Seriously Steep Hills

[endoman]

Winnats pass last week, had to stop, that was a mistake, cos clipping back in was very very difficult on that gradient.

 

[Banjo]

As Colin J suggested , any hill is hard if the gearing is too high. Even the pros gear down for the big climbs so why ordinary riders persist in straining on 39/25 or worse is beyond me.

I have 30/28 available or would consider something like Sram Apex with 34/32 if I really didnt want a triple.

Abergwesyn Road near Lynne Brianne, I think its steeper than that in places.(The sign tells you what to do )

 

[dan_bo]

The road of death. Savage.

 

[HLaB]

The steepest road I've been up is the one to Castle Campbell in Dollar some say it maxes at 30% with an average of 15% but I think my Garmin max of 24% is more realistic as my 39-25 Bianchi got up it and its quite short too (about 0.9km) and thats more in line with Bike Hike, which give an average of 14.6%. If you include the 0.5km from the Main Street though its only 10.5% average.

 

[HLaB]

Me too.

On hills like that with sharp bends I'd rather climb than descend. I'm a nervous descender.

+1 There are a few hills near me which are sharper on one side than the other, I always go up the sharper side. The One Exception was Glen Quaich which was 50 miles out, when I got to the top it started to drizzle, coming down on the steeper enclosed hair pin bends wasn't enjoyable for me, plus I managed to break a front spoke literally track standing down the hill

 

[gaz]

Looks a little different at the top there now, and a few more houses on the way down, but that's the hill I used to cycle up on the way to school. I used to come home the longer way coz I didn't like coming down that one.

I've thought about going up it but there is always a stream of cars going up an down so I don't think it is the best idea.

 

[Bayerd]

Any of the three climbs from slaithwaite towards the A640. Steep (>1:4 at some points), hairpins, the lot. mint.

Strines is good as well.

My favourite route up that way is up Marsden Lane past Slawit Hall. By the time you've got to Pole Moor you've climed nearly 1000ft in just over 3 miles and with the sun shining like this, have a guess where I'm going.......

The road of death. Savage.

I haven't climbed that yet, but it's on the list...

 

[Beaker39]

Herdest one I have had the misfortune to climb so far was Ridge Road/Doghouse Lane in Todmorden. It was orribly steep Not sure how long it was but probably felt worse on a cold, damp March morning with no warm up straight out of the HQ.

Still makes me feel uneasy just thinking about it

 

[MacB]

I've thought about going up it but there is always a stream of cars going up an down so I don't think it is the best idea.

I'd guess it's busier these days and looks to have been made a bit more car friendly. I can remember that last bend, followed by the final kicker, catching cars out. I can't tell from your video, or my memory, if that has been smoothed out, widened, a bit, it certainly doesn't look as sharp/narrow as I remember. Or maybe it was just the cars in those days

But a lot has changed around there, the main road at the roundabout, A22?, is now a dual carriageway and there's been a lot of house/flat building. When i lived there the road at the bottom, Court Bushes, had about 4 large houses and maybe 10 smaller houses on it. Last time I was there it was loads of flats where the big houses had been, so that would massively increase the local traffic. I'm also led to believe that the smaller houses are all gone to be replaced by more flats.

Out of rush hour I've cycled, and run , up Succumbs Hill plenty of times without seeing a single car in either direction, I guess that's no longer on the cards.

 

[Sonofpear]

The only real climbs I've done were Hartside pass and crawleyside bank on the coast to coast a couple of months back. No idea of the gradient but I remember crawleyside being pretty steep at the start. Hartside was less so just seemed to go on and on and on.

 

[lukesdad]

As Colin J suggested , any hill is hard if the gearing is too high. Even the pros gear down for the big climbs so why ordinary riders persist in straining on 39/25 or worse is beyond me.

I have 30/28 available or would consider something like Sram Apex with 34/32 if I really didnt want a triple.

Abergwesyn Road near Lynne Brianne, I think its steeper than that in places.(The sign tells you what to do )

..and thats the easy side of the devils staircase

 

[gaz]

I'd guess it's busier these days and looks to have been made a bit more car friendly. I can remember that last bend, followed by the final kicker, catching cars out. I can't tell from your video, or my memory, if that has been smoothed out, widened, a bit, it certainly doesn't look as sharp/narrow as I remember. Or maybe it was just the cars in those days

But a lot has changed around there, the main road at the roundabout, A22?, is now a dual carriageway and there's been a lot of house/flat building. When i lived there the road at the bottom, Court Bushes, had about 4 large houses and maybe 10 smaller houses on it. Last time I was there it was loads of flats where the big houses had been, so that would massively increase the local traffic. I'm also led to believe that the smaller houses are all gone to be replaced by more flats.

Out of rush hour I've cycled, and run , up Succumbs Hill plenty of times without seeing a single car in either direction, I guess that's no longer on the cards.

It's still pretty sharp round there, you have to change into first to get up it.

 

[dan_bo]

My favourite route up that way is up Marsden Lane past Slawit Hall. By the time you've got to Pole Moor you've climed nearly 1000ft in just over 3 miles and with the sun shining like this, have a guess where I'm going.......







I haven't climbed that yet, but it's on the list...

Is that the one that starts at the Silent Lady? Bugger if it is.

 

[PpPete]

Abbotsbury on the famous "Dorset Coast" 200km Audax ride has a beaut. I reckon 17% -18% for about 2/3rd of a mile. Good view from the top though http://www.panoramio.com/photo/16611156?source=wapi&referrer=kh.google.com
Raginnis Hill (coming out of Mousehole in Cornwall) is good too.

Hardknott is something else though. Still not succeeded on that.

 

[Racing Snake]

I recently took part in the Pendle Predator. That had a succession of 17%ers with a nasty wall at the end 22% for half a mile it was savage, and I will not be in a hurry to go back.