Another very tough climb (video & pics)

[luv2climb]

I found another nice hard climb I hadn't ridden before-the Oxbow Corkscrew Wall near Foresthill in Placer County, CA. It's 4.6 miles long with plenty of grades in the teens and a max grade of 23%. I rode down Mosquito Ridge Road from Foresthill to get to the climb.

As I approached the big water tank at the halfway point of the climb, I heard a very close gunshot. You can hear it very well in the ride video. I also heard many distant gunshots as I continued to climb. You can hear those in the video too.

Once I got to the really steep part near the top, I had a swarm of insects hovering around my face as I climbed. I almost inhaled one of them.

The descent sucked worse than last week's Iowa Hill Road descent because this one was longer and full of potholes and rocks. Needless to say, I stopped several times on the way down to let my rims cool. The rear rim was hot to the touch.

Coming back up Mosquito Ridge Road with the sun beating down on me was pure misery! It's not steep, but it's 10 miles of climbing after you've already climbed about 3,000'. It didn't help that I made a wrong turn from Blacksmith Flat (LOL!) Road and had to climb back up 8%-11% grades with black flies biting me. I even caught one biting me through my glove! They remind me of the deer flies in the midwest. They hurt, they don't itch like a mosquito biting you.

I started running low on water even though I brought two large bottles, so I had to ration my water on the last part of the climb up Mosquito Ridge Road. I ran out of water right near the top of the climb, so I refilled my bottle from a hose at a business complex at the top, chilled out for a few minutes, and descended back to Whorton's Market where I was parked.

Total climbing was 5,781' in only 39.12 miles.

Garmin Connect data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/103204092

Here's the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uH50nWaGg4s

Bicycle friendly sign at the top of the Mosquito Ridge Road descent:

slow down sign near top of Mosquito Ridge Road by kittyz202, on Flickr

One of the two bridges before the climb begins (forgot which one):

view from one of the bridges on the way to the Oxbow Corkscrew Wall climb by kittyz202, on Flickr

Ralston Powerhouse hydroelectric power plant. This is right before the climb begins.

Ralston Powerhouse by kittyz202, on Flickr

One of several nice steep switchbacks I had the opportunity to take pictures of while waiting for my rims to cool on the descent:

Oxbow Corkscrew Wall steep switchback 7 by kittyz202, on Flickr

Water tank at halfway point of the descent. This is where I heard the close gunshot while climbing.

water tank at halfway point of Oxbow Corkscrew Wall descent by kittyz202, on Flickr

View pic taken on the descent:

view from Oxbow Corkscrew Wall climb by kittyz202, on Flickr

After finishing all the climbing. Love the name of that last town on the sign!

Mosquito Ridge Road and Foresthill Road by kittyz202, on Flickr

Couple of view pics from the parking lot of Whorton's Market in Foresthill:

view from Whorton's Market parking lot 2 by kittyz202, on Flickr

view from Whorton's Market parking lot by kittyz202, on Flickr

[GingerbreadGirl]

Amazing.

Your bike is beautiful, btw.

[luv2climb]

Thank you. It's a 2011 Specialized Dolce Triple. I put mtb gearing on it shortly after I bought it last summer, and those low gears got lots of use yesterday. Luckily I only had to use the very lowest gear on the steep section that got up to 23%.

[Velocivixen]

Wow. I'm amazed. So I regularly read your posts and I have questions. So how old or young are you? Why hills? Do you do this for "fun"? Personal challenge? Do you cycle competitively or on a team? I ask because I can't imagine that a typical cyclist would do this. Quite inspiring. I drove to a nature park nearby and there is a sign which says "14% grade" in the distance of less than a mile! Heck, the car struggles to get up it and I can't imagine riding my bike up it!

[Veronica]

I can't imagine that a typical cyclist would do this. Quite inspiring. I drove to a nature park nearby and there is a sign which says "14% grade" in the distance of less than a mile! Heck, the car struggles to get up it and I can't imagine riding my bike up it!

I think it's a Northern California thing. We have lots of mountains nearby, we climb them. Last weekend I rode up Mt Tam, 5500 feet of climbing and descent in 37 miles. Mt Diablo climbs 3500 feet in 12 miles and ends with a 17% grade for a quarter mile. Tons of cyclists are up there every weekend.

luv2climb lives near the Sierra foothills - lots of climbing.

Veronica

[indysteel]

Heck, as a flatlander, I'd love to be able to ride that kind of terrain on a regular basis. In my neck of the woods, we have to go out of our way for rides with a significant amount of climbing, which means that when we do climb, it often kind of sucks because we're not trained for it. Plus, we have very few sustained climbs. What hills we have are short with 15-22% grades. Based on the years where I really made a point to climb as regularly as possible, I know that it does get easier with practice. Not easy; just easier.

[Catrin]

...What hills we have are short with 15-22% grades. Based on the years where I really made a point to climb as regularly as possible, I know that it does get easier with practice. Not easy; just easier.

Thanks for this Indy - the other day I was riding with a couple of people and one of them told me that "soon and very soon you won't even notice that you are climbing a hill" - all I can say is he has to be a LOT stronger than I!

[luv2climb]

Wow. I'm amazed. So I regularly read your posts and I have questions. So how old or young are you? Why hills? Do you do this for "fun"? Personal challenge? Do you cycle competitively or on a team? I ask because I can't imagine that a typical cyclist would do this. Quite inspiring. I drove to a nature park nearby and there is a sign which says "14% grade" in the distance of less than a mile! Heck, the car struggles to get up it and I can't imagine riding my bike up it!

I'm 44 years old. I love the challenge of climbing long steep hills and mountains. I don't race, but in 1993 when I was normal weight I did a little mtb racing for a few months. I did pretty well, thanks to the climbing. But when it was time to upgrade I immediately found out how much I sucked compared to the other women.

I think it's a Northern California thing. We have lots of mountains nearby, we climb them. Last weekend I rode up Mt Tam, 5500 feet of climbing and descent in 37 miles. Mt Diablo climbs 3500 feet in 12 miles and ends with a 17% grade for a quarter mile. Tons of cyclists are up there every weekend.

Veronica

You hit the nail on the head!

I'll have to climb Mt. Diablo one of these days, especially since I read that it ends with a 22% grade.

[indysteel]

Thanks for this Indy - the other day I was riding with a couple of people and one of them told me that "soon and very soon you won't even notice that you are climbing a hill" - all I can say is he has to be a LOT stronger than I!

When I first started riding, I made the mistake (well, it felt like a mistake) of going to some CIBA rides down south and in doing the Hilly Hundred before I was really ready. I couldn't climb at all, and it was really discouraging. In time, however, my fitness improved and I kept at it. I also started riding with some people who taught me a thing or two about climbing. I did my first J.A.W.S. with one of them, and while I had to stop and start a number of times on a few of the worst hills, I did finish in one piece. The following year, I averaged almost 18 mph for that ride and was beating my mentor to the top of every hill (I don't think he was very happy about it). Now, our hilliest climbs are still easier than what LTR does on a regular basis, but I felt pretty pleased with my progress by local standards.

But in the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit that I haven't been working on it the last couple of years, and my climbing fitness has deteriorated quite a bit. I'd like to pick it back up, but it's challenging. As it is, we're already driving to mountain bike. To add even more drive-to-rides to our schedule likely isn't going to happen all that often. If we even had one hill near our house, I'd work on hill repeats, but my end of Johnson County is flat as a pancake.

[Catrin]

All good points Indy! In retrospect, last year I was already injured when I started seeking out hills to climb them (August). THIS year my riding schedule has been quite different - more days a week - but fewer "drive-the-bike-to-ride" rides.

That is ok, I am having a blast on both on and off road, my weekly mileage is close to what it was this time last year...so I am going to take what I can get. All of this is for personal pleasure along with health and fitness - I suspect as I spend more time on the mountain bike this year that my road climbing skills can only benefit. Once I internalize the mtb skills better there will be time to start focusing a bit on hill climbing before the snow flies.... I want to find and feed my hill climbing beast, but with more wisdom this time.

All of that being said, I am in awe of the OP climbing skills, stories and videos!

[luv2climb]

All good points Indy! In retrospect, last year I was already injured when I started seeking out hills to climb them (August). THIS year my riding schedule has been quite different - more days a week - but fewer "drive-the-bike-to-ride" rides.

That is ok, I am having a blast on both on and off road, my weekly mileage is close to what it was this time last year...so I am going to take what I can get. All of this is for personal pleasure along with health and fitness - I suspect as I spend more time on the mountain bike this year that my road climbing skills can only benefit. Once I internalize the mtb skills better there will be time to start focusing a bit on hill climbing before the snow flies.... I want to find and feed my hill climbing beast, but with more wisdom this time.

All of that being said, I am in awe of the OP climbing skills, stories and videos!

Sounds like your rides are somewhat similar to mine. The only ride I do that requires me to drive to the start of the ride is a climbing ride, so those are done once a week. The rest of the week I ride down here in the valley where I live. I only drive if it's absolutely necessary, so I probably ride quite a few miles during the week. I don't have a computer on any of my bikes and I only use the Garmin for climbing rides, so I don't keep track of mileage.

Mountain biking will definitely help your road climbing. I used to mtb all the time in the early 90s when I actually had a properly fitting mtb. Lots of good steep stuff on mtb trails!

Believe it or not, even though you can clearly hear me suffering in my videos, I love it! I'm one of those twisted types who enjoys suffering, so my climbs are done for fun in addition to the challenge of conquering yet another long steep climb.

[GingerbreadGirl]

So awesome. When I mountain bikes I could never climb. I was really fearless on descents though. Used to go to those ski resorts in the summer that allowed you to go up in the lift with the bike and ride down the mountain. i can't picture climbing it though. I am a wuss.

[GingerbreadGirl]

Also I love to see your photos so keep posting them. We should have a ride photo thread.

[luv2climb]

So awesome. When I mountain bikes I could never climb. I was really fearless on descents though. Used to go to those ski resorts in the summer that allowed you to go up in the lift with the bike and ride down the mountain. i can't picture climbing it though. I am a wuss.

I remember climbing one of the dirt roads at Squaw Valley back in 1994. When I was done I told someone who worked there that I climbed it. He told he they discourage climbing. I'm glad I climbed it before I talked to him!

Another cool thing happened yesterday on the way back to Foresthill. I was descending and a climbing cyclist yelled my name. I yelled back "Who is that?". He was the guy who ran a small mtb club in the early 90s. I went on a few rides with them back then. Of course they left me in their dust, but they were pretty laid-back, not stuck up like some serious cyclists.

He was headed out towards French Meadows, which is 20 miles further than the turnaround point of my ride. He told me he almost got killed by a speeding car before he saw me. Stupid of people to be speeding in the mountains like that!

He had four chainrings on his mtb. His small ring was a 20. That's some climbing gears!

Also I love to see your photos so keep posting them. We should have a ride photo thread.

Thank you. That would be a great idea!

[Sardine]

luv2climb, I'm totally impressed and inspired. Thanks.