Vireo

On my ride today I had this idea for a thread. Before digital cameras became as inexpensive and widespread as they are now, I had a collection of pictures with my bike in front of grade signs on print. Many of them I don't know where they ended up and even if I had them I wouldn't waste the time to scan them. I guess I will just have to climb them again and take a picture. I used to "amaze and amuse" my friends and coworkers with said pictures. Most of them thought I was nuts.

OK so let's see 'em. Have integrity the picture should only be taken and posted if YOU have actually climbed that hill.

DrPete 

Vireo

^^What's all that mean in "old money" as Phil Leggit says.

Hammertoe

Not quite what you are looking for but you can guess the grade...

Vireo

Thank you for admitting you are a rogue poster

But kudos to you!! I hear the weather is very unpredictable up there. How was it on your attempt? You're wearing short sleeves and ...tights?

Edit: successful attempt

Hammertoe

Do not want to hijack but it hailed soon after I finished...

I finished top 10 in my age group but should have been higher (this year I am primed!!)...

I developed shingles 11 days prior to the race...

I climbed in bibs and my Fredly SpongeBob jersey but you need to get dressed warm soon after you finish or you will freeze...

Machka 

How about a photo of a friend of mine standing next to a percentage sign ... but I climbed the hill with him?

And does walking up the hill with the bicycles count?

ericm979

No, that's walking, not cycling.

Nachoman

walkforums.net

Vireo

Machka the thread serves a few purposes -- you get to show off your bike, show off your climbing prowess and show off some ridiculous steep roads. Maybe your friend should join BF and post his picture

Machka 

Vireo said, "if YOU have actually climbed that hill" ... he didn't indicate a method. So I'll wait for his verdict.

The hill I'm asking about is a 25% grade in Wales ... not too easy to climb on the bicycle when the bicycle is loaded with panniers.

Machka 

Well ... it's in this set of photos ... on my Wales tour. There were actually two 25% grades on the route. In Wales you're either doing 4 km/h or 40 km/h. Nothing in between.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/1430288...7602327322420/

He asked if I wanted to pose by the sign, but for some reason at the time I didn't figure it was important. Who knew there would be a thread!

NomadVW 

Sorry no bike, but since the climb is on the other side of the world now I can't go back to it.

This road is in Japan a week after a typhoon did some serious damage to the route.

Vireo

Clarification on the original post-- "climbed", for the purpose of this thread, means that NO FORWARD MOTION was achieved by any other means than by pedaling your bike. Dismounting and resting, falling over, or tacking are all acceptable but you must have ONLY achieved forward progress by pedaling. Getting a push from a friend or a Madison Sling is also not allowed.


Thank you for the flickr. Great scenery. I see your friend pushing his bike up another hill was it steeper than the one he "climbed" that was 25%?

Vireo

Holy Moly!

Question is--did YOU climb it? How long was the hill?

Vireo

drunkardswalkforums

johnny99

State Highway 108 in eastern California.

Machka 

He pushed up the 25% grade hill where he posed at the top with the sign ... but he rode up the second 25% grade hill after weighing me down with a large bottle of wine in my panniers which forced me to walk.

NomadVW 

I climbed it a number of times - though it was closed for a few months after I took those shots. The other side is way steeper in some sections. On the other hand, you don't have to get that far away from where I lived to get to those roads. We had 22% grades about 15 minutes away, and plenty more in the 12+% all over the place.

johnny99

Tuscany, Italy

KiddSisko

Don't leave us in suspense with incomplete stories! Did you have to descend in the hail? Did you in fact freeze on the way down in only your SpongeBob jersey?

GP

At a So Cal forum ride in June 2007.

fixedgearinker

Ok, stupid question time... I understand the specific grade% refers to the steepness of the incline, and the greater the % the steeper the hill. However, what is the specific % in relation to? a 12% grade is 12% over what? hope I am making sense.

Machka 

In England they call grades 1:3 or 1:4. Rise over run. So it goes up 1 ft (or whatever unit of measure you choose to use) for every 3 ft in distance, or 1 ft for every 4 ft of distance. 1:3 is 1/3 or 33.3%. 1:4 is 1/4 or 25%.

So a 12% grade is approximately a 1:8 ... for every 8 ft of distance, the hill rises 1 ft.

fixedgearinker

I thought it might be something like that, similar to the pitch on a roof... Thanks Machka!