Long climbs!

anto164

Hey all.

Just a quick question.

I've been riding a road bike now for 3 months, doing alright (I can ride 50mi of rolling routes with an ave of 18mph), and now i fancy doing a route i've driven a few times in the car.

This is the route

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/ho ... -pass-ride

Basically from the middle of llangollen, up the horseshoe pass, and round the back of llandegla woods over worlds end and back to llangollen.

Now, as i live on the coast, and on a peninsular, there's no real hill training. But i'm wanting to do this ride next week before i go back to work after a few weeks off. Just wondering what the best method of attack is for the long hills (about 2/3rs of the way up, the horseshoe turns to a 20pc hill for just over half a mile). Just a case of spinning, spinning, and more spinning? It's only a 'short' ride, but it's about 4x the climbing i've ever done in one long ride, but in a much shorter ride instead.

BTW, i'll do a quick loop of the back roads of llangollen to get warmed up before starting the ride.

Chris James

anto164 wrote:

Hey all.

Just a quick question.

I've been riding a road bike now for 3 months, doing alright (I can ride 50mi of rolling routes with an ave of 18mph), and now i fancy doing a route i've driven a few times in the car.
Just wondering what the best method of attack is for the long hills[/b] (about 2/3rs of the way up, the horseshoe turns to a 20pc hill for just over half a mile). Just a case of spinning, spinning, and more spinning? It's only a 'short' ride, but it's about 4x the climbing i've ever done in one long ride, but in a much shorter ride instead.

18mph over a rolling 50 miles sounds pretty good going. I can't imagine you having any problems on the Horseshoe Pass.

I think you may be over stating the steepness a bit. 20% for half a mile is a climb of 160m. Looking at the map the whole Horseshoe Pass climb (which, IIRC, is about 3 miles long?) rises about 330m, so I can't believe half the height gain is in a sixth of the distance?

It is probably 15 years since I last rode it, but I recall it is a steady climb, steepening just after the Britannia Inn and then easing again as you enter the inside of the Horsehoe. Definitely climbable seated and spinning.

The route over World’s End is lovely. As kids we used to ride out of Chester over World’s End, then the Horseshoe and Llandegla back again. The descent into Llangollen was hair raising as we barely braked. If a car had been coming the other way then I wouldn’t be typing this!

anto164

I quoted 20pc as it says 20pc on the climb on the way up (Noticed that on the road sign)

Does get pretty steep from the second sharp right on the shoe up to the top.

http://www.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source ... 41,,0,7.89

Chris James

The sign means max 20% and bends for 1/2 mile, not 20% for half a mile. The view linked is the section I was trying to explain.

I recall the climb out of Minera to World's End has the steepest ramp of your ride.

I was just trying to suggest that you obviously have decent fitness and power from the your rolling rides, so I wouldn't worry about the climbs as they aren't too bad.

When I used to ride that route as a teenager I was on a 5 speed Raleigh Winner (i.e. 5 gears in total - bottom gear prob something like 44/24), made out of gas piping (high tensile steel), big 27 x 1 1/4 in tyres with a saddle bag, full tool kit, oiled canvas type cape, sandwiches etc so if I could get up the Horseshoe Pass then, I am sure you'll blitz it!

Anyway, I am sure you will enjoy your ride. Since the Pass will be very shortly into the ride I would take it steady as personally it takes me about 45 mins to warm up properly. I am over to visit my parents in Chester at the end of August and, wife and kids permitting, you have inspired me to try to relive my youth on one of the days.