need help with gradients

velo11

hi
I've signed up for a charity cycle in France which involves climbing the 'Col de la Faucille in the Juras. Apparently its a 7% gradient all the way up bar a few areas where its 10%. Can someone tell me what the gradient is between Glencree and the Sally Gap? I managed that last weekend (with difficulty) . Just trying to guage what Im letting myself in for here. This mountain is a 20km climb. :eek:

ROK ON

6.3% avg over 2.5km measured from flat bit after turnoff to Glencree and liam horner.

DirkVoodoo

I think it's about 4%, maybe a little bit more.

They are all averages anyway, you may have small ramps or flatter sections, but it's safe to assume that a 7% climb is significantly harder than a 4% climb, depending on road surface.

The marmotteers and more experienced cyclists might be able to provide more insight, but the difference in gradient is nothing compared to the difference in length. You would want to be doing repeats of some climbs around wicklow or doing time trials on the flat to get prepared for the prolonged climbs in France. Doing the Sally Gap once a few times a week probably won't cut it, but it's a start.

niceonetom

You can use several different bit of online tech to compare climbs: MapMyRide.com, bikeroutetoaster.com etc. They'll plot a gradient/elevation graph for you. Compare Sally gap to any real col and you'll you're comparing apples to nuclear submarines.

Don't be too sacred though. :P

I don't know the climb you're worrying about but, suffice it to say, there's nothing even vaguely comparable in Ireland. Don't focus so much on the gradient as the length. What you need to be thinking about is the number of minutes you're going to be climbing and then working backwards from that to know roughly how to pace it. It's all about pacing. And gearing. Unless you're Marco Pantani you're going to have to give some thought to having the right gearing.

What level of fitness are you at now? Are you an experienced cyclist? How long have you got to train?

Muller_1

I did this climb a few times from Gex, sister-in-law lives very near in Cessy, it's a hard climb, it was in the Tour in 2004, and it was a Cat 1 climb, don't remember it being 20K but it been a while since I did it. There would be no parts steeper than steepest part of Glencree Sally gap, but the climb is a lot longer.

velo11

thanks Everyone for your replies,

Now Im really nervous. This is the last day of a four day cycle from Paris. The topography of the last day is attached.It appears to be 120k in length in total. Most of us are novices to be honest but Im clocking about 300k a week now. I cycle to work through the Scalp which isnt much but its building me up quickly enough. I usually do a 100-120k cycle each weekend around the Wicklow mountains. Thanks Muller_1 for your insight on the mountain itself. Not sure but it looks as if we have 2 mountains that day and Gex is enroute. We begin in Lons le Saunier and end in Geneva on the last day,Only 4 weeks to go!...:p

Muller_1

Muller_1 wrote: »

I did this climb a few times from Gex, sister-in-law lives very near in Cessy, it's a hard climb, it was in the Tour in 2004, and it was a Cat 1 climb, don't remember it being 20K but it been a while since I did it. There would be no parts steeper than steepest part of Glencree Sally gap, but the climb is a lot longer.

Looks like you will be going the opposite way than the way I went up so I'm not much help, only to say the decent from the top into Gex is great!

IM0

velo11 wrote: »

Can someone tell me what the gradient is between Glencree and the Sally Gap? I managed that last weekend (with difficulty) . Just trying to guage what Im letting myself in for here. This mountain is a 20km climb. :eek:

once you get to the section which starts to go steep it about 7%, then when the road gets twisty, and you can see the car park over the lake, its gets more steep there, you are looking 9% or so, and when you get to the carpark
the corner is about 20% :eek:, after kipure its more of a false flat/descent to sally gap.

If you want to simulate the alpine passes, climbing up stocking lane and on to the top of the featherbeds [dir devils elbow] is your man.

velo11

Muller_1 wrote: »

Looks like you will be going the opposite way than the way I went up so I'm not much help, only to say the decent from the top into Gex is great!

ok thanks Muller_1, hopefully the ascent from the opposite direction wont be as hard Still cant believe theyre inflicting this kind of mountain on relative beginners. Anyway the descent will be fun. It'll mark the end of a marathon journey. One for the books..:)

velo11

me@ucd wrote: »

once you get to the section which starts to go steep it about 7%, then when the road gets twisty, and you can see the car park over the lake, its gets more steep there, you are looking 9% or so, and when you get to the carpark
the corner is about 20% :eek:, after kipure its more of a false flat/descent to sally gap.

If you want to simulate the alpine passes, climbing up stocking lane and on to the top of the featherbeds [dir devils elbow] is your man.

thanks [EMAIL="me@ucd"]me@ucd[/EMAIL] where is the devils elbow?

manwithaplan

velo11 wrote: »

where is the devils elbow?

In the ribs of the righteous.

blorg

300km a week is decent going. As Tom says it is all about pacing and gearing. A bit of advice I read ages ago was to break the climb into thirds. Do the first third much slower than you think able if feeling good ramp it up just a little for the second third and if you are still going well at the end of that you can give it a hard effort for the last bit. Ignore what others are doing and climb at your own pace.

brownian

if you're doing 300 a week, and you're spinning around wicklow (presumably both gaps, shay elliot and so forth are not worrying you too much?), then a Cat1 20k climb should be ok for you, especially if you have a triple chainring to fall back on. Go slow, drink plenty and keep on spinning,and before you know it.... you'll be up!

velo11

blorg wrote: »

300km a week is decent going. As Tom says it is all about pacing and gearing. A bit of advice I read ages ago was to break the climb into thirds. Do the first third much slower than you think able if feeling good ramp it up just a little for the second third and if you are still going well at the end of that you can give it a hard effort for the last bit. Ignore what others are doing and climb at your own pace.

Thanks Blorg and Tom,
I'll need to investigate how long this climb is exactly. I'll talk to the organisers and maybe they'll have more info on that. The difficult thing about this is that Ive no clue of the terrain. At least in Wicklow you can drive around and gauge the difficult parts beforehand. I'll be totally blind going up this. Every corner will be a new surprise I'll take your advice Blorg on breaking it up into thirds and try it out in Wicklow beforehand.
I went up the Sally gap on high gear initially and gradually as I ran out of steam changed to the lower gears. There’s something reassuring about knowing you’ve something to fall back on if you run out of steam. I’ll try your method though.

ROK ON

1, 300k a week is good training in theory for your event.
2, I am a heavy bloke and find climbs problematic but gearing pacing and perseverance are all that is reqd.
3, as Blorg mentioned start very easy leave some in the tank and ramp up as you feel you can. Climb at a pace that you feel you could manage for a long time (90mins). Don't climb at anyone else pace.
4, gear down early.

The biggest issue I found on long climbs is that it can get very very tedious. Find something to occupy your mind.
I have heard of a group who did the etape that had a lead man with some porn taped to his rear to keep his followers in the zone as the climbed the Ventoux.
I think an some music might also suffice.

2 Wheels Good

First, don't be scared, it's daunting but the feeling of achievement at the top makes it all worth while! Judging by the training you're doing you'll be fine!
I did Mont Ventoux last summer out of stubbornness as much as anything else (booked as a pickmeup when recovering from a broken collarbone). Other than a 60k sunday spin & spinning classes I hadn't a whole lot done bike wise.
It was tough, very tough but like the guys have said pace yourself. A triple ring on the bike I had was also useful. To be honest nothing I've done here could have prepared me for it, but knowing how to manage my bodies signals helped. Drink plenty liquids and bring a treat or 2 for along the way!
& I enjoyed it so much I went back and did it from the opposite side the next day
Good luck!

WakeyTyke

velo11 wrote: »

ok thanks Muller_1, hopefully the ascent from the opposite direction wont be as hard Still cant believe theyre inflicting this kind of mountain on relative beginners. Anyway the descent will be fun. It'll mark the end of a marathon journey. One for the books..:)

Were you conscripted onto this charity cycle

The reason I signed up for this IHF cycle challenge is purely for the alpine climbs at the end. Did the Dublin - Paris cycle last year and wanted to push on to something more challenging.

velo11

ROK ON wrote: »

1, 300k a week is good training in theory for your event.
2, I am a heavy bloke and find climbs problematic but gearing pacing and perseverance are all that is reqd.
3, as Blorg mentioned start very easy leave some in the tank and ramp up as you feel you can. Climb at a pace that you feel you could manage for a long time (90mins). Don't climb at anyone else pace.
4, gear down early.

The biggest issue I found on long climbs is that it can get very very tedious. Find something to occupy your mind.
I have heard of a group who did the etape that had a lead man with some porn taped to his rear to keep his followers in the zone as the climbed the Ventoux.
I think an some music might also suffice.

thanks Rok on, I'll take your advice. Not sure about the porn bit as the group is mixed ;)but Im sure the views on the ascent will be fairly distracting .... will let you know how it all works out next month

velo11

pat_hurley@yaho wrote: »

First, don't be scared, it's daunting but the feeling of achievement at the top makes it all worth while! Judging by the training you're doing you'll be fine!
I did Mont Ventoux last summer out of stubbornness as much as anything else (booked as a pickmeup when recovering from a broken collarbone). Other than a 60k sunday spin & spinning classes I hadn't a whole lot done bike wise.
It was tough, very tough but like the guys have said pace yourself. A triple ring on the bike I had was also useful. To be honest nothing I've done here could have prepared me for it, but knowing how to manage my bodies signals helped. Drink plenty liquids and bring a treat or 2 for along the way!
& I enjoyed it so much I went back and did it from the opposite side the next day
Good luck!

Thanks Pat really appreciate your well wishes. Mont Ventoux is far more difficult than this one. Well done! Lets see how it goes.