One follow-up question, which is also an admission that though I may be a good map-reader I too am a newbie to biking ...
What is the % of an incline a % of? Is it a percentage of the difference between flat (0 or 180 degrees) and vertical (90 degrees) so that an angle of 171 (or 9, depending on which side you see it from) degrees would be a 10% incline? Or is it the rise as a percentage of the distance traveled, so that a 5' rise over 100' would be a 5% incline?