National Route 32, Cornwall; Roadie or MTB?

[russ.will]

I've checked the garage and have forgotten to buy a 'gravel' bike as a do-it-all-if-you-don't-know-where-you're-going bike. I'll be less than a mile from National Route 32 for two weeks in the summer, so that seems a good place just to keep the legs turning and spend some quality time away from the family.

Is it all roadie friendly? The bits I've Google Street Mapped seem to look the part, so I'm definitely wanting to take my prefered modus operandi - Probably the P-X RT58 (don't really fancy leaving the KTM in a tent during the rest of the day when we're out) with it's get-out-of-jail 32 tooth rear cog.

Just wondering what the experience of others has been?

 

[Saluki]

Your Roadie should be fine. I've taken my Roadie all the way up and down the Camel Trail part of Route 32 and it's been absolutely fine.
Keep to the left when you hit St Eval and go to Newquay via the Airport route, unless you really like climbing. If that's the case, go to the right and the best of British Luck. I got off and walked up most of those hills

 

[Ajax Bay]

This thread (link to my post within) may be useful.
I have cycled nearly all the NCN32 on a road bike this spring, except the bit south of Goonhavern. All fine (Camel Trail comments in link above). Route north from A30 to Newquay through St Newlyn East is fine, some roads quite narrow and some steep, up and down, Through Newquay avoid school start/end times. In my opinion nicer to pick up the coast road for a bit NE of Newquay (rather than NCN32, NB hills) and then drop into and UP out of St Mawgan village before picking up NCN32 going N to Padstow. Padstow to Rock ferry worth taking and this gives access to the B3314 NE towards Delabole. Drop SE through St Teath and Michaelstow and across to NCN3 at Wenfordbridge which runs down the valley (off road, good surface) to(wards) Bodmin picking up the fork of the Camel Trail. Then back up to Padstow and follow NCN32. Here's a route.

 

[russ.will]

Well, I have just returned from the End of the Land and in the end, I took the MTB and the KTM roadie. I also went and met a couple of roadie mates I haven't seen for 9 years and did a 30 mile loop out Hatt, north of Plymouth, up and around the Tamar Valley. Speaking as a heavy bloke (who can get into the top 10% of his local, very flat!) Strava Segments, my experiences were thus:

The locals had a 32 tooth rear cog. I didn't and had to walk near the top of a longish 15-20% climb and up half of a 25% climb. To be fair, one of the locals got off and walked as I passed him on foot up the latter, which I'm sure our host threw in just for the novelty. It was hard work, but 15% were manageable with a compact chain set and 28 tooth rear cog, but I really wish I'd had the bail out gear! Down hill sections were simply a revelation for this dweller of the Flat Lands.

NC32 (perhaps because of the weather, which was crap) has a lot of sections which are basically tyre track wide with a ridge of mud/stone/crap in the middle of the road and stays damp under the frequent sections covered by trees. Disk brakes or not, you don't get to relax on a lot of the downhills, having made the effort to get up there in the first place. When you meet a car, it fills the road, but they are mercifully rare.

As such, for local/NC32 rides, I tended to take the MTB, if only for the gearing. That said, I found that knobbly tyres get a bit 'vague' around corners as you approach 40mph downhill on tarmac, but it was good fun.

All in all, I loved it.