Northern California - Climbing the steepest streets in San Francisco on a folding bike

I took a trip to San Francisco yesterday in a rental car, so that meant taking my collapsible road bike-a Bike Friday Pocket Companion. It is sold as a touring bike, but I bought it for the low climbing gears. It has a triple, and I replaced the stock 30t small chainring with a 24t, which gives me a 16 inch low gear.

Thanks to a cyclist on another forum, I got a list of the steepest streets in The City. Because of limited daylight, I decided to start with all the steepest climbs in the Nob Hill, Russian Hill, and Pacific Heights areas.

I started with Filbert between Hyde and Leavenworth, a 31.5% grade. This is where I discovered that my waterbottle needed to be on the frame-mounted bottle cage, not the handlebar-mounted one. It kept poking me in the chest because I had to lean over so much.

Next was Jones between Filbert and Union, a 29% grade. After that was Jones between Union and Green, a 26% grade. Then a ride down Broadway and up some more lesser hills before the next steep street-Webster between Broadway and Vallejo (26%). Next was Fillmore between Broadway and Vallejo at 24%.

The next hill is where I met my match. Broderick between Broadway and Vallejo is a 38% grade. It is so steep there is no road, just a sidewalk on the left side of the street (facing uphill).

I made it halfway up on my first attempt, then ran out of steam. Same thing 4 tries later, each time making less progress than the time before. By then it was dark and I decided to go back to Nob Hill and climb the last hill of the day, Jones between Pine and California (24.8%). Typical of the last hard climb of a ride, this one hurt near the top. Good stuff!

My HR hit 202 on this ride. I saw it hit 200 at the top of the only climb where I remembered to look at the Garmin.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/130582283#

I brought my GoPro with me and mounted it on the handlebars. There's no way my helmet-mounted ContourHD would have produced good footage with this ride. I had my head down for most of the climbs, so you would have had a lovely view of the pavement.

I only had to use my lowest gear on Broderick. I did the second attempt in second gear, but all the rest were in the lowest gear.

Here's the video. I left out the last climb up Jones because, like the ContourHD, the GoPro sucks at night video. You can see for yourself on the last attempt up Broderick.

Be forewarned, the intensity of these efforts is very audible at times, so keep this in mind if you have anyone within earshot while watching this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbc5iG3M1q0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbc5iG3M1q0

Here's some pics.

Bottom of Filbert between Hyde and Leavenworth
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/bottomofFilbertbetweenHydeLeavenworth.jpg

Top of Filbert
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/topofFilbertbetweenHydeLeavenworth.jpg

Bottom of Jones between Union and Filbert
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/bottomofJonesbetweenUnionFilbert.jpg

Top of Jones between Union and Filbert
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/topofJonesbetweenUnionFilbert.jpg

Fillmore between Vallejo and Broadway
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/FillmorebetweenVallejoBroadway.jpg

Webster between Vallejo and Broadway
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/WebsterbetweenVallejoBroadway.jpg

Top of Broderick between Broadway and Vallejo
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/topofBroderickbetweenBroadwayVallejo.jpg

Bottom of Broderick
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/bottomofBroderickbetweenVallejoBroadway.jpg

Top of Jones between California and Pine
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s66/hardmf1/topofJonesbetweenPineCalifornia.jpg

Kudos :thumb: next time you should stop off in Berkeley and top it off with Marin Ave.

Thanks! :D Marin Ave. is definitely on my to-do list for a future trip. Also, a cyclist on another forum posted this new, revised list (http://www.datapointed.net/2010/02/more-steeps-of-san-francisco/) of SF's steepest streets. Looks like I've got my work cut out for me! :eek:

Although the list of steepest streets in SF always seems to vary, this little film is a legend. Enjoy!

http://www.russianhillroulette.com/download.html

That was the second climbing video I saved to my hard drive when I got back into climbing rides again. I watched it before and after my climbs yesterday, and I am in awe of his almost effortless speed up those climbs! :thumb:

I also watched this guy's Fargo Street climb video before and after my climb. Fargo Street is a 33% street in LA. Like all my climbing videos, his is raw footage so you get the full experience of the effort and intensity of climbing such a steep grade.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jer7KsZQApo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jer7KsZQApo

Great stuff! I've gone up the western side of Filbert/Hyde just once, thinking it would be the easiest route from Rapha's Filbert store over to downtown before turning south for my ride down to Santa Clara (oops). The descent toward Leavenworth was... special :) You had quite a day attacking so many!

One thing I noticed was while I was pausing at Hyde, I saw two other individual riders slowly approach and start the climb... a real magnet I guess!

Yeah, those super-steep descents were interesting. Not really scary though, as I just hung my butt behind the saddle to put more weight over the rear wheel. I also made sure not to apply too much front brake. On the 38% Broderick St. though, my rear tire was skidding all the way down. Not continuously, but it would skid for a fraction of a second, then roll, skid, roll all the way to the bottom.

I didn't see anyone attempt these on a bike yesterday. Too bad, because that would have been neat to see others climb these hills too! :thumb:

I also watched this guy's Fargo Street climb video before and after my climb. Fargo Street is a 33% street in LA. Like all my climbing videos, his is raw footage so you get the full experience of the effort and intensity of climbing such a steep grade.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jer7KsZQApo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jer7KsZQApo

Well, yeah, but in this LA video this guy zigzags a lot, which puts it in a completely different category. Once one starts zigzagging, it is no longer a 33% climb. Depending on the specific zigzagging trajectory, a 33% grade can be easily turned into a kindergarten-level 5% grade (on average) or less. It is a simple trade-off between the effective grade and the distance.

In your video you appear to make a point of taking the climbs head-on: no zigzagging whatsoever, the full grade is working against you. That is indeed pretty impressive.

Well, yeah, but in this LA video this guy zigzags a lot, which puts it in a completely different category. Once one starts zigzagging, it is no longer a 33% climb. Depending on the specific zigzagging trajectory, a 33% grade can be easily turned into a kindergarten-level 5% grade (on average) or less. It is a simple trade-off between the effective grade and the distance.

In your video you appear to make a point of taking the climbs head-on: no zigzagging whatsoever, the full grade is working against you. That is indeed pretty impressive.
He probably has standard road bike gearing, which gives him no choice but to zig-zag. I put mtb gearing on all bikes that I use for climbing, so that allows me to climb in the saddle more, and avoid having to zig-zag. However, that Broderick climb would have been one I would have zig-zagged after the first failed effort if it had an actual road. That sidewalk wasn't wide enough to switchback the climb.

Ok after that workout you can go ahead and skip the annual physical this year.

Ok after that workout you can go ahead and skip the annual physical this year.
LOL! I do feel slight soreness in the climbing muscles after that one, so I can't wait until the weekend so I can see if my climbing's improved any.

For a slightly different perspective, here's the footage from the ContourHD helmet cam. I didn't look down as much as I thought I did, so I figured it was worth putting on Contour's video site with the rest of my ContourHD vids. You can hear a descending cyclist skidding down the 26% section of Jones between Union and Green on this one. On the GoPro video it sounded like I was applying my brakes while climbing! :lol:

It won't embed even using Contour's embed code, so you have to click on the URL.

http://contour.com/stories/climbing-the-steepest-san-francisco-hills-on-a-bike-friday-folding-bike-11-23-11

I rode up a bunch of hills in SF yesterday trying to burn off some calories. I made it up Broderick with a low of 34x26. I'm glad the upper section has grooves in it to help with traction. 600 watts for 5 mph with the chain feeling like it would snap at any second. Over by Coit Tower I rode to a dead end then had to carry the bike up 200 brick steps to get to street.

http://app.strava.com/rides/2469686

Top of Stanyon, 30 something %. The lower portion looks tame at 15-16%
http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/2385/37435010150476391231469.jpg

Jones
http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/4917/38888610150478295581469.jpg

Attempting to show grade of hill
http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/6470/39264910150480197486469.jpg

I made it up Broderick with a low of 34x26. I'm glad the upper section has grooves in it to help with traction. 600 watts for 5 mph with the chain feeling like it would snap at any second.
Video or it didn't happen! :p Raw, of course! We need the full experience of that effort.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/53/144775508_1d6523cd96.jpg

from cyclicious a few years back

Oops! I wouldn't want that tow bill! :eek:

This post has given me impetus to visit those hills of SF again. It's a short but good high intensity thing to do between the rains.

I rode up a bunch of hills in SF yesterday trying to burn off some calories. I made it up Broderick with a low of 34x26. I'm glad the upper section has grooves in it to help with traction. 600 watts for 5 mph with the chain feeling like it would snap at any second. Over by Coit Tower I rode to a dead end then had to carry the bike up 200 brick steps to get to street.

http://app.strava.com/rides/2469686
OK, I caught hell from a bunch of people on another forum for doubting your claim of climbing Broderick in a 34x26, since I couldn't see the relevant data for Broderick on the Strava page you linked to.

I'll be honest. I don't believe everything I read on the internet, and since I wasn't familiar with your posts, I didn't know what to think. I figured you were either super-fit, or exaggerating like so many in the "41" like to do.

The posters on the other forum "educated" me about your background, so now I know you actually did climb it in that gear combination. My apologies.

Bummer! Try starting your day fresh with Broderick. I'll bet it is a hill you can climb. I am not the die hard you are. If I stop for a quick break, I just go the rest of the way up from that point. The Santee driveway is slightly steeper (over 40%) and longer, but I zig zag pretty near all the way up. You did some great climbing. Fargo was impressively done. Every climb of yours is impressive. SF is like Dictionary Hill in Spring Valley - without Broderick that is. Maria Ave at 32.5% is the steepest for the 200 foot run with a 65 foot rise concrete section north of Chestnut. I zig zag up that one too. The rest of the streets are between 20% and 30%. You should do the San Diego area too! There are many SF type hills besides Dictionary. There is also that monster climb from the apartment complex on Graves up to Sky Ranch on Rattlesnake Mountain in Santee. On the second switchback the inside of the curve is a bikebreaker (literally; I broke my bike on that stretch 3 times). I've never come close to doing it in one pass. I usually stop at the first switchback or just before it. The switchbacks are also quite steep - perhaps just under 30%, so I stop at the curve on both or at least right before hitting the steepest part (it's got to top 45% for a yard or two) on the second one. Restarting without zigzaging is pretty close to impossible. Anyway, on the top section I may stop again, although I have done that in one bound once or twice. Did you at least finish the climb up Broderick? Your 5 tries would have exceeded the full length, but to finish the climb would have been more gratifying to me than starting over for another try. Great riding!

On Broderick, it was impossible to get going again on such a steep incline. It was also impossible to get back on the bike to ride back downhill, so I had to walk downhill and start over every time.

I didn't climb Fargo Street in LA. That video was from a male rider who lives down there. He is much stronger than me, judging by his other ride videos. I have a feeling he could make it up Broderick no problem.

I've never been to San Diego or the part of LA where Fargo Street is, but if I ever go down there I will seek out those steep streets you mention. ;)

What makes Broderick so hard is the fact that there is no room to zig-zag. As can be seen from the pictures and video I posted in my OP, the wide sidewalk narrows partway up, so I could only do some half-assed zig-zagging at the beginning, not later on when I really could have used the help.

I missed that post by Bostic, yes, I'm sure he can do it. Maybe that taxi777 man can too.

I'm guessing both these posters live in the Bay Area, as I'm not familiar with either one of them. I spend 99% of my climbing ride time in the Sierra foothills and mountains. I've met JoelS, and I'm familiar with the posts by VaultGuru and maybe a couple others who live closer to me.

Here is a screen shot from that segment on Strava. Last time I did the climb was on my triple equipped bike in 30x26, about 30 gear inches. This time I had my new Pedal Force CG2 bike with a Sram Red compact. This bike is not super light but I managed to get it under 16lbs with a Power tap rear wheel. You can see how I start zig zagging on the sidewalk a bit near the top based on the power graph as it spikes and lowers until I am about at the top and just give it whatever cookies I have left in the jar. I'm 5' 7", around the 140's in weight right now.

http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/7681/screenshot20111130at125.jpg

We have quite a few 25+% rollers in our hood (Potrero) in case ever over here...this one is sort of fun, it's relatively short and pretty steep but cobbled the whole way. Makes for an interesting climb...
http://www.snortingbullphoto.com/photos/1222747690_fpwTV-L.jpg

Here is a screen shot from that segment on Strava. Last time I did the climb was on my triple equipped bike in 30x26, about 30 gear inches. This time I had my new Pedal Force CG2 bike with a Sram Red compact. This bike is not super light but I managed to get it under 16lbs with a Power tap rear wheel. You can see how I start zig zagging on the sidewalk a bit near the top based on the power graph as it spikes and lowers until I am about at the top and just give it whatever cookies I have left in the jar. I'm 5' 7", around the 140's in weight right now.

http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/7681/screenshot20111130at125.jpg
That's what I was looking for in your OP. I couldn't find it on the Strava page, probably because I'm not a member. Good work! :thumb:

My bike is probably around 30 lbs. Last time I dared to weigh myself I was around 145 lbs, but I've been afraid to weigh myself lately because I think I may have gained weight. I'm a 5' 4" female, so 145 is 20 pounds too much for my height.

Next time I attempt Broderick I won't save it for the end of a ride full of climbs. Where else but San Francisco can you climb 2,257' in 11.22 miles? :lol:


We have quite a few 25+% rollers in our hood (Potrero) in case ever over here...this one is sort of fun, it's relatively short and pretty steep but cobbled the whole way. Makes for an interesting climb...
http://www.snortingbullphoto.com/photos/1222747690_fpwTV-L.jpg
I'll be riding that one on a future trip. Next time I'm down there I need to do 22nd St, the steep sections of Duboce, and a bunch of others. If that climb is in the neighborhood I'll do it too.

Kudos for riding those hills on a 30lb bike! I grew up in SF so most of the hills were in my stomping grounds. My bike in 1991 was a Trek Antelope 820 with 48/38/28 12-28 7 speed entry level mountain bike that was 28lbs. Going from that to a Trek 2100 carbon/alloy 22lb bike was a big difference. The gearing did limit me to constant zig zagging as the low was 39x23. My knees these days are thankful for compact and triple cranksets.

Memories! Your Trek Antelope reminds me of the Specialized HardRock I had back then. I bought it new for $279 back in 1989, from the same LBS I live around the corner from now. It was at least 30 lbs. It had the same gearing as your Trek, but with a 6-speed freewheel on the back. I replaced the 28t small chainring with a 24t, which was the smallest available in the early 1990s.

In 1993 I went to San Francisco with the same friend I went down there with last week. He is not a cyclist, and he bet me $10 that I couldn't climb 22nd St with my HardRock. I won the bet.

Next time I go to SF I've got to climb 22nd St again to relive those fond memories!

I am also wondering if your fold up bike is as able a mount as your usual bike. I am staggered that you only used your lowest gear on Broderick. Filbert and company are also quite steep. What about Bradford above Thompkins at 41%. To be honest it doen't look that steep. Anyway, I believe that with a better bike, a fresh morning try you could conquer Broderick. Now I want to try.

The gear that I used on all the steeps except for Broderick is an 18.7" gear (24x24 with 20" wheels). This is very close to my road bike's lowest gear which is 18.6" (24x34 with 700c wheels). If I found a cassette with a 36t largest cog I would have a 17.6" low gear, which still isn't as low as the Bike Friday's lowest gear.

I agree, Bradford doesn't look like 41%, but photos can be deceiving. You know I've gotta try it! :D If it's really only 30' long at that gradient, I might make it.

I'll be riding that one on a future trip. Next time I'm down there I need to do 22nd St, the steep sections of Duboce, and a bunch of others. If that climb is in the neighborhood I'll do it too.

It's in Potrero Hill...actually just a few blocks over from 22nd st but towards the Bay/in Potrero. 22nd st in Potrero is actually pretty brutal as well...lots of stairs on the sidewalk for this one.

That's the one! It was 22nd between Church and Vicksburg, a 31.5% grade. There were stairs on my left as I climbed, just like Filbert.

Now that you've let me know it's close to 22nd, I'll definitely give it a shot on my next trip, if I can find it.

The narrowness is a problem. Never having been there I couldn't see just how much room you had. The horizontal or slanted start that I use to restart might not have been possible. A 29 inch wheel with a triple cassette is more my cup of tea. I never rode a 29 inch, but my 28 inch is superior to my 26 inch. You were on 22 inch at best. Regardless of the gearing, it has to be easier with bigger wheels. The folding bikes I've ridden were not built for climbing so I could be wrong. Weight matters as well, but all my bikes have been pretty heavy. I'm pretty rough on them. At 6'3" and 225 lbs. durability is heavy or out of my price range. EPO! Just kidding. There is a way to beat that narrow sidewalk. Yeah lots of hard training. Maybe stopping right before it narrows. Resting, restarting and getting through to where it opens back up to restart again. It might work. Hard training. I've never found a paved surface I couldn't ride up. I hope I never do.

The Bike Friday has 20" wheels with a triple crankset. It is sold as a touring bike so it's definitely built for climbing, which is why I bought it.

I wish I could have restarted, but it just wasn't possible at that steep of an incline.

Looks like training and weight loss are going to be the ticket to beat this hill.

20 inch wheels. I have one folding bike with 16 inch wheels. It is horrible to ride on flat below sea level Dutch streets. Our 22 inch was much better. Is your 20 inch really better than your road bike with 28 inch and a triple cassette? HITP? Wow! If you look at the staircase and railing which should be 45% it looks closer to 30%. Canton Ave also has stairs and a rail and looks closer in gradation. It is 37% officially. Upas in San Diego is 28.9% and a waste of time. It is shorter in that section than Bradford. You start out hard and pedal a few times and you are done before you noticed a climb. Bradford is a cakewalk for you. Looks can be deceiving. But sometimes they are right on. You have to climb it to know for sure. By the way, I'm filled with envy right now. I think I'll go climb the muur (wall) of Kijkduin to feel better. It starts on the beach and goes up to the top of the dunes. It might get to 20% and ends in a sidewalk climb. Its the best that Den Haag (The Hague) has to offer in pavement. When can I get to the Alps? Looking out of my office there is not a hill in sight. I will have to go to England and I have some 33% climbs in my crosshairs there. California Dreamin'.

Before I bought my geared Dahon Speed D7 back in May, I climbed a few hills on my single-speed 16" wheel vintage 1982 Dahon Da Bike. You can read about it here (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/736844-Steep-climbs-on-a-single-speed-folding-bike-%28pics-amp-vid%29?highlight=). There are pictures and a ride video in there (caution VERY heavy breathing!). The steepest climb that day was 25%.

I'm sure the road bike would be better, but I traveled to San Francisco in a rental car with a friend and his dog, so there was no room for a full-size bike.

I have no hills in the immediate area. They're all at least 25 miles away.

No matter how steep it is you can start if there is room. I can even start in a downward slant, but you have to have a few feet to zig zag back and forth in - at least to get started. The picture of Broderick at the top shows a winding driveway. Is that the top of Broderick or to its side? From the bottom it looks like a straight climb all the way up to the top. Is that not the top? Does it go on and wind to the top?

The winding driveway is to the side of the sidewalk you have to use to climb up from the bottom. The driveway ends on a patio, as you can see from the picture. The sidewalk climb narrows partway up, so there's no room to zig-zag to get started again.

Whew! I feel better already! Not really I miss riding every day. I took a trip to Belgium to do some of the climbs in the tour of Flanders a few months back, and a few months before that I got to climb all the best hills of South Limburg. It's been over a year since we lived in CA. The Santee Driveway was just a couple of miles away. I had terrific climbs in every direction. I did all the steepest climbs in the San Diego area. It just isn't the same in the flatlands. I will lift my eyes to the hills. ... Wait a minute. There aren't any. There is a town called 7 hills that doesn't even have one. One town is 3 mountains. It is flat as a pancake. Whew! It's finally December. Our son and daughter-in-law are having a baby! We are going for a visit. They are in Michigan and that isn't so far from Pittsburgh and Canton Ave. Hmmm??? There could be a foot of snow on the ground. Just do it! Rent a bike! You do Broderick with a rented bike and I do Canton Ave in a blizzard. Never say die! Push those pedals down!

So it doesn't open up after the bushes. How long is the entire climb?

You proved my point about wheel size. Your 16 inch Dahon was one speed and not made for climbing. A single speed tracking bike would have been easier. You did great, but you had to zig and zag on hills you would not even notice on your 20 inch tourer. With a 29er and top notch gearing you would crack that sidewalk. I'm sure of it. Go ahead starve yourself and exercise yourself into Leontine ( a female version of Lance), but the right time of day and the right bike and you'd do it. I know it.

I own the bike, it wasn't rented. The car I went down there in was rented though.

That section of Broderick is one block long.

Don't worry, I refuse to starve myself. I have a very healthy appetite and I eat until I'm full. I just have to watch what I eat somewhat. Even the flat rides around here are beneficial for weight loss.

You're right, those Amador County hills would have been no problem on the Bike Friday or my road bike. I wouldn't have had to do any zig-zagging.

I watched your first attempt up Broderick. You came up about 10 feet short from an opening where you could have restarted after a rest. Some 50 feet further it narrows again up to the top? If you rested before the narrow sections I think you could have made it all the way up. Regardless, you are an awesome biker and had an awesome day in SF!

Thank you. :) I may have to work on my restarting technique, or familiarize myself with Broderick a little more. This was my first time even seeing that street, let alone riding up it. I didn't even know it existed until a kind soul on another forum told me about it and posted a Google Map link and another picture.

Yes, you own the bike and it is a great bike. But SF has bike shops where you could have rented a 29 inch MTB with the best gearing. You could have attacked Broderick fresh. Rested before the narrow spots, if necessary and restarted until the next narrowing. Rested and restarted and you were at the top. You may have never had needed to stop. Go ahead. Prove me wrong.There is no paved hill you can't climb.

Nice yellow jersey by the way. You earned it! It's almost 3 a.m. Goodnight!

You may be right, but an mtb will have power-sucking suspension, which I do not want on paved roads. It may not have bar ends, which I do want and have on all my bikes with flat or riser bars. The bar ends really help with climbing power, especially on out-of-the-saddle climbs.

Also, I have more confidence in my own gear, which I have personally maintained. I do all the work on my bikes so I know what condition they're in.

Someday I will conquer Broderick. It was nice talking to you. Have a good night. :) I forgot about how late it is on your part of the globe.

You get the yellow jersey when you buy a BF membership.

Your rides earn the jersey in my book. I still am convinced that bigger wheels make for an easier climb when the gearing, weight, and other riding position, accessories, etc. are the same. I have no doubt that you can and will crack Roderick. It was great conversing with you as well.