Noooo....mapmyride.com is awful for elevation.

ridewithgps.com is where it's at.

Bob

Not necessarily. See the gear calculator above, and maybe a cassette change is all it will take. Compacts make it easier to get lower gearing, sometimes, but if you can get to the same gearing other ways, it's worth considering.

I have a 12-28 and can't fit anything larger than that. I'm not really gonna change anything in my setup, as it's my beater bike, but a 50 chainring would be nice. I suck majorly at climbing but am very good at flats/sprinting, so I need all the help I can get

My hills get into the 15-20% range. That's why I need a 11-34 cassette (Rival mid-cage RD) with my compact crank.

I was using a 11-32 cassette and, amazingly, the 11-34 cassette makes everything a lot easier.

Hills over here are from 15 to 20% and around 1km long, my 42-53 and 12-23 8 speed setup get me at the top of them with no problem at all

I ride in NoVA. Rolling hills or not, there are still some pretty steep ones that benefit from the right gearing (Stumptown, Taylorstown, St. Louis, parts of Snickersville Pike, Rt 601 or 606 (Mt. Weather) etc.) I use a compact crank (50/34) with an 11/28 cassette. It's not "required" for most Northern VA conditions, but I'm glad I have it.

I ride 52/39/30 front, 14-28 rear.

Local hills include 100 yards at 25%, 400 yards at 20%, 800 yards at 17%, 1 mile at 10%, 3 miles at 9% and 5.5 miles at 3.3% i.e. from short to longish and from gentle to viciously steep.

A broad range of gears makes this terrain bearable.

I went from 12-23 to 13-26 and finally to a 14-28 cassette when I realised that my top gears were rarely getting used and I was running out of low gears. I can still pedal to about 35 mph and above that is only downhill when I get aero and freewheel. I still hit speeds of up to 55 mph and I don't want to go any faster than that.

If I raced, my top gear would be too low, but I don't, so it isn't!

That's where I ride. Do you know what are the grade for those? It looks like I'll be looking for a compact.

No problem at all? A 1km hill at 20% on 42/23? No problem at all?

Welcome to the 41. You're going to fit right in.

Sorry i forgot to say i am 20 year old, 65kg and a bit fit but i dont ride on a crabone bike with di2, its just a steel pinarello veneto with 8 speed 105.

And why are you not on a pro team yet?

34 on a cassette?

Just buy a triple, grandpa.

Cause a friend got the spot instead of me. But i still have time right ?

Well, the other day I got an old bike from my friend. It is 5lbs lighter than my current one and the difference is quite dramatic. Forget about climbing the hill, I want to attack it. I bet a 3K bike would be amazing on a hill.

53/39 w/12-25 11 speed. I have not found a hill that I could not climb. I have climbed many hills that I wish I had a compact. Fortunately I live on a hill that is 15% so that gives me many miles of practice. It's nice to have a bike <15lbs.

Most of the hills around me are 30 - 40% and my 55/44 TT chainrings with an 11/19 corncob 9-speed gets me over all of it except for the 50% (2 miles) to get to my house where I have to climb out of the saddle. Just think what I could do on a <30lb bike!

I just survived a bunch of mountain passes in Switzerland with a 50/34 crank and an 11-28 cassette. I'm a pocket-clyde at 90kg (and I'm 'masters' age).

Almost 8000m of climbing in about 280km of riding (mostly shorter rides, 30-60km). Tough in spots but nothing stopped me in my tracks.

I'm in awed.

Around here, there's no "typical" hill, but one of my favorite rides is up to the local ski area and back: 60 mi rt, 4800' of vert, the main climb is probably 15 miles (yes, climbing the whole time), gradient varying from 3% to 12-13%. Elevation range is 3650 - 6400'. I've been running a 12-26 10sp, with 28-46 double. I'm 6'3", 185lb, and climb about like Cav (and sprint like Andy). The 28x26 low lets me keep my revs up to about 90rpm on the 13% pitches. And I have no trouble hitting 40+ mph on the way back - 49.1 this past Sat. Once I hit 30 on the descents, I just tuck and let 'er run!

I've just switched the drivetrain to 13-26 x 24-38-50, to give me more midrange climbing gears and a "bailout" on the granny, but haven't had a chance to really wring it out yet.

SP
Bend, OR

ps - 57 y.o., in case you think that's a factor...