Reeses

I'm going on a 37 mile ride on Monday and about 10 miles total of it is going to be in the mountains (I know it's a piece of cake to the people who pull off double-centuries without a sweat, but bear with me ). One stretch is 4.4 miles and another is 5.5 miles, and I'm a little scared as to whether I'll be able to climb for that long though.

I've got a 22 lb bike, and will be wearing a close fitting, thin sweater with normal shorts (no jerseys or tights to speak of). I'm most interested in what parts of the climb get the most challenging and how to conserve my energy and resources, and what to do when I'm in distress.

dmcdmc

I wouldn't worry about the weight of the bike. If you can't do a climb on a 30 lb bike, getting on a 16lb bike won't turn you into contador (though you would be faster on a lighter bike).

If you're in distress, stop. If you have a "granny gear", don't be afraid to use it. For long climbs, you are better off spinning than mashing.

And HAVE FUN!

10 Wheels

Start out in a very easy gear.
Take a deep breath, sit up straight and pedal.

Do not look at the top of the climb.
Go slow and enjoy the ride.

echotraveler

be silent...talk to yourself INSIDE your head. concentrate. pray as you go.
enjoy suffering...

dmcdmc

I actually find it helpful to look where I want to go (usually slightly up when climbing)...kind of a positive thinking thing. But that's just me. I've heard about visualizing that a rope is pulling you up but that never did anything for me.

Velo Vol 

It depends on the climb.

Pace yourself.

Reeses

Thanks for the advice. The climb itself isn't very steep (I've been through the route tons of times by car), but it's just the distance that worries me. I haven't exactly climbed for 5 miles at a time before, I've only ever been on bridges and overpasses where I sprinted toward the top just enough to get over .

I just went to Walmart to buy a second set of water bottle/cage just in case. By the way (completely off topic), why do people spend tons of money on carbon fiber bottle cages when simple Walmart alloy weighs maybe a few grams more for less than half of the price? Boggles my mind.

I will try

krobinson103

I think the answer to that is because they can. Goes along with the questions I ask myself. Why buy a bike that costs as much as a car? Because you can.

guadzilla

Nicer cages look nicer. Same thing as spending a little extra on clothes, shoes, sunglasses, whatever.

As has been said, the main thing for climbing is to use a low gear. You might feel a little strange spinning and going so slow, and be tempted to rev up the effort a little, but resist it.

bikerjp

How steep? Plenty of out of shape people (not that you are out of shape - just making a point) go on longer rides and while they won't be fast and may be fairly worn out. It's doable. Pace yourself, spin a lower gear rather than trying to push high gears. If it's too steep and you find yourself in "distress" then you can always get off the bike and walk that section or stop for a break.

Your clothing choices will probably be okay, but I'd avoid cotton as much as possible as you will likely be sweating and cotton doesn't breathe. In particular, I'd be careful to avoid cotton underwear.

papawoody

take it slow and steady the 1st time . once your familiar with the terrain and your abilities , you'll know where you can work a little harder, or not ...

Reeses

Anywhere from 3-10 percent grade with slight dips in-between. I mapped out the first part of the route here, you can mouse over the route to see the grade of the road.

The second part of my trip will be through Turnbull Canyon. I did a google search and one of the suggestions was "Turnbull Canyon Haunted" WTF

Machka 

You've talked about the weight of your bicycle, your clothing choices, the percent of the grade, the distance of the climb, the fact that you've now got two waterbottles on board .... but you've yet to say anything about your gearing.

What is your granny?


And a tip ... don't sprint on these climbs. Settle into a rhythm and just keep pedalling.

chasm54

OK, here's some tips from an experienced but slow climber.

What you are trying to do is find a level of effort, and a rhythm, that will take you all the way to the top of the climb. A five-mile climb is a long one, so you need to be working at an intensity you could sustain for the best part of an hour, if you had to. Sprinting to the top, like you have on small hills, is out of the question.

Select a gear that allows you to spin at around 60rpm. If anything, you should feel that you could manage a harder gear than you're in. Don't spin like a hamster on a wheel, but don't be tempted to change up too soon, either; pushing a big gear at a low cadence tires your legs out pretty fast.

Stay in the saddle most of the time, it is generally more efficient. But sometimes you are likely to feel you want a break, need to change your position, or have just reached a steep section where you need to stand for a while. Change upone or two gears, into a harder gear, immediately before standing then, while out of the saddle, pedal at a lower cadence than you were using while seated. If you stand in the same gear you have been using while seated, because you are using your bodyweight and recruiting more muscles to the task, your cadence will rise and you'll quickly get out of breath. Stand straight up, don't put too much weight over the front wheel, and let the bike rock naturally from side to side beneath you. Change down again when you sit down.

Don't bother thinking about the length of the climb, concentrate on your effort levels. It's no different in principle than cycling fast on the flat - if you can't maintain the pace you are going at, you slow down a bit, and change into an easier gear. If you're in your lowest gear on the 10% sections, don't worry. They won't last all that long, just tough it out until the gradient eases. Remember to change up at that point, you're going to need that low gear again to give you some relief at the next steep bit.

Just keep plodding along and don't worry if you think you're too slow. If you get to the top and feel you could have gone faster, good - go a bit faster next time.

Climbing is fun. I'm not much good at it myself, I'm too big a rider to climb with the lightweights, but I try to make the most of what I've got, and the sense of achievement - and, often, the views - at the top of a big climb make it pretty rewarding. Enjoy.

Reeses

Im not too familiar with the terminology, but my easiest gear to pedal would be (counting teeth), 30 in the front, 25 in back. I have a 30/39/50 chainring and a Shimano Tiagra 12-25T cassette
Thanks for the standing tip, i find myself getting quickly exhausted from getting out of the saddle, not shifting up, and leaning forward. I have no way of counting my cadence though..

chasm54

A 30 on the front and a 25 on the back should get you up virtually anything. You probably won't need your lowest gear on a 10% gradient, but use it if you have to.

No need to count it. When out of the saddle, look for the sort of rhythm you might use on a stepping machine like a stairmaster in a gym, or when climbing the stairs reasonably briskly at home. Don't rush.

rebel1916

I would just dial it up to 450 watts!

Hillbasher

"Enjoy suffering". The magic words.

Igo

I'm very new to cycling, 10 months, but came into the sport in very steep country. I'm very interested in this thread and how it turns out.
I can't open your link for your route. I would really love to see it. I've been backpacking for years so I almost always pit my new bike rides against GPS recorded backpacking experiences. I use a GPS on my bikes for this very reason.
How many feet are you going to gain in a mile. What is the average grade? I've read 3% and 10%. Huge difference. Since I am new, I'm going to tell you that old timers are going to scoff at your 31.5 gear inches in your 30/25 granny but I started with 34/25 and it was not great going. I just bought into APEX gearing with 34/32 and find I never use the 32 but in the hills around here I'm in 34/28 on several stretches.
I'll let these pros tell you how to climb on a bike. On foot you have your breath before you start, pee clear and be fully hydrated, stop to rest and stop often. You'll be just fine.

Machka 

I don't think scoff is the right word.

I'm looking at that 30x25 granny + 10% grade ... and I'm thinking he'll be off and walking. But that's OK. It's always OK to walk if you have to in order to get up the hill.

If I'm not mistaken, I've got a 24x34 on my Hasa ... and when it's finished, I think I'll have a 22x34 on my touring bicycle. That's the sort of gearing that gets me up steep hills, and even so I walk when it gets longer than 500 metres at 18% and more.

chasm54

You're talking touring gears, Machka. For loaded touring, I gear down too. But unladen, on a road bike (even a 22lb road bike) with my 34/25 I am not going to be off and walking until I hit something that is >20% for an extended period. And the OP is talking about a gradient that varies between 3% and 10%. He'll be fine.

Reeses

I've tried my granny gear before and I feel literally no resistance in pedaling and I go about 10 miles an hour while pedaling a high cadence, so I never use it. If I had only two chainrings then maybe I'd be in a little trouble (granny gear-wise), but I think with such a low gear as my lowest gear, I'll be okay.

Sorry for the inconvenience, you should be able to see the route here:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/1063802 (The red line is going, and blue line is returning)

And I'm even newer at this than you friend, with 6 months As to elevation gain and average grade. The ride is 38.2 miles long and gains + 2138 / - 2138 ft. The first 4.4mi stretch is mostly a climbing/descending/climbing/descending type thing - is it called hill repeats? hill intervals? I'm not sure.

The second part (excluding descent) averages 17% grade with a maximum of ... 20%

fishymamba

I have gotten up pretty much every hill I have encountered(16-20% grades sustained for about .25 miles) with a 30 in the front and 26 in the rear.
The only climb that stopped me was a ~30% grade on a private road.....I just couldn't get up without zig-zagging.

Your gearing should be more than enough for getting up that climb.

And don't trust the Ride with GPS grade data, it's not too accurate. It shows some 60% grade climbs near my house.

Nick Bain

Your longest climbs are less than 3 miles.

10 mph in 30-25 is over 100 rpm.

Wal-mart cages will not last as long.

You'll be fine with a triple. Your bum might hurt if you are not used to long climbs and practicing standing is good. People will say don't stand but just like climbing the more you do it the easier it becomes and the more efficient you can be at it you will also use different muscle groups and give others a rest when standing.

fishymamba

The first climb looks to me like rollers(up and down, up and down....).

The second climb looks like it gets a little steeper at the end, so you might want to conserve your energy.