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Official CL weekend Lycra warriors thread (cycling)

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  • Doesn't look like either of them have a grade of over 10% anywhere on them? JohnBoy might have done them - I think he lives a lot nearer there than me. He does Toys/Star regularly, so he'll be able to give an accurate appraisal. For comparison, a 'steep' hill has a grade of about 15% in places, up to around 20-22% in others. Hills with a 10% grade aren't generally a problem unless they go on for miles. We haven't really got any of those in the UK - though I think there are some bastard steep climbs in the peak district and Wales. The worst hills I do regularly are Pebble Coombe (between Betchworth and Box Hill Road) and anything in the South Downs near Brighton. Pebble Coombe is an absolute b*tch - it's my bete noire. There are hills round there that more people hate (White Down, coming up Ranmore Common and Leith Hill both have a horrible reputation, but I find those preferable to Pebble Coombe)

    I'm one of those freaks that actually likes doing hills. Even though I'm still carrying about 10lbs of excess weight, I find I can compensate for the fact I'm an utter pussy on descents by crushing my pals up hills. Wish I could descend. Anything with anything remotely like a bend on it and I shit myself.

    PS: I'm not surprised you found it hard on a three speed. It probably weighed about 20 KG!
  • Saw a horrendous crash on Jamaica Road in the rain last night - Mini pulled out, bike over bonnet and into road...how she didn't see him was beyond me..I was about 20metres behind.. He seemed OK, obviously very shaken, but nothing broken.... Cycling home tonight a cyclist and a pedestrian flat on their backs in the middle of Jamaica Road, opposite the tube station, police and ambulance in attendance...not good. It does seem to be getting worse....

    Re: hill climbing...I bloomin love it - there's a real challenge in being able to get up them..am obviously getting slower now and am falling further and further away from my PBs, but still love it..am very cautious on the descents these days though, following an incident on a descent near Annecy a couple of years back which saw me career in to a crash barrier on a hairpin..fortunately I bounced back in to the road and not over the edge, otherwise I wouldn't be here now... I'll be out tackling Cudham, Toys, Ide, Star and Xmas Tree hills on Sunday.

    Ride safe!
  • ps - steepest hill I have ever done is Rosedale Chimney on the Yorks Moors...33%...honestly felt like I was going to fall backwards off my bike if I stood up...
  • Shithouse. Now THAT is a climb. At 33% I'd think you'd struggle even to keep both wheels on the ground. You'd be toppling over backward with every rev! I've never done anything that steep - I guess you'd be out of the saddle, crunched forward over the bars the whole way.

    Tonight's commute was bliss in comparison to the past few nights. A lot of segment pbs, including Brixton Hill, which I've been after for a long while (and beat it by 14 seconds).
    KOM on that one is ridiculous - must have been done on a moped!
  • LenGlover said:

    Do you cyclists ever try Eglinton Hill or Plum Lane as part of your hill training?

    Never done them. Just looked them up - from the gradient they look pretty tame. Is there something horrendous about them that makes them difficult?
    There is a part of plum lane that you wouldn't call tame, used to ride up there, 35 years ago and would often run up it over the years.
    Plum Lane ramps up to 20% at it's steepest point but there's only about 30-40 yards of it before it flattens out. It's just awkward more than anything as if you come in from the common, you get no momentum because of the sharp bend at the bottom.

    I've run up it about a dozen times in the last 6 months with Plumstead Runners and I have say I find cycling up it easier...

    The only thing I can think of which compares to that gradient is Brasted Hill and the South side of Toys by Puddleduck Lane, that's where my HR hits the lactate threshold.

    I really need to start climbing again now as I'm 12.5st. Even this time last year when I last rode with Charlton Charlie I was the wrong side of 13.5st. I so need to get out on my bike again...
  • Wow - sounds like it might be a good hill to do. Similar to Cudham maybe? Only problem is that it's a poxy ride out towards Woolwich way for me.
  • 130km today at an average clip of 29.7k/h. 1300m of climbing thrown in for good measure - and only one prick attempted to kill me (a Porsche driving through Kingswood) so a good day all in all.
  • Got out and did 48.5 miles yesterday taking in Cudham, Toys and part of Ide. Brastead is my least favourite of all the hills I've done, genuinely felt like someone was digging knives into my legs with every revolution, I won't be hurrying back to it.
  • Cudham's nice though, eh? That sharpener at the top makes you really feel like you've achieved something. Don't do Kent that often, but always make sure I take in Cudham if I do. Brasted is a horrible climb - like White Down & Pebble Coombe.

    You should join the CL Strava group
  • Does anyone know of a cycling club in Welling area? I really need to get a 50 or 75 mile ride in on Sunday am, i have a 100 mile ride to do next Friday

    Was contemplating just heading out into Kent at daybreak for 25-35 miles then come back again. If anyone could recommend a route as well/ instead that would be great
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  • Try going out to Westerham way. Lots of hills, so even if you don't manage to get a 70 mile route in, you can do Toys/Brasted/Ide and it'll make it feel like you have :)
  • I was thinking more like head out on the a20 but not sure what roads i can use, certainly not the m20?
  • Razil. When I get in the office, I'll link up a couple of routes for you from my Garmin.

    What are you looking for? Just distance or do you want some climbs too?

    If you're after a club, check out Eltham Velo, based at Avery Hill Park. They're a good bunch on lads and will look after you. Most weekends there's an intermediate and advanced ride going out, they'll be able to give you more details :)
  • edited May 2014
    JohnBoyUK said:

    Razil. When I get in the office, I'll link up a couple of routes for you from my Garmin.

    What are you looking for? Just distance or do you want some climbs too?

    If you're after a club, check out Eltham Velo, based at Avery Hill Park. They're a good bunch on lads and will look after you. Most weekends there's an intermediate and advanced ride going out, they'll be able to give you more details :)

    http://elthamvelo.wix.com/elthamvelo

  • Giro starts today, good to see Belfast embracing the start and dressing everything in Pink. It' compulsory in Italy.
    I shall be following the Movistar team in this year's race.

  • Here you go Razil...

    If you're looking for something pretty flat and reasonably quick: I go Welling Way to Avery Hill, through to Bexley Village, North Cray Road, Maidstone Road then drop down through Hextable to Green Street Green then out to Meopham and Cobham and back. http://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/336138475

    If you want something a little more adventurous, with a bit more climbing, this one takes in the Chelsfield Lane drag, Cudham Lane, then includes an up and down of Hosey Hill, Toys Hill (North side), then Ide Hill then the most stunning decent back down the B2042 Bessels Green Road then back to Shoreham, giving an option of a stop at Lullingstone, then two more climbs, Fackenden Lane and Old Terry's Lodge before a very fast, easy descent back through the Fawkham Valley back to Longfield and Green Street Green. http://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/307051508
  • edited May 2014
    Thanks

    I am doing the Xchanging Bike ride next Friday in west sussex

    I get up shooters hill in the highest gear on the big ring on my hybrid for a work out, but will be doing this and the exchanging thing on my carbon fibre road bike, so I don't mind a mix of hill and flat
  • That looks like a good ride - some lovely routes out Sussex way. I'm doing this in Sunday: http://humanrace.co.uk/events/cycling/london-cycle-sportive

    Looks like it's going to piss down all day - which will sort the men from the boys :)
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  • Is it just me, or does that route avoid Bury Hill...
  • Razil, give me a shout, I am out for 50 miles on Sunday morning, leave se10 around 7.30am...
  • FT London Cycle Sportive 100 miler today. Some of the route chosen was bloody stupid - the early hills in particular were like mud tracks rather than proper roads. Also, the start was badly organised, with all sorts of nauses all over the bloody road - and hundreds of people who've never ridden in a group before cutting all over the place. After that crap was out of the way though, it was a pretty nice ride. Some spiteful climbs I've never done before (Pitch Hill in Ewhurst was particularly memorable, with a spiteful little 22% stinger straight after a hairpin right near the top. Biggest plus point was my mate outsmarting himself on the velodrome sprint at the end and me just smashing it past him inside as he tried to swoop down from too high up. Never ridden in a velodrome before - was great fun. Might do that again - some laps on that will get the heart racing.

    BTW - anyone done Ganger's Hill descent before? JEEEEZUS!
  • edited May 2014
    I got hit by a cab this morning, one of those one way streets where there is a cycle lane going against the flow. He turned into the road I was riding up called Crutched Friars near my work, he was looking the other way even after turning, and very nearly drove over me if I hadn't screamed abuse at him - he was a big fella as well.

    Front wheel is write off but rest seems OK, and I am OK but its quite a new bike and I don't want two different wheels, should I insist he pay for both? He seemed keen to compensate me and gave me his details which seem legit.
  • I'd tell him I want both. If having the same wheels is important to you then considering he's lucky you aren't doing him on his insurance, the least he can do is compensate you adequately. If there's no question it's his fault, he's probably shiteing it a bit in case you call the gavvers.

    Don't take the piss though! When I got smacked off a few weeks back, I did my bollocks at the idiot who took me out, but since there waa no damage to the bike other than a scrape on the hood and a knock on the calipers which pushed out fine, I figured I'd save all the ballache for the inevitable day when my bike or myself gets badly damaged.
  • Very sorry to hear that B, not a good state of affairs...glad you're ok and now you've got the perfect excuse not to do that 100miles on Friday eh? ;-)

    You can buy single wheels....
  • Doing this over the weekend, getting a little excited now as weather looks good as well :)

    http://www.london-revolution.com/
  • well amazingly it looks like the wheel refitted without issue, not that convinced about Evans though...
  • How did your cycle on Friday go Razil?
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