Average ascent per mile

What is your average climb ratio


  • Total voters
    13
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

lozcs

Guru
Location
Wychbold
After riding the Sunrise Express on Saturday and being told about the Kiddermister Killer,I was told the total ascent which didn't really mean anything to me, I wondered what figure per mile I would consider hard.

I looked at my Endomondo stats since sarting in June 2011

204037 feet or 38.6 miles ascent over 5893 miles travelled

So my average ascent per mile is 34.6 feet or 152.6:1 ratio

Seems very low when I put in a few rides.

Done - Sunrise Express - 4750 feet ascent (0.9 miles) - 74 miles - 64 feet/mile - 82.2:1
Doing - Private ride - 3400 feet ascent (0.644 miles) - 58 miles - 58.6 feet/mile - 90.1:1
Considering - Kidderminster Killer - 9114 feet ascent (1.726 miles) - 132 miles - 69 feet/mile - 76.5:1

What is your ratio?
 

Shut Up Legs

Down Under Member
Mine for last year was about 69, or to take the reciprocal, about 1.45% grade average. I consider figures like these misleading, though, because it's the total grade over the total distance. I tend to measure (using a cycling stats application I wrote, because I'm a bit of a software geek) the average grade over the ascending part of my rides, and the average grade over the descending part of my rides. These for last year were approx. 3.5% and -3.5%, respectively (pretty hilly, in other words).

Note: I haven't heard of people measuring grades using the reciprocal as you mention above. Consider the phrase "average ascent per mile" that you used - this is literally "ascent / distance_travelled", in other words, for your riding it is 1/152.6, not 152.6/1. The latter is still a valid measure, but I just haven't heard of anyone using it :smile: .
 

MickeyBlueEyes

Eat, Sleep, Ride, Repeat.
Location
Derbyshire
Note: I haven't heard of people measuring grades using the reciprocal as you mention above. Consider the phrase "average ascent per mile" that you used - this is literally "ascent / distance_travelled", in other words, for your riding it is 1/152.6, not 152.6/1. The latter is still a valid measure, but I just haven't heard of anyone using it :smile: .

I use a similar equation to see if my speed is improving. I don't like to use just the average mph as this is a factor of elevation, so I use (distance(ft)/elevation(ft))/av. mph = x
This gives a value that in true terms doesn't seem to mean much but is comparable with one another to see my true performance.
 

Ningishzidda

Senior Member
I did the Snowdrop. I don't keep any records of climbing. The Audax Altitude Award has been modified to 1 point per 1000 m climbing, instead of the formula, so everybody gets more points.
There weren't any hills on the Snowdrop.
I'm riding a reliability Sportive next Sunday which has two Cat 4 climbs. There are three other climbs which just miss the grade, but would be Cat 5 if that existed.
 
OP
OP
lozcs

lozcs

Guru
Location
Wychbold
I haven't heard of people measuring grades using the reciprocal as you mention above. Consider the phrase "average ascent per mile" that you used - this is literally "ascent / distance_travelled", in other words, for your riding it is 1/152.6, not 152.6/1. The latter is still a valid measure, but I just haven't heard of anyone using it :smile: .

As you can probably gather, I'm no mathematician - just looking for some sort of figure I could use to compare.
 
OP
OP
lozcs

lozcs

Guru
Location
Wychbold
I use a similar equation to see if my speed is improving. I don't like to use just the average mph as this is a factor of elevation, so I use (distance(ft)/elevation(ft))/av. mph = x
This gives a value that in true terms doesn't seem to mean much but is comparable with one another to see my true performance.

Interesting - I'll have a look at mine.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
In the Peaks, it's usual to average 100 feet of climb per mile. A flat Cheshire ride you'd expect about 30 feet per mile (Manchester 100 does about 3000 feet in 100 miles and it's as flat as you get).
 

Ningishzidda

Senior Member
Don’t use ‘average’ in this statistic, because if the first 10 ft of climbing is in the first half inch of a 1 mile ride, although its 10 ft per mile, you won’t get to the first foot of the distance.

Now that’s what I call ‘Hitting the wall early.” :laugh:
 

Ningishzidda

Senior Member
There are four methods of assessing the climbing in a bike ride. First is the ft / mile method. Second is the Audax Club Parisienne Points formula. Third is the Audax United Kingdom points calculation, and last but not least is the TdF KOM catagory structure.

There are others which appear on bicycle statistics websites, but IMHO, these are not nationally recognised.

The two British systems are straight forward and simple. AUK award 1 point for every 1000 metres climbed in the ride.
The French methods use calculations and pose problems to the uninitiated. The ACP formula has been published and old AUK members probably have the spreadsheet somewhere. The TdF calcs have never been published and are only explained verbally to very distinguished cyclists.
 
OP
OP
lozcs

lozcs

Guru
Location
Wychbold
Don’t use ‘average’ in this statistic, because if the first 10 ft of climbing is in the first half inch of a 1 mile ride, although its 10 ft per mile, you won’t get to the first foot of the distance.

Now that’s what I call ‘Hitting the wall early.” :laugh:

Exactly...

The second ride on my list.....

Doing - Private ride - 3400 feet ascent (0.644 miles) - 58 miles - 58.6 feet/mile - 90.1:1

...is Birmingham to Peak District is probably much like that I suspect - all at the end though..
 

gaz

Cycle Camera TV
Location
South Croydon
Over my 3 years of using a garmin. 34.9:1 Most of the miles done when commuting.
A nice ride up box hill and titsey hill makes it around 62:1
 

Ningishzidda

Senior Member
Exactly...

The second ride on my list.....



...is Birmingham to Peak District is probably much like that I suspect - all at the end though..

Once did the Castleton Classic the wrong way round. Started outside the Gracechurch Centre in Sutton Coldfield and rode to Ashbourne and then Bakewell. Then to Hope & Castleton and then up Winnats. Came back through Buxton, Leek, Uttoxeter, Lichfield and back to Sutton Coldfield.
 
Top Bottom