Road Cycling
- Thread starter FrenchTart
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If I had the day off I'd come meet you but I'm at work until 4.30.
Bah! Would be good to be shown local roads! Next time! I'm up in Horley couple of times a month, so now TT season is ending I'll be about for evening rides!
Climbing is about learning what kind of effort you can sustain over certain distances and gradients and accounting for how far you have both ridden and left to ride. Using shallower sections of gradients to your advantage and to recover slightly helps too. Standing for steeper sections and sitting for shallower to recover etc.
If you've a long old slog ahead always always set off much slower than you think is necessary, you can make up time at the end but you can't recover and clear lactate if you're already in the red and still climbing
Breathing and huffing & puffing like a proper champ right from the start of the climb will pay dividends too. Something people often overlook. It can be quite difficult to develop a breathing rhythm and a slop that undulates as your focus ends up elsewhere.
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- 16 May 2005
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I have a jersey which is quite nice. Cost c£50.
http://stolengoat.com/product/stolen-goat-bodyline-ss-jersey-slipstream-green/
Matches my Supersix and less seen that then ubiquitous Rapha down my way.
Think it always helps to settle in to a decent low(ish) gear right from the start of a biggie, especially those which drag on and on - while your legs might start off by spinning a bit more than usual, that will gradually ease off as the hill either steepens up or drags on and on. And on.Climbing is about learning what kind of effort you can sustain over certain distances and gradients and accounting for how far you have both ridden and left to ride. Using shallower sections of gradients to your advantage and to recover slightly helps too. Standing for steeper sections and sitting for shallower to recover etc.
If you've a long old slog ahead always always set off much slower than you think is necessary, you can make up time at the end but you can't recover and clear lactate if you're already in the red and still climbing
Breathing and huffing & puffing like a proper champ right from the start of the climb will pay dividends too. Something people often overlook. It can be quite difficult to develop a breathing rhythm and a slop that undulates as your focus ends up elsewhere.
Sometimes find that better than running a bit higher gear that you can initially push but can't sustain, and by the time you then to the lower ones you've already blown a lung out and those lower gears don't feel any easier.
The more climbing you do the more you can get a feeling for what works best for you. I don't always practice the above depending if it's a climb I'm familiar with.
Helps to break the climb up into shorter sections and just concentrate on getting to the end of each of those - anywhere where the gradient eases at all is a bonus etc. As long as the legs keep the pedals going round you WILL get to the top
First time I tried a cat 3 I had to get off and walk. I blamed the wind at the time but I've since done it in worse conditions so really it was just my noobness
It felt all the better when I went back and finished the job. Since then I've only been defeated by a couple of absurdly steep cat 4s, like 20+% gradient, where I've had to bail out for one reason or another.Makes a massive difference mentally once you clear some of those big climbs, remember first time I did the Wild Wales Challenge in 2014 virtually crawling up big climbs all day but managing it. Was hardest ride I'd done up to that point, seemed like non-stop evil hills 
Once you do something like that you just need to remind yourself that you've either tackled harder climbs before and managed it or it's nothing harder than what you've done before.
Once you do something like that you just need to remind yourself that you've either tackled harder climbs before and managed it or it's nothing harder than what you've done before.
Once you have OK fitness from a few 40-50km rides. Its only gradient which should stop you if you don't have a low enough gear to use and end up having to really grind it at above threshold power which will cause you to blow up.
Climbing Mt Hotham over here which is a HC climb is no more difficult than a local CAT 3. Similar gradients, just Hotham is a lot, lot longer. It has a steeper bit at the end of 8-10% but as long as you're prepared and have a 28T or compact on the back then you can ride it.
Climbing Mt Hotham over here which is a HC climb is no more difficult than a local CAT 3. Similar gradients, just Hotham is a lot, lot longer. It has a steeper bit at the end of 8-10% but as long as you're prepared and have a 28T or compact on the back then you can ride it.
Soldato
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Its +20% gradients that kill me. No amount of breathing or taking it easy prevents me from dismounting occasionally. That being said, I'm only looking at you here Hardknott....Honister....Newlands....so not too much to be disheartened by I guess!
Trying to work on improving my power though. That's what's letting me down when it comes to climbing.
Knackered this morning. Legs ache, glutes ache, back aches, even after a rest day yesterday. In fact I feel worse because of it!
Trying to work on improving my power though. That's what's letting me down when it comes to climbing.
Knackered this morning. Legs ache, glutes ache, back aches, even after a rest day yesterday. In fact I feel worse because of it!
Or fall off
Semi-regularly ride up the top of Kop Hill, you usually find anything with 20%+ will have some sort of drag in the approach of at least 10-15% so most of your power will have already been zapped so 'powering' over it isn't possible.
That said snaking a meter or so side to side can help to establish & maintain a rhythm by slightly reducing the gradient.
Also a pr0 tip for recovering slightly on a lesser climb you might have mis-judged
I was looking at them as a potential club.
Also considering Clapham Chasers or joining Thom at Paceline RT as his domestique.