I don't feel so bad now...

[Mark White]

A couple of weekends ago I tackled a hill I've had my eye on for a while. It's a bit flat where I live, so I'm usually on the flat except for a few kms at about 4% on a longer run I do and I wanted to find a weekend run that was a bit different. Still, when I got round a corner pretty much at my limit, and saw that it continued winding onwards and upwards, I gave in and turned back. I was only going to do another couple of km before heading for home, but it did feel like a bit of a fail.

Found out just now it 17% at the point where I turned back. Which makes it less of a fail, and more of a challenge that I didn't quite meet :-)

Still, it was a good job I didn't make it another 500m. Otherwise I might have been unable to resist the fast downhill on the other side, and would never have got back up the 26% that it is :-O

 

[beanzontoast]

An achievement whichever way you look at it!

There's a hill I last tackled 5 years ago, not far from here, which I'm steeling myself to try again on my recently acquired road bike. Thing is, now I'm nearer 60 than 50. I last did it on a Dawes Galaxy and needed all but the bottom 2 gears.

It's not a monster hill.

It doesn't go on for more than a few hundred yards.

But it's got a date with me and I'm up for it.

 

[Mark White]

I think 5 years might be about right before I go back to this one... Actually, it's not such a safe road and I didn't realise until I was going home that big heavy lorries use it. So maybe I'll leave it at that and find a different new route with some hills on it. Smaller ones though

 

[ColinJ]

I think 5 years might be about right before I go back to this one... Actually, it's not such a safe road and I didn't realise until I was going home that big heavy lorries use it. So maybe I'll leave it at that and find a different new route with some hills on it. Smaller ones though

Steep climbs can be fun, but not with HGVs rushing past when you are probably only doing about 4 or 5 mph!

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Steep climbs can be fun, but not with HGVs rushing past when you are probably only doing about 4 or 5 mph!

but it's really good fun overtaking them on the downhill sections* not to mention getting through 2 cups of coffee and croissants before they actually arrive at the bottom of the decent and see you again!

*not in the UK

 

[alecstilleyedye]

change your gear ratios...

 

[Mark White]

Steep climbs can be fun, but not with HGVs rushing past when you are probably only doing about 4 or 5 mph!

This was my conclusion after being overtaken by a double trailer on the way back down. If one of those had tried to overtake me as I was wobbling uphill in the granny gear, it would not have been pleasant. I could retry the hill another day/year, but I'd need to be up there very early before the lorries start.

 

[Mark White]

change your gear ratios...

I was on 28 smallest chainring, and thought I was on the 32 largest cassette cog, but was actually in 2nd gear, so maybe 28 or something. I just need to build leg strength and hit some hills more often.