Norton Summit

[MichaelB]

..I think I might, only thing is I ride for 40 min to get to the base of norton summit so this ends up being quite a big ride, for me at least.

Same here. A loop including Mt Lofty and EoH makes it about 56 - 60km for me. Great ride though.

[alltorque]

bit of a heads up...watch out for snakes and lizards on NS road. rode up it today and saw a couple of each!

[rustychisel]

UPDATE: nasty puncture thing on Montacute Road.

I called Campbelltown Council on Monday morning, reported it as best I could remember the location and in the full knowledge that right around there is the boundary between Campbelltown Council and the Hills Council, thus affecting who is responsible.

Had a phone call 45 minutes later: the relevant council officer had gone for a drive straight up there to try and locate the problem, but unable to. Could I provide accurate assistance? No.

Tuesday evening I drove up Montacute, up and down a couple of times and I cannot find the spot either, but I'm sure there's something there. I just can't find it, so my recollection of 'below the washaway' might be in error.

Gotta say I'm completely impressed with the Campbelltown Council response to this, if I was able to accurately locate the problem I'm sure they'd have it fixed by now. Thumbs up to a bloke named Jeff Manuel.

[liamb]

Hi Rusty

For what it is worth the "hole" "bump" I hit was on the down track about 300m-500m past an entry to the Morialta conservation park. A few weeks back I did the Operation Flinders 34km walk and remember walking up Montacute road from an exit from Black Hill Park to the Morialta Park. The entry to the park is uphill and a goat track but has a vehicle wide gate. I know it may not help too much but it is what I remembered.
http://www.trailblazer.org.au/images/pdf/cp1-cp2.pdf
this link shows the track from Athelstone to Morialta HP2 is where we walked along the road up to the entry to Morialta Park.

Cheers Bill

[Solirossi]

@Bill

I would suggest using the 'standard' markers as its a mensurable yard stick. If you decide to enter your times in to cycle2max it will work out your power output watts/kg etc... so by using a different set of 'points' you negate your ability to utilise all the tools available on the net. Also when ever you speak to someone who does Nortons they will always quote their time between the two recognised markers. So its a better comparison.

That way if you are riding with someone for the first time and you know they do it in x mins then you have an idea of thier fitness/how much pain they will put you in.

I would say 20mins is the 'par' time. If you can do it in 20 then you are going well, if you are outside of 20 then you could improve. Dont get me wrong everyone is different. BUt yeah my goal lis 20, my previous best is 21, but iv not done a big effort up there for a while.

I rode it pretty easy 2 weeks ago on a Saturday morning and there were 2 guys in particular that were flying up there. I was in the saddle doing about 14 or 15kph at this one point and I just heard a 'woosh woosh woosh' then this guy in a Bicycle Express kit just came hammering past out of the saddle, it was a steep bit and I would guess he was doing east 25kph, there was another Super Elliots rider who did the same thing. Both those guys Id guess would be doing it in the 14's I'd say.

There is also a video of Jack Bobridge doing the climb in 11.50. THis is the record, FYI that is around 400 Watts at an average speed of 29kph!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fk_-7VVf6M

Its a great climb, i dont time it every time but I think its good to have a climp that you do time as it gives a good fitness indicator.

[liamb]

Solirossi

I will still use my markers because its where I started, but I will have a look at the time as I cross the line up the top to give me a braggimg right time . I am not interested in adding my time to lists but you are right it is good to have a common timing point to refer to.

Bill

[williamsf1]

ok the bar has been raised....

the GF at month 8 of riding .... yes 8mths only on a bike has done 4 norton summits....

21.45
21.05
20.30




18.22!!!!! seriously....


I am going to be in a whole lot of pain when I ride it with her in a few days!!!! ( I've been away working, and she has had her fit touched up plus some new cranks... )

[goudgey]

Well that's depressing*, I'm going to go home now and hang my head in shame
no matter how hard I try I'm unable to crack the 20 minute barrier. My current best time is 20:22 which I thought was reasonable considering I clocked 25 minutes flat on my very first attempt some 4 months ago. I must have ridden up Norton 10 times since then. Oh well, back to training!


* seriously impressive!

[MichaelB]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

My best is 23:20 from turnoff to pub, and I'm a big guy, so I'm happy with that.

Williamsf1 - can I borrow some of your missus's watts please ?

[rustychisel]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

I'm slower than that . Never even bothered timing it accurately.

Bottom marker: rolling start when you turn left from Magill onto New NS road

Top marker: line painted across road at dead tree, just where the road deviates away from the Morialta Falls park boundary. ie, about 2km before the pub, 500m before the 'crest' (vinyard on your left). There is a largish concrete water tank before a house on the left (ie first house on the left for some km). At the driveway, big dead gum tree. Line is old and faded.

Never understood why that point is chosen, somewhat arbitrarily, since the crest of the climb comes some 500m later

[bongo]

When I race my mates it starts at the turn off from Magill Rd and the winner is the first to the pub.

[MichaelB]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

I'm slower than that . Never even bothered timing it accurately.

Bottom marker: rolling start when you turn left from Magill onto New NS road

Top marker: line painted across road at dead tree, just where the road deviates away from the Morialta Falls park boundary. ie, about 2km before the pub, 500m before the 'crest' (vinyard on your left). There is a largish concrete water tank before a house on the left (ie first house on the left for some km). At the driveway, big dead gum tree. Line is old and faded.

Never understood why that point is chosen, somewhat arbitrarily, since the crest of the climb comes some 500m later

Cheers Rusty, may have a look this weekend and see what I can find.

[Solirossi]

Michael its the first house in quiet a while on your left, and there is the large gum tree and sitting against the gum tree is a timber board with large white numbers, they are the number of the house, i think 169 from memory.

[eeksll]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

My best is 23:20 from turnoff to pub, and I'm a big guy, so I'm happy with that.

Williamsf1 - can I borrow some of your missus's watts please ?

I'd say you'd be comfortably under the 20 minute mark.

When I did my sub 20 minute ride, it took me 5-6 minutes more to reach the top. From memory I did not kill myself to get to the 20 minute mark so the 5 minute ride from the line to the top was not a particularly slow ride.

[shiv]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

My best is 23:20 from turnoff to pub, and I'm a big guy, so I'm happy with that.

Williamsf1 - can I borrow some of your missus's watts please ?

last weekend I did an 18:32 to the line, then it took us just on 4 minutes to get to the pub but that was at a fairly leisurely pace. So I'd say you were around the 19 minute mark.

My goal is to beat my best, 17:55, by christmas. Need to lose 4 kilo first though.

[bongo]

Should this thread become a post your best Norton Summit time thread.Challenge yourself and each other?

[shiv]

Should this thread become a post your best Norton Summit time thread.Challenge yourself and each other?

Yep. Why not. But do we time to the house (number 169) or all the way to the pub? Or both.

[DanielS]

I cracked 15 mins once (14:49) but I would do it around 20 mins at the moment! Might do an all out effort during the week and see what I get.

I think the unoffical end point is at No. 169 because it flattens out a little bit after that. If you go all the way to the pub there is quite a bit of flat road and even some downhill. If you include those sections its not really a 'pure' test of climbing ability any more. It also messes up the power calculations on sites like cycle2max because it relies on it being roughly the same gradient the whole way up.

[rustychisel]

I think the unoffical end point is at No. 169 because it flattens out a little bit after that. If you go all the way to the pub there is quite a bit of flat road and even some downhill. If you include those sections its not really a 'pure' test of climbing ability any more.

This is understood, but the 'crest' is still some 500m further on. After the tree (#169) the gradient is similar to lower down alongside the falls for a time, then kicks for a short burst as you know.

It also messes up the power calculations on sites like cycle2max because it relies on it being roughly the same gradient the whole way up.

Got your horses and carts mixed up there Daniel. Gradient is never constant, so the argument should actually be "sites like cycle2max cannot handle the complex calculations required if the gradient is a variable".

[Solirossi]

I think the unoffical end point is at No. 169 because it flattens out a little bit after that. If you go all the way to the pub there is quite a bit of flat road and even some downhill. If you include those sections its not really a 'pure' test of climbing ability any more.

This is understood, but the 'crest' is still some 500m further on. After the tree (#169) the gradient is similar to lower down alongside the falls for a time, then kicks for a short burst as you know.

It also messes up the power calculations on sites like cycle2max because it relies on it being roughly the same gradient the whole way up.

Got your horses and carts mixed up there Daniel. Gradient is never constant, so the argument should actually be "sites like cycle2max cannot handle the complex calculations required if the gradient is a variable".

Daniels point was well made and logical, I dont think its necessary to highlight how a change in semantics make his original statement more accurate.

I did it in 21.30 on Saturday morning, I went out for too hard and was stuffed a third of the way up. Does anyone know the average speed required to crack the 20 mark? is it about 17kph?

I have to up my training and get stronger.

[eeksll]

I did it in 21.30 on Saturday morning, I went out for too hard and was stuffed a third of the way up. Does anyone know the average speed required to crack the 20 mark? is it about 17kph?

according to google maps its 5.6km so for 20 minutes that would be 5.6 * 3 = 16.8 ... so about 17 is right.

[williamsf1]

OK, so I have no idea of where the "markers" are (top one anyway), but how much difference is there between the top mark and the pub ?

My best is 23:20 from turnoff to pub, and I'm a big guy, so I'm happy with that.

Williamsf1 - can I borrow some of your missus's watts please ?

She is only tiny at 52kg but I think currently is something like 3.6 power to weight now....

I think the big gain came from turning a slightly lower RPM (AT) about 70-80 instead of her usual 90 climbing.... so about 2 cogs up!

[mtb159]

Norton Summit is great! Only done it a couple of times on my mountain bike, fastest time which was the first time I had done Norton Summit road was 24 minutes