent, turned, descended and then repeated the procedure.
Several times.
It isn't easy, but I can think of harder ascents.
Climbing this one in anything other than next-to-zero-traffic hours would not appeal.
You only have to count the number of busted car door mirrors in the hedgerow to figure out why...

As an aside, I hanker after doing it on the fixer.
But I suspect with my current 69" gear I'd be struggling.
I know of ascents which rb58 has completed on 67", which have left me thwarted and deploying the 24" gear.
I'm (mildly) interested to hear from anyone who has done Ditchling on fixed, and which gear they used.

 

[hepburn]

I did L2B for the first time last year and made it up the Beacon. Not on a single speed but I was on a fairly hefty raleigh mountain bike (I had changed to slicker tyres though). I just kept to a low gear and kept my head down as looking up was too disheartening - that and sheer bl00dy-mindedness got me to the top. I was extremely slow though almost to the point of being stationary and of course being L2B it was busy and loads of people were walking. I'd only started cycling a year before so was so made up that I'd done it. Agree about the false summit - horrible feeling - when I eventually got to the 'real' top I had to double check with the woman next to me that we'd made it.

Did it again this year on a flat bar road bike and it was just as painful. The elation at the top is worth it though and as others have mentioned the descent down the other side is amazing.

 

[_aD]

Would someone please jump in and say they don't know what all the fuss about Ditchling Beacon is about?

 

[theclaud]

I don't know what the fuss about Ditchling Beacon is all about.

 

[slowmotion]

I don't know what the fuss about Ditchling Beacon is all about.

Yeah, it's just a pimple. The downhill bits are a real blast. I got to all of minus 5mph.

 

[swansonj]

Ditching Beacon is Maslow's hierarchy of needs for cyclists. It's because us impoverished cyclists who live in the southeast don't have anything better by way of hills that we expend our quota of hill-angst on Ditchling. If we lived somewhere less domesticated we'd ignore Ditchling and make the same hill-angst about our favourite Bwlch/Bealach/Hardknot/etc. and if we lived in the Alps we'd ignore all of those and expend the same number of internet electrons on our favourite Alpine pass.

 

[Tim Hall]

For future reference, I don't believe I am easily confusable with @iLB in terms of appearance.[/QUOTE]
Different hats for a start:

 

[Arthur]

I've done it fixed on 78" on a FNRttC and, although there were sections where I probably would have been faster if I'd got off and pushed, I made it to the top.
As I recall there was a great sense of personal achievement, and a fair bit of cramp for a while.