How hilly is your ride

[briantrumpet]

I think a psychologist or social historian may be more use, as surely it's more that whoever laid out Norfolk's roads was more sadistic?

Or maybe a keen cyclist, who realised that you need to make best use of the little bumps you have there.

 

[Sbudge]

Or maybe a keen cyclist, who realised that you need to make best use of the little bumps you have there.

It's the same in the Chilterns, most of the sharper ones get steeper towards the top. The hill we live on starts at 6% and ends at 18% which isn't unusual....what's nasty is the council puts gradient signs up based on averages. So we get more than a few folk thinking:-
1) "Oooh 10%, looks like a challenge, I reckon I/we can get up that"
2) "This is easier than I thought, no probs"
3) "Oh ****!"

 

[briantrumpet]

It's the same in the Chilterns, most of the sharper ones get steeper towards the top.

There are some hills like that north of Sidmouth, for instance Chineway Hill out of Ottery:

Apparently this is a greensand escarpment - it's a ridge that runs from Sidmouth to Honiton, with an amazingly flat top, and steep upper slopes. www.devon.gov.uk/geo-devonrocksgeologyguide.pdf

 

[Sbudge]

There are some hills like that north of Sidmouth, for instance Chineway Hill out of Ottery:

Apparently this is a greensand escarpment - it's a ridge that runs from Sidmouth to Honiton, with an amazingly flat top, and steep upper slopes. www.devon.gov.uk/geo-devonrocksgeologyguide.pdf

That looks like a fun hill. I've a friend near Ottery who's been inviting me down for a ride...tempting. The profile below is pretty typical around us, Kop Hill is very well known and has a very obvious 10% sign on it, just the local council being nasty, the steepest bit is right at the very top. (I'm hoping to try some 'proper' hills in Wales later this month.)

 

[biggs682]

I found a hill on the road between Great Cransley and Loddington it just didn't last long enough.

 

[Dirk]

I live in North Devon.
Unless I stick to the Tarka Trail, pretty much every time I go out on the bike I clock up over 1200 ft of climbing. Most times it's nearer 2000 ft on a leisure ride. Quite often do over 3000 ft on local training rides.
One thing we ain't short of here is hills.

 

[al3xsh]

I live on the edge of the peaks - my rides are regularly 100ft / mile of climbing!

 

[KneesUp]

My normal commute route is 86ft/mile. The route I took tonight is 125ft/mile.

 

[kiriyama]

Pretty standard ride around here...

4800ft over about 40miles (imperial)

 

[ColinJ]

Ha ha ... I'm thinking of knocking together a cheapo singlespeed bike for my 'hilly' Lidl trips. I normally just walk but there are times when I want to nip down for just one or two items but can't be bothered. A bike not worth nicking and not to be mourned if nicked is what I want!

I know it`s Tod and all that but do you mind not bringing the neighborhood down please Colin!

I just stumbled across this old thread again...

I did end up building that singlespeed bike and it has been great. Funnily enough I do actually use it on some of the local hills and have just added a second gear so I can manage more of them.

As for bringing the neighbourhood down... I was tidying up the pavement outside my house the other day when 2 builders walked up and asked me if I had seen anybody carrying a circular saw table. Apparently they had been sawing some floorboards round the corner outside a house that they were renovating. They carried a pile of boards upstairs and by the time they came back down somebody had nicked the saw... They weren't happy about it - it had cost £700!

 

[gavroche]

I live in North Devon.
Unless I stick to the Tarka Trail, pretty much every time I go out on the bike I clock up over 1200 ft of climbing. Most times it's nearer 2000 ft on a leisure ride. Quite often do over 3000 ft on local training rides.
One thing we ain't short of here is hills.

You forgot to mention the added bonus of potholes too.

 

[vickster]

You forgot to mention the added bonus of potholes too.

Maybe they weren’t there 6 years ago when he posted that?

 

[Dirk]

Maybe they weren’t there 6 years ago when he posted that?

Nah ..... they've got worse.

 

[Threevok]

They don't call them potholes around here anymore.

They call them Lidos

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Hilliest round here is an average of 80 feet per mile. I believe that is pretty close to the national average. Typically though it’s nearer 50-60 feet per mile. Steepest hill within 30 mins is 17%. There is a hill with a 20% sign, but that must be some in joke at the council I think.

If you go off road then you are more typically looking at 115 feet per mile climb ratios.

But as we all know, hillier doesn’t make it harder, it just makes it slower.