What is the hardest climb in the UK?

Ben6899

itboffin wrote:

noodleman wrote:

Can't say I've travelled the whole of the UK but bushcombe hill in Gloucestershire was voted toughest climb in the south of England. I'm sure there's probably others up north but it really is a beast. Only just under a mile long but goes from easy into a 20%, before a bend leads you to 25% and then a 30% incline.
It's pretty narrow so if you meet a car it's a tight squeeze or sometimes a dismount, which is infuriating if you're near the top.

when i stumbled across it there was a local classic car drive passing through, leaded petrol fumes :evil:

What year was this? 4 Star/leaded has been unavailable since ~2000, I think. Do people have private stores of it, that they squirrelled away?

(the carbs were probably just running rich in order to keep the old engines ticking over)

itboffin

It wasn't that long ago maybe six years actually it might have been even longer but anyhow it was lead for sure

pinno

bompington wrote:

del1971 wrote:

Brian... quiet.

This...Lochranza.
I've never really cycled in "mainland" Ayrshire but the best terrain must surely be in the south-east towards the Galloway hills.

If you're looking for hills, it's not really. There's more climbs in the Machars and the Rhins (to the South and the East of Galloway forest park) than the Galloway hills. Most of the routes go through the valleys. Using Newton Stewart as a base, the routes to New Galloway, Glentrool and on to Girvan are very gently rolling and there aren't actually many climbs as such. The road rises to Glentrool village but it's a long false flat that follows the river.

As far as quiet roads are concerned, they are excellent for that.

For some leg breaking climbing (short and sharp), you need to go to Kircudbrightshire and take the coast road to Dalbeattie and then on to Colvend on the Solway Coastal route. From Kircudbright to Dalbeattie and up to Castle Douglas, then loop back across the top to Kircudbright, is a monster of a ride with 5 biggish climbs and a couple of smaller one's. The Solway coast route from Dalbeattie towards Dumfries is very hilly but the road is narrow in parts and cars scream past. It would be a great ride but for the traffic.

torquerulesok

Alex222 wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Box Hill

Beat me to it

You need to get out more!

Try Holme Moss from the south on a Brompton - Box Hill is a walk in the park compared to HM.

edindevon

It's by no means up there with the climbs in the other parts of the UK, but the road up to Honiton Golf Club is pretty challenging and evidently the 30% incline on the corner at the top was too much for this HGV. I must admit I'd be wary of the surface for a few weeks.





http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-37858661

AS1968_12

Haytor is the hardest one I've done in the UK but Hardknott looks much more difficult!

lakesluddite

The toughest for me is HardKnott, but the ascent of Wrynose from the east (Little Langdale) runs it quite close. Wrynose is probably less technical, having fewer tight turns, but probably burning the same amount of matches (all of 'em!)

Anyone done The Corkscrew in Cheshire? Read this in the cyclist mag - looks pretty brutal!

http://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/1775/ ... e-cheshire

bobmcstuff

LakesLuddite wrote:

The toughest for me is HardKnott, but the ascent of Wrynose from the east (Little Langdale) runs it quite close. Wrynose is probably less technical, having fewer tight turns, but probably burning the same amount of matches (all of 'em!)

Anyone done The Corkscrew in Cheshire? Read this in the cyclist mag - looks pretty brutal!

http://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/1775/ ... e-cheshire

No, although I have been past the way to it and have done the other climbs there (Pym's Chair, Windgather, Blaze Hill, Brickworks, and Hooleyhey Lane etc) many times.

It seems to be one way though, so difficult to incorporate into a route unless you want to go up and back, unless you want to keep going on a footpath.

MikeBrew

Surely it's the one (climb) out of bed on a November, Monday morning in dear old blighty..... :oops:

sloppyschleckonds

MikeBrew wrote:

Surely it's the one (climb) out of bed on a November, Monday morning in dear old blighty..... :oops:

Good one Mike, I took the decision to Nitrate load last night for this mornings ride, attack the day!

pinno

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

MikeBrew wrote:

Surely it's the one (climb) out of bed on a November, Monday morning in dear old blighty..... :oops:

Good one Mike, I took the decision to Nitrate load last night for this mornings ride, attack the day!

Fertiliser?! I thought that was a banned PED.

sloppyschleckonds

Pinno wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

MikeBrew wrote:

Surely it's the one (climb) out of bed on a November, Monday morning in dear old blighty..... :oops:

Good one Mike, I took the decision to Nitrate load last night for this mornings ride, attack the day!

Fertiliser?! I thought that was a banned PED.

I rescinded my British Cycling membership to avoid being tested

pinno

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Pinno wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

MikeBrew wrote:

Surely it's the one (climb) out of bed on a November, Monday morning in dear old blighty..... :oops:

Good one Mike, I took the decision to Nitrate load last night for this mornings ride, attack the day!

Fertiliser?! I thought that was a banned PED.

I rescinded my British Cycling membership to avoid being tested

...and you don't munch Silage, fair enough.

mac9091

The hardest one i have done locally is Challacombe. Its no7 in the UK top 100 (no idea whos came up with the list or if its official or not)

https://www.strava.com/segments/6665368

Followed closely by Smuggling climb. I'm pretty gutted as i unofficially have a time 1min 32 seconds off the fastest time but i'd stopped at the start of the segment (unknown to me) at a rest stop during the "2016 Smuggler" and it included my rest time as well. Absolutley gutted when i realised.

https://www.strava.com/segments/7338034

carbonclem

Ben6899 wrote:

itboffin wrote:

noodleman wrote:

Can't say I've travelled the whole of the UK but bushcombe hill in Gloucestershire was voted toughest climb in the south of England. I'm sure there's probably others up north but it really is a beast. Only just under a mile long but goes from easy into a 20%, before a bend leads you to 25% and then a 30% incline.
It's pretty narrow so if you meet a car it's a tight squeeze or sometimes a dismount, which is infuriating if you're near the top.

when i stumbled across it there was a local classic car drive passing through, leaded petrol fumes :evil:

What year was this? 4 Star/leaded has been unavailable since ~2000, I think. Do people have private stores of it, that they squirrelled away?

(the carbs were probably just running rich in order to keep the old engines ticking over)

4 star is still available, there is an outlet in Gloucestershire for it too. Bushcombe is near Prestbury, home of the hill climb and Bugatti country, so quite feasible that the enthusiasts would be pretty hardcore.

bianchimoon

bompington wrote:

del1971 wrote:

Brian B, in my opinion the best cycling in Ayrshire requires a ferry ride to Arran. It's 56 undulating miles round the coast and also has two roads that cross it (the Ross and the String) which both rise steeply from sea level to about 300m, so plenty of scope for long or short routes. It has a mix of everything, amazing scenery and the roads are generally quiet.

This indeed. I hopped across the island on my way to Kintyre on a beautiful day at the start of October, going the long way round to Lochranza - I'll need to come back and do the figure-8 of the whole island some day soon. You should stop at the sandwich shop in Lochranza.
I've never really cycled in "mainland" Ayrshire but the best terrain must surely be in the south-east towards the Galloway hills.

definitely, did clockwise loop from Lochranza a couple of years ago, some great roads on the west side of the island and a nice lunch at the Kinloch Hotel in Blackwaterfoot

thiscocks

meanredspider wrote:

kiteloopy wrote:

shaunclaridge wrote:

I have a sprinters body so anything above 25% is pretty much a no go.

I honestly dont think Streatley is too bad. I could get up that with my compact when I was 18 stone... its 'orrible, but its doable

Really? now I feel bad. :oops:
27...peak ironman fitness... with 34x28 and I still couldn't get past the house entrance on left. :oops: :oops:

I slow down have have to unclip & it's game over from thereon in.

I think this is most of what "hardest" is about: the absolute gradient. I've not been stopped by any hill I could actually pedal on: what stops me is when I simply can't get the bike to move quick enough to stay upright. That's usually combined with trying to keep the front wheel on the ground. Shorter gears don't help you if you're going too slow to keep the bike upright.

...so when its so hard you cant pedal. :?

meanredspider

thiscocks wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

kiteloopy wrote:

shaunclaridge wrote:

I have a sprinters body so anything above 25% is pretty much a no go.

I honestly dont think Streatley is too bad. I could get up that with my compact when I was 18 stone... its 'orrible, but its doable

Really? now I feel bad. :oops:
27...peak ironman fitness... with 34x28 and I still couldn't get past the house entrance on left. :oops: :oops:

I slow down have have to unclip & it's game over from thereon in.

I think this is most of what "hardest" is about: the absolute gradient. I've not been stopped by any hill I could actually pedal on: what stops me is when I simply can't get the bike to move quick enough to stay upright. That's usually combined with trying to keep the front wheel on the ground. Shorter gears don't help you if you're going too slow to keep the bike upright.

...so when its so hard you cant pedal. :?

At the risk of opening up the whole "strength" discussion, I have good leg strength so I've never had this problem - what stops me on those inclines is keeping the front wheel on the ground. The outcome is the same... I have a forest out the back of my house in Scotland and the route into it goes up a brutal sharp slope - with my MTB it's easier to pedal with the really short gearing but I can only just manage to keep the front wheel down enough to make it up the climb (provided I concentrate).

pinno

meanredspider wrote:

thiscocks wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

kiteloopy wrote:

shaunclaridge wrote:

I have a sprinters body so anything above 25% is pretty much a no go.

I honestly dont think Streatley is too bad. I could get up that with my compact when I was 18 stone... its 'orrible, but its doable

Really? now I feel bad. :oops:
27...peak ironman fitness... with 34x28 and I still couldn't get past the house entrance on left. :oops: :oops:

I slow down have have to unclip & it's game over from thereon in.

I think this is most of what "hardest" is about: the absolute gradient. I've not been stopped by any hill I could actually pedal on: what stops me is when I simply can't get the bike to move quick enough to stay upright. That's usually combined with trying to keep the front wheel on the ground. Shorter gears don't help you if you're going too slow to keep the bike upright.

...so when its so hard you cant pedal. :?

At the risk of opening up the whole "strength" discussion, I have good leg strength so I've never had this problem - what stops me on those inclines is keeping the front wheel on the ground. The outcome is the same... I have a forest out the back of my house in Scotland and the route into it goes up a brutal sharp slope - with my MTB it's easier to pedal with the really short gearing but I can only just manage to keep the front wheel down enough to make it up the climb (provided I concentrate).

Can't you go up it O'Bree style? Or maybe a breeze block and a length of rope.

meanredspider

Pinno wrote:

Can't you go up it O'Bree style? Or maybe a breeze block and a length of rope.

Ha - there's a thought! The first couple of times I tried, I went off the back of the bike :oops:

pinno

meanredspider wrote:

Pinno wrote:

Can't you go up it O'Bree style? Or maybe a breeze block and a length of rope.

Ha - there's a thought! The first couple of times I tried, I went off the back of the bike :oops:

Ooh f*ck. I think getting up a 40% doesn't necessarily make you a man.

meanredspider

Pinno wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

Pinno wrote:

Can't you go up it O'Bree style? Or maybe a breeze block and a length of rope.

Ha - there's a thought! The first couple of times I tried, I went off the back of the bike :oops:

Ooh f*ck. I think getting up a 40% doesn't necessarily make you a man.

Yes - but the challenge was just the balance. I killed myself laughing when I fell off

Coming down again is nearly as fun - the steepness and the forest floor mean that there's no stopping - locked rear wheel much of the way down as there's a tree smacking in front of the little footbridge

pinno

meanredspider wrote:

Pinno wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

Pinno wrote:

Can't you go up it O'Bree style? Or maybe a breeze block and a length of rope.

Ha - there's a thought! The first couple of times I tried, I went off the back of the bike :oops:

Ooh f*ck. I think getting up a 40% doesn't necessarily make you a man.

Yes - but the challenge was just the balance. I killed myself laughing when I fell off

Coming down again is nearly as fun - the steepness and the forest floor mean that there's no stopping - locked rear wheel much of the way down as there's a tree smacking in front of the little footbridge

Well, when you next fancy having a go at the North Face of the Eiger again, please take a vid.