Triples are for wimps
Comments
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<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by WindyRob</i>
you may have got up it on a <b>23/39</b> but you must have stopped a couple of dozen times to take the photo's....so does it still count as getting up on a <b>23/39</b>[;)]
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Just noticed - <b>23/39</b> - I think I could climb a 33% hill with that gear, but the difficulty would be keeping both wheels down at the same time!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by oldwelshman</i>
By the way, in my album below you can see me struggling up a very hard climb, up to 28% in a couple of section, 2 miles in total, using 39/23 admittedly struggling hanging on the bars [:D], <b>nice view though</b>.
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A <b>very</b> nice view - where was it - somewhere in Wales? I'd definitely use my full range of gears round there!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by peejay78</i>
hi colin - when i ride out of allerton and through hebden, around, trawden, denholm, mytholmroyd and that really really steep hill that goes up out of thornton to the highest parish in engliand (or something) i use my standard road double.
<b>the climb up out of hebden to the pub/inn on the corner and then round and across the moor is quite harsh and long.</b>
winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv
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Hi PJ. That climb of Oxenhope Moor is long rather than steep. It's about 7 km in length, but I don't think the steepest part at the bottom is much more than about (what?) 11% - 12%. I used to ride up that fairly comfortably in 39/23. I'm sure that I wouldn't like to now though, at least not until I lose the spare tyre round my waist!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
I rode from Leeds to Halifax to pick up a couple of mates and did that route. Bianchi SL3(2004) with Veloce 10(39x23), it was a long drag, but presented no problems.
The same friends and I took on the 33% killer climbs in the lakes and I managed all bar the 1st one of the day on 39x23. It wasn't the gearing that got me, I didn't control my breathing and blew up.
I used to have a dawes galaxy with triple and it would have been far easier, but I don't like the fact that my legs are spinning so fast when I'm doing like 3mph! [;)] It just feels sooo wrong.
Each to their own. I'm sure the time will come when I need a triple for climbing, but as a 40yr old I'm happy I can do without it for now.0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by TechnoBuddhist</i>
I rode from Leeds to Halifax to pick up a couple of mates and did that route. Bianchi SL3(2004) with Veloce 10(39x23), it was a long drag, but presented no problems.
The same friends and I took on the 33% killer climbs in the lakes and I managed all bar the 1st one of the day on 39x23. It wasn't the gearing that got me, I didn't control my breathing and blew up.
I used to have a dawes galaxy with triple and it would have been far easier, but I don't like the fact that my legs are spinning so fast when I'm doing like 3mph! [;)] It just feels sooo wrong.
Each to their own. I'm sure the time will come when I need a triple for climbing, but as a 40yr old I'm happy I can do without it for now.
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Well, I do confess to being 51 years old, but I didn't like higher gears when I was younger either! I have a pretty good cardio-vascular system so I don't usually find getting breathless to be my problem. I don't have tremendously strong legs, and I have a weak back so it is better for me to put more of the climbing burden on my heart and lungs rather than the strength of my muscles; that means spinning lower gears. I'm used to it from mountain biking, but other people have commented on the fact that I do it and that it looks a bit odd.
There is a counter-argument that if I pushed higher gears more of the time I would develop the strength necessary to be comfortable with them. I do actually do this when hills are short enough to power my way up them, but I hate labouring over a high gear on longer climbs.
I always wondered why Jan Ullrich persisted on churning a high gear on big climbs as he watched Lance Armstrong spin away from him. He probably tried using lower gears and felt it was <i>sooo wrong</i> too! I think it is an acquired taste.
Anyway, it doesn't really bother me what gears other people use. As you say, each to his or her own.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
Anyway, all this gearing stuff aside...
I chose a cheeky title for the thread to attract interest in it, and it has worked because over 800 people have read it since this morning. Unfortunately, most of the discussion has been about gears, whereas I was really more interested in the hill! My mistake - sorry.
I'd be interested in seeing slideshows of other people's local killer climbs too.
Oldwelshman's was good. Any more links?
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
the bit up to peckets mill, rising out of hebden, if you sort of go right as you go up, not quite the main route, up through the town/village and up to some weird pub at the top, can't remember the naem, mount skip? before gooing right along and then across the moor - the first bit is steep, i think, not sure how steep, but 'tis steep.
winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by peejay78</i>
the bit up to peckets mill, rising out of hebden, if you sort of go right as you go up, not quite the main route, up through the town/village and up to some weird pub at the top, can't remember the naem, mount skip? before gooing right along and then across the moor - the first bit is steep, i think, not sure how steep, but 'tis steep.
winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv
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Ah - PJ, it was you I plotted that route for last year wasn't it - doh! Yeah, you took a wrong turn. The main road climb of the A6033 is what I was talking about. The first section of that to <i>Pecket Well</i> is the 11%-12% bit I mentioned.
You went up <i>Birchcliffe</i>, now that's a different beast altogether! The first section is probably about 12% then it rears up round a bend to about 16%-17% for about 250 metres. It eases off to about 6% for a while round the next bend, then it kicks up to 20% a few times on the way up to the Mount Skip. That used to be a pub, but it was sold and is now a B&B. It's a pity because it was a fantastic place to have a pint watching the sun go down - brilliant views.
The first time I rode up Birchcliffe was after a workmate who lived up there issued a challenge. He stated that he'd never seen a cyclist actually ride up past his house - they all walked. Of course I had to try it. I rode it that evening, all the way to the top, but unfortunately he wasn't looking out of his window at the time. I think that I had a 40/28 bottom gear on that bike. I found it hard, but doable.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
Ok, it's not local but Ventoux (from Malaucene). ~1600m in 21km.
Profile info:
http://www.ulb.ac.be/di/ssd/ldoyen/e/ventoux.html
It hurt an awful lot with 39/26 (as did Alpe d'Huez).
--
If I had a baby elephant signature, I'd use that.--
If I had a baby elephant signature, I\'d use that.0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by ColinJ</i>
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by oldwelshman</i>
By the way, in my album below you can see me struggling up a very hard climb, up to 28% in a couple of section, 2 miles in total, using 39/23 admittedly struggling hanging on the bars [:D], <b>nice view though</b>.
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A <b>very</b> nice view - where was it - somewhere in Wales? I'd definitely use my full range of gears round there!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
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Yes the climb is in South wales, only about 7 miles North of Cardiff just off the main A470 at Pontypridd.
It is not a well known climb as it climbs from Pontypridd to a village where I was born, Abertridwr.
It is apprx 2 miles long, steep start, then eases for half a mile then get progressively steeper over next half mile going from 10% to 15% then 20% and 28% and just when your lungs are bursting after getting over the 28% it lessens to about 10% over a cattle grid so you have to speed up over the 3mph for the grid [:D] then there is one last steep bit.
I have ridden over some nice climbs in the dales, North Wales Gran Fondo, Dragon Yesterday, Cleeve hill last week, but this hill is the closest I get to wanting to get off.
It is weird because I have climbed it on 42/21, 39/23, 39/25 and 39/27 and it feels exactly the same [:D]
I think when the hills arethat steep it is just a matter of ploughing through and the lower gear did not really make that much difference.
Feel free to browse and donate:
http://www.justgiving.com/davidbethanmills
My winter and summer bike pics
http://oldwelshman.myphotoalbum.com0 -
that's right colin - when i went back a few months ago i made a beeline for birchcliffe again. i love it, it's a real hill.
winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Greenbank</i>
Ok, it's not local but Ventoux (from Malaucene). ~1600m in 21km.
Profile info:
http://www.ulb.ac.be/di/ssd/ldoyen/e/ventoux.html
It hurt an awful lot with 39/26 (as did Alpe d'Huez).
--
If I had a baby elephant signature, I'd use that.
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Gulp! I really want to try 'proper' climbs like that but until I sort my back out, it won't be possible, triple or no triple. I can't even cope with Saddleworth Moor at the moment and that only averages about 6.5% for 5km. I actually seem to cope better with shorter steeper climbs. Long moderately steep ones really get to my lumbar muscles [:(].
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0
