Another very tough climb (video & pics)

[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!

[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.

[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.