Mow Cop

[totallyfixed]

I know many of you on here have ridden Mow Cop and I was wondering what gear you used. My better half is racing the hill climb this Sunday and neither of us have ever been up it. We hope to try it out on Saturday but I don't want to be taking the wrong spare cassettes, also can anyone tell me exactly how long the steep section is and has anyone done it in the wet, if so did you get wheel spin.
Many thanks for any info.

 

[Hacienda71]

It is not too steep for the majority, but ramps up at the end to about a 1 in 4. That section though is probably for no more than quarter of a mile as you go past the pub, then the climb is over.
I know you don't like Strava, but here is the segment

As to the gearing that your wife will need no idea, but with a sub 10 mph KOM on Strava with some fairly well known names on the list you can imagine it is a bit chew your bars at the top rather than a fast rhythm climb.
That probably doesn't help much, but good luck with the hill climb.

 

[DCLane]

Have a look at threads on the Cheshire Cat in the Sportives section There's some advice in there.

 

[totallyfixed]

Thanks for that, as with nearly all hill climbs the wind will have a part to play, I have looked at it on street view and the 1:4 section looks shorter than that but really hard to tell. The time itself is unimportant, more about how she does against the opposition, if it is a howling headwind, eek. Apparently in one hill climb competition years ago no one could get to the top because of the wind, so we have our fingers crossed. Hill climbers are generally built like stick insects so any headwind can be a nightmare.

 

[potsy]

I was going to suggest pinging big Steve H but I fear his build and gearing might be slightly different to dr_pinks

Good luck H

 

[amaferanga]

I'd be very surprised if it's 25% for 400m.

 

[totallyfixed]

I was going to suggest pinging big Steve H but I fear his build and gearing might be slightly different to dr_pinks

Good luck H

True, true.

I'd be very surprised if it's 25% for 400m.

I hope Hacienda is wrong and it isn't a quarter of a mile, that would be a heck of a hard finish.

 

[totallyfixed]

Have a look at threads on the Cheshire Cat in the Sportives section There's some advice in there.

Blimey, had a look at some stuff on YouTube and the numbers that were walking is a bit scary, the thread itself unfortunately wasn't a lot of help, more about being happy to get up it, we are more interested in the gearing that was used.

 

[amaferanga]

True, true.

I hope Hacienda is wrong and it isn't a quarter of a mile, that would be a heck of a hard finish.

If it was 25% for a 1/4 mile then it'd probably be the hardest climb in the UK. It may reach a max of 25% - maybe that's what he meant.

 

[potsy]

If it was 25% for a 1/4 mile then it'd probably be the hardest climb in the UK. It may reach a max of 25% - maybe that's what he meant.

I think it just felt like a 1/4 mile as he was going so slowly up it

 

[Hacienda71]

It may be less, just seems like the last quarter of the mile but as Potsy says it feels like a quarter of the climb. Dr Pink will have no issues going up it. 25% is the max rather than the whole of the last section and it does ease a tiny bit just past the pub. There are much harder climbs in the area.

 

[fossyant]

There is about 200 yards or so of steep stuff. I did it on 39 x 24

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

This vid gives a good perspective....

 

[Svendo]

If it helps I used a standard 53-39 with an 11-25 cassette on the Cheshire Cat a few years ago (old route, basically flattish run out to Mow Cop, couple of other mild climbs then tour of lanes round mid Cheshire.). I tried to hold back on the lower slopes then honked straight up the top steep section and felt fine doing it. Later on in the ride I suffered for showing off like that it though! I wasn't racing or anything though, and can't recall which actual gear I used but I think we can assume it was the 25 on the steep bit.

 

[jdtate101]

Whatever gear you use will probably not be low enough .

I'm not bad at climbing, but prefer drags to super steep, and have done this on a 34x28 before and made it. Also tried on a 39x28 and that was too much for me, but then I'm a big lad not a super skinny weenie.