Great hill climb trainng hill!

Discussion in 'The Pub' started by UniGeezer, Feb 15, 2011.

  1. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Great hill climb training hill!

    Found this 24% grade, 200 foot long ramp at Redondo Beach. Great for training.

    [video=youtube;WWit2bxQ9GQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWit2bxQ9GQ[/video]
     
  2. BROWNIE

    BROWNIE I'm good at recess!

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    Try the hill at the end of Torrance Beach! Shorter, steeper = more fun!
     
  3. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Oh yeah!! You mean the one at the very start of the bike path...the very FIRST ramp that is wider and goes more staight than angled? Are you sure it's steeper? If so, do you know the grade %?
     
  4. nating75

    nating75 New Member

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    Did I miss something... When did Rick Moranis take up Unicycling?!?
     
  5. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Haha. Now I know the reason for the warning label that came with my camera:
    "Closeups can cause slight 'fisheye' effect and result in some people making old SCTV references" :lol:
     
  6. BROWNIE

    BROWNIE I'm good at recess!

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    Not sure of the grade,but it's for sure steeper! Great hill for doing intervals on the road bike, seven is my limit so far, but that was after a lap of PV.
     
  7. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    I'll be there tomorrow, and I have a very accurate method of calculating the grade, and it's much easier to do when the angle is the same from top to bottom, which I'm pretty sure it is. But my guess is it's no more than 28%, but that's still very steep. Btw, the seven times you climbed it, was that non-stop up & down, and were you in 2.5:1 gear? I'm assuming you were in close to your lowest gear, if not lowest for that ramp. Anyway, can't wait to try it, and thanks for the tip!
     
  8. BROWNIE

    BROWNIE I'm good at recess!

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    The intervals were non stop and the gear selection started 3rd from lowest (3 times), 2nd from lowest (2 time), and lowest gear 2 times. My legs were JELLY after that!
     
  9. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Ok thanks for the info and congrats on those climbs! I might be lucky to do ONE climb, but I'll try for at least two. Maybe if I train on that ramp enough, I'll have a good chance to conquer Fargo! But that's a whole different animal!
     
  10. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    I went there this morning to check it out, and unless it's not the one you're talking about, it measures 188 feet long, and just under 21% grade. I used both my garmin gps and my calculation method: rise divided by run X100. Easiest way to measure it is with a common 12" level. Place one end of the level on the high side of the paved ramp, lift low end until bubble indicates perfect horizontal, then measure rise. I got 2.5" rise. So if we divide 2.5 by 12, and multiply by 100, we get 20.8333. Which we can just call 21%. Still steep!
     
  11. mtnbkr818

    mtnbkr818 Member

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    Its not continuous grade if you get to go back down each time
     
  12. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    By continuous I meant the hill doesn't change pitch; it's a paved beach ramp and it is the exact same grade from bottom to top. And doing it more than once obviously requires you to go back down to do it again. And riding back down on a unicycle multiple times is also taxing your muscles. I would gladly not have to go back down, but the ramp is only 180 or so feet long, so i like to do it as many times as I can. You will also notice that I did not stop; all four climbs and descents were done non-stop.
     
  13. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Hey David, I went there again this morning and did three climbs in a row, non-stop, including the downs of course. I must agree that this ramp is definitely steeper! Apparently my calculation was wrong, and after riding it, and Fargo, it feels very close to the same grade!

    Having said that, why don't we have a little friendly competition to see who can do the most climbs, in the shortest time! Since my uni is obviously 1:1 direct drive with no gears, you could just ride in a gear that would approximate 1:1 as well. And since you have the ability to coast back down after each climb, we would only be counting the total climbs and the total time elapsed for them.

    What do you think? I could meet you there pretty much anytime, and I could even set up my video camera so we could film it as well! I think it would be a blast, and anyone else who lives near Redondo Beach is welcome to come on down and join in!
     
  14. BROWNIE

    BROWNIE I'm good at recess!

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    I'm in. I live down in south OC now,but can always find a reason to go to the south bay. I'm out of town this weekend, but let's try and set it up within the next few weeks. I have some other roadie friends that might want to join in. Hopefully we can stage this competition on a day that the surf's closed out, otherwise there's a lot of foot traffic on that ramp.
     
  15. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    Sounds great, and yes, the more the better! It could become a regular event.
    And if that particular ramp is to congested, we could just ride down to Ave C and do the other, slightly longer, but slightly less steep ramp. But I was at the steeper one today, and although there was a fair amount of people coming up and down, the ramp is plenty wide to accommodate everyone.

    Besides, I would imagine that we could organize it so that only 2 riders are competing at a time. That would still leave plenty of room for other people, I would guess. Btw, the sign at the top does say "no bikes", but when a lifeguard saw me this morning, he didn't say anything, but did give me a thumbs up, haha!
     
  16. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    3 1/2 years later. still love climbing this hill! But it's the steeper (steepest I think) ramp at the very beginning at Torrance beach. This time I did 5 continuous climbs, and on my 700c instead of the smaller 24. Helluva workout! :)

    [video=youtube;ML1Kg6oYgKM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML1Kg6oYgKM[/video]
     
  17. Varaxis

    Varaxis Trail Ninja

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    *imagines a fat tire unicycle trying to climb that sandy trail*
     
  18. CarbonLegs

    CarbonLegs Search for ultimate ride.

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    I did not know Torrance had a Bch.. Must be really small.
     
  19. Bruce in SoCal

    Bruce in SoCal Member

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    I love that hill, but am not sure what would happen to me if it were 20 feet longer.
     
  20. UniGeezer

    UniGeezer Adventure Cyclist

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    I measured it at about 205 feet in length, and am going there in a while to calculate the height, which I'm guessing at around 50-60 feet. That would put the grade in the 25-28% range, which I think is close. I'm planning to try TEN non-stop climbs this Sunday at 8am. It'll add up to a bit over 2,000 feet of climbing, and another 2k or descents. I'm doing it for City of Hope Leukemia research and dedicating it to my brother who is fighting the disease.
     

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