Elevation gain question

I do lots of hilly rides and I'm interested in figuring out the amount of climbing I do on a particular ride. When they talk about the "elevation gain" or "total climbing" on a ride, how is that calculated? Does it mean the difference between the highest point and the lowest point of a route? Or does it mean the total climbing you actually rode (ie. up 500' on one hill, down a hill, up 1000' on another etc - total = 1500' ??) Does this question make sense??

Thanks as always... :)

I think the latter is correct i.e total amount climbing, since if your did a loop ride, you would have zero net gain

This one.

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Originally Posted by kelownagirl

Or does it mean the total climbing you actually rode (ie. up 500' on one hill, down a hill, up 1000' on another etc - total = 1500' ??)

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Merci beaucoup to you both!! :)