For Climbers..
 

I hope one day you guys can visit my homeland,anyhow I was thinking how good climbers in this forum could match themself vs La Gran Piedra in Santiago de Cuba,I was trying to find a map like they do at the Tour de France you can see how stip this road is but I could not find any.The altitude is just about 4.098 feet but is the last 4 miles or so that the road turns very very vertical.

Here are some pictures but not inclination map.. :(

http://www.pbase.com/msven/santiago__gran_piedra

PD: The top is very cold and foggy,also you can see the ligths of Kingston Jamaica from there when clear at night..beatiful place full of story as well,by the way is part of "La vuelta a Cuba" bike tour as well..

is there a program that shows a profile of altitude? or is google maps as good as it gets?
nice climb btw.

You obviously have not been to the Rockies. Rides start at double the altitude of La Gran Piedra. Flatlanders just faint from walking a few yards initially anyway. A god challenge for Florida folks though,

I had been to Cuba in 1992. Only went as far as Cienfuegos. One of the best places I have been to and really great people. It would be nice to do a race tour of the island.

[quote=logdrum;9278155]You obviously have not been to the Rockies. Rides start at double the altitude of La Gran Piedra. Flatlanders just faint from walking a few yards initially anyway. A god challenge for Florida folks though,

I had been to Cuba in 1992. Only went as far as Cienfuegos. One of the best places I have been to and really great people. It would be nice to do a race tour of the island.[/QUOTE
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Well..I'm not trying to compare La Gran Piedra with the the Rockies or any other mountain in the world c'mom...and I knew someone would come with something like that,as I mentioned the altitude is just about 4K feet.. but is the elevation of
the las 4 miles or so what makes this place feared by many ciclist,there are plenty of them that after a road race from Santiago to Guantanamo can't climb the last kilometers,is very very hard,very vertical..even for cars,many people had died going up and down from cars,motorcicles accidents.

As far as Cienfuegos goes,is known to be the prettiest of all Cuban Cities.. I know Cienfuegos well,still think Havana is the best..I'm from Santiago de Cuba... 85% of Cubans are really nice people..

the thing about climbs in the Rockies is they're not that steep --in the winter the plows wouldn't be able to do their job....

I could not find anything,maybe somebody out there can do a better research ... :)

In my experience the elevation and gradient data that mapmyride (and all the similar web sites) gives you is terrible. Depending on the route, it can be half or double what you get from an altimeter, and I trust the altimeter a lot more.

The steep roads are closed in the winter. :)

Would love to visit Cuba some day, hopefully sooner rather than later.

I still don't know what to do with that web page,I searched for Gran Piedra,Cuba and 0 results.. :rolleyes:
but thanks..

We always had good track racers,we don't have the Tour de France.. :) but we have La Vuelta a Cuba.. very humble.. :D

Check who won in 2002 and 2007..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vuelta_a_Cuba

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivy4l-6drAs

Funny..some Spanish here. Vuelta a Cuba passing by my Hometown Santiago de Cuba..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atpw9FgHRk4

End in Havana.. you can tell we love cycling in Cuba,we have no bikes,or bikes that don't fit us,no tires or tubes etc etc but we don't care.. we ride anyways..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT51s...eature=related

We had our Lance too... :o :D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_Pablo_P%C3%A9rez


Anyhow..

You find the location and then map the route. Click the start and then at the finish, and it'll usually autmoatically draw the route for you. Turn on elevation, and the data is there. It might not be exact, but it'll be close enough for government work.

You can do something similar on google maps and/or goodle earth, too, IIRC.

Or, just tell us the exact start location (city and road name) and where the summit is, and someone else can do it.

Thanks.. City?... Santiago de (of) Cuba... road name? Carretera La Gran Piedra. will be hard in Spanish.. I bet..:(

... as opposed to "sort of vertical." Kind of like my "kindof pregnant" wife, I guess.

Maybe those BF folks from the DC area working with the Pent can get some declassified Cuba topo maps. Just saying... MapMyRide gets its info from Google which get's its info from from what NavTech or something. Cuba the country (there is Cuba NM) will not be on those map services.

+1 Rockies is not only Colorado too From BC to NM

LAst week I visited my frend in Golden Co, Crawford Gulch Rd, take that instead of 93 going north. If it's not steep enough, take the 1 mile outliers.

Sounds moe like the climbs on TdF this year :)

What about using google earth?

I can't get anything ... :( O well I tried,but would be nice to see the elevation or how the road climbs up,there is a place called El Obispo on the way up that the road is so vertical you will no beleive it..
I worked there for about 6 months and every day there were people that used to seat on the left side of the bus and with the windows wide open,just in case an accident is about to happend they can jump to the narrow road..:(

Google earth works if there is topo data. Plus a road usually will not follow the incline of a hill that's why we have switchbacks.

Yeah a hill looks vertical but the actual road not so much. If I am not mistaken, Peru or Bolivia one of those countries have really long steep roads. They are also not paved. I think there is Canton street in Pittsburg s considered the steepest street that is paved. It really is. Visited it last year on a trip there. It it is short but I imagine keeling over if you don't do it right.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1176/...9cfa4ea097.jpg

La Piedra is more stiff than that road and is paved,is also a lot longer of course... ;)

Try this on for size.....

http://lawheelmen.org/fargo.htm

http://www.pbase.com/coaster/fargo_s...ll_climb__2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_99hT...layer_embedded

My home town has a lot of hills as well,now think of that Hill (Fargo) but lot longer with curves and to your right some 5 miles of abism where you see the trees and royal palms the size of a fly.. ;)

Here is this brave Tourist going up to La Gran Piedra in a Moped,I contacted him to see how can I get the video in real time (speed)... if you noticed he writes that he stoped to "take" pictures,but is very usual for cars specially to stop to let the brakes cool off when descending,specially if the cars are automatics,unfortunatley many people had died in that road because the last 4 km are very stip and slipery from an small river that cross the road,you really apreciate how stip the road is when he is going down.Even one of my neighbor a wonderful woman named Maria Elena (rip)died in a car accident there.. boy she was pretty.

enjoy.. :) uuuuiiii forgot to mention,don't pay to much attention to the music,is a bolero-son,an style of Cuban music born in Santiago de Cuba by the 1890's... has very romantic lyrics..

PD: Most of the rooms of this Hotels face the Caribean sea at some 3900 feet,there is a video to the right with the views...nice... you will not beleive how beatiful it is,and there is a big and nice Orquid garden. ..ummm imagine yourself with a girl friend seating over looking the Caribean sea drinking Mojitos? priceless...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ald-I...eature=related

Maybe it's more stiff but probably not steeper. Sorry that video proves it's not that extremely steep, If it was there would have been more hairpin turns. Go to Vermont for starters, then maybe you'll find what's steep. Then go out west and the Rockies. Canyon Avenue and Fargo are really steep. It is not easy to see in the pictures. I did not believe it until I saw it and walked up it. Why do you think they have steps on the sidewalk on Canyon Avenue.

No doubt the area is extremely nice and fresh