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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Don't forget to add in the headwind!
My 20 minute Cragg Vale hill climb challenge
- Thread starter ColinJ
- Start date
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Hacienda71
Mancunian in self imposed exile in leafy Cheshire
- Location
- Wilmslow, Cheshire
I was fairly fit when I tried to break 20 minutes, but had a cross/headwind from the South West. No way I would get near 20 minutes now.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
Seems we are looking at averaging 23.1 km/h up a 3% slope. Bike calc says you need to average 255 watts if your all up weight is 82 kg, to get under 20 mins.
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Who is it? I thought I was the sole member of your fan club!!I've got a fan.
I clocked it yesterday as 294 m of ascent in 7.77 km, which confirms that the average gradient is 3.8%, as stated a few pages back.
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
Then you’ll need to put out 301 watts for an all up weight of 82kg.
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Yes. I was thinking 285 - 310 W on a wind-free day, depending on how low I get my weight, and probably leaving spares, tools and a drink with a companion riding up behind me. Around 4 W/kg, which probably is beyond me now, but let's see how I get on. Yesterday was only about 2.6 W/kg, so a huge improvement would be needed!
Bike calculator suggests that riding on the drops rather than the hoods could save about 16 W, but I don’t normally 'do a Pantani'.
Aerobars would save another 10 W or so, but I have never used them.
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
But... only about 260 W on the hoods at target weight, with a 10 km/h tailwind, equivalent to 3.56 W/kg!
Sea of vapours
Guru
- Location
- Clapham, Yorkshire Dales
That sounds verging on achievable :-)
I made the mistake of mentioning this thread to my performing ferret (AKA Mandy, my civil partner. 'Performing ferret' is her term, not mine). Now she wants to try for the LOL record (little old lady - her term again), meaning 55-64 age group on Strava since she's 60, to add to her collection of age group QOMs.
That requires a time under 21m21s. At the moment, she can deliver a little over 200 watts for a little over twenty minutes, and weighs 48kg. Plugging that into bikecalculator gives a time of 20:54 on a still day, so it looks as if an attempt may be 'necessary'. I'm not entirely confident as she's much better at sustaining high power output on 15% or more gradients, but Colin's attempt seems to have inspired her !
Jameshow
Veteran
Sunday conditions looks like they may be favourable, though COLD!
View attachment 761278
Just look out for the gate and footpath on the right, 350 m before the reservoir!
Oops... My time was significantly worse than I thought. I just discovered how to review lap data on the Wahoo app. 34 m 30 s was what I remembered it being but that must have been when I looked down at the Wahoo as I 'sprinted' (grovelled more quickly) in the last km. I actually took...
... 35 m 55 s!!
I blame the wind, and the big breakfast, and relaxing in the later part of the climb, and the brakes rubbing, and getting old, and those pesky blood clots, but most of all I blame...
... Donald Trump. It's all his fault - how is a cyclist supposed to concentrate when WWIII could break out at any minute?!!
Ok then that's a good minute off then!!!
DCLane
Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
- Location
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
Can I throw a couple more times into the mix?
Son no. 2 who lurks on here -
- did it in 17:17 back in 2019 - https://www.strava.com/activities/2480456805#62447736105
Oh, and Jude Taylor did it in 14:09 on the same event having ridden there and rode the climb with a saddle bag: https://www.strava.com/activities/2480428808#62446881442
Son no. 2 who lurks on here -
- did it in 17:17 back in 2019 - https://www.strava.com/activities/2480456805#62447736105Oh, and Jude Taylor did it in 14:09 on the same event having ridden there and rode the climb with a saddle bag: https://www.strava.com/activities/2480428808#62446881442
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Pah - I am fairly sure that I will be able to manage it in 27:17!!Can I throw one more time into the mix? Son no. 2 who lurks on here -
[Puts reading glasses on...]
Oh, there's some fluff on my phone screen - let me wipe it off... 17:17 - er, pass!!!
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Verging on, yes...
Good luck to her!
She may want to use every last bit of energy in that attempt, but if she has good recovery and wants to make the journey over here more worthwhile then you might both be interested in some more local climbs...?
I don't know if they still do it (?), but the club that organised the annual Cragg Vale hill climb event used to make a weekend of it - 3 hill climb events over the Saturday and Sunday. The other 2 climbs were Bacup Road (heading up from the Rochdale Rd side; shorter and steeper than Cragg Vale) and Pudsey Rd/Shore Rd (from Cornholme; much shorter and much steeper than Cragg Vale). I'm sure that there would be Strava segments for them. You could tackle all 3 in THIS loop, with a bonus climb from Bacup through Weir to Deerplay Moor?
Alternatively, if it had been a cross/headwind on the way up to Blackstone Edge, consider a quick descent of the A58 to Littleborough, u-turn and enjoy cross/tailwind back up the A58 - around half the length of the Cragg Vale climb, but at around 6.5% average gradient.
Craggies is good if you fancy a post Cragg Vale Climb lunch.
Jameshow
Veteran
Can I throw a couple more times into the mix?
Son no. 2 who lurks on here -
Oh, and Jude Taylor did it in 14:09 on the same event having ridden there and rode the climb with a saddle bag: https://www.strava.com/activities/2480428808#62446881442
I didn't need this on top of this....
Sons parkrun time beating mine....
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ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Other hilly segments to look out for in the area...
- Church Lane/Mytholm Steeps, Hebden Bridge - brutal!
- Heptonstall Rd to village - hardish.
- Horsehold Rd, Hebden Bridge - a very tough dead-end road to the hamlet of Horsehold. The road continues to climb beyond the buildings until eventually it comes to a gate.
- Birchcliffe Rd, Hebden Bridge to Mount Skip - 2 tough sections with an easier bit in between.
- Doghouse Ln, Todmorden - tough.
