Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

Having had my road bike for 6 months now and riding with the SPR main groups on tues and thurs morning I'm really satisfied with my progress.......I headed off up to Gooseberry Hill Rd yesterday in my search to becoming a more "complete" cyclist Nice times up the Roe psp and Hale/Hawtin Rd were easy, however I completely tanked on the climb (stopped 3 times and not ashamed to admit it!), is this normal for my first attempt and will it just become easier with practice?......I'm 187cm and 100kg as well whilst I'm looking for more excuses to not sound like too much of a pussy

Aphexchefpusher wrote:Having had my road bike for 6 months now and riding with the SPR main groups on tues and thurs morning I'm really satisfied with my progress.......I headed off up to Gooseberry Hill Rd yesterday in my search to becoming a more "complete" cyclist Nice times up the Roe psp and Hale/Hawtin Rd were easy, however I completely tanked on the climb (stopped 3 times and not ashamed to admit it!), is this normal for my first attempt and will it just become easier with practice?......I'm 187cm and 100kg as well whilst I'm looking for more excuses to not sound like too much of a pussy

Dude, you didnt start with an easy climb then!
Sometimes it takes a few goes to get up a good hill, I think it took me a few trys to get up Mills rd east when I was starting out.
As you learn a climb like that, it does get easier..
I promise you.

Yep gets easy, its all about gear changing and finding that sweet spot

you have set yourself a benchmark. Each time you ride up the hill try and extend the distances before you stop. before long you will be all over it like a cheap suit

I always hear people say that hills get easier.

I don't really think they do.

As you get better at going up the hills it seems to me all u do is end up going up them quicker, so it's never easier.

I guess if you stayed at the original speed you first went over the hill, then it's easier.

I am still waiting for my hills to get easier.

Cheers


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Jezza75 wrote:

Aphexchefpusher wrote:Having had my road bike for 6 months now and riding with the SPR main groups on tues and thurs morning I'm really satisfied with my progress.......I headed off up to Gooseberry Hill Rd yesterday in my search to becoming a more "complete" cyclist Nice times up the Roe psp and Hale/Hawtin Rd were easy, however I completely tanked on the climb (stopped 3 times and not ashamed to admit it!), is this normal for my first attempt and will it just become easier with practice?......I'm 187cm and 100kg as well whilst I'm looking for more excuses to not sound like too much of a pussy

Dude, you didnt start with an easy climb then!
Sometimes it takes a few goes to get up a good hill, I think it took me a few trys to get up Mills rd east when I was starting out.
As you learn a climb like that, it does get easier..
I promise you.

I had a feeling it was a poor choice for a first crack at it any easier hills to start with, are Kalamunda Rd or Welshpool rd viable alternatives? I will, however still plug away at GooseHill Rd

I'm scared of Gooseberry Hill. >10%
Welshpool Rd is easier o_0 ~5-7%
Kalamunda Rd has too much traffic for mine though is a nice descent
Dont be tempted to climb the zigzag, just give cyclists a bad rep

I took my bike with me on a camping trip to Honeymoon Pool near Wellington Dam as I saw on Google Maps there were some sealed roads out of there. What I didn't check was Google Earth, River Rd out of the valley was an unpleasant surprise Must be around 15%

Gooseberry Hill is nasty. In 5 attempts I have made it all the way once. Every other time the l have to get off and push between Landsdowne Rd and Heal Place. I think te slope is ~18% at this section.

I have 53-39 chainrings with a 12-25 cassette. With this combo I struggle with hills over 10%. I have noticed that 11-28 cassettes are popular and I will try one too.

53/39 x 11-25 when I go to adelaide I swap in a 13-29 cluster
I do love it, and throughly recommend it as a cheaper less involved way of reducing gearing, compared to changing chain rings.
I must try Gooseberry Hill again but only with that sweet 29 tooth dinner plate

Just pop up and down Crystal Brook Rd a few times, the gentle murmuring of the Crystal Brook will soothe you as you climb the nice smooth tarmac with its own dedicated bike lane.

The secret to making hills easier is this: Each time you ride to the top, throw a rock off. If you do this enough times the hill will get smaller.

Hills never get easier, you just get faster.

Gooseberry is pretty tough, it's the first hill I went up in the Perth Hills as well and I bonked spectacularly about two thirds of the way up. I assure you after a few tough rides you'll get up it without stopping.

Last year I used Welshpool Rd, Kalamunda Rd, Gooseberry Hill, Crystal Brook Rd and some other hills for my training for the self supported tour in the Pyrenees, French and Swiss alps. The secret for the very successful tour was, loading the panniers with 20 l of water in milk bottles and heading into the Perth hills and going up and down all this roads. Never had to stop and push the bike.
It sure helped me heading over 55 Cols with a fully loaded touring bike, the highest was Col de l'Iseran (2764 m). If you set your mind too it, find the speed and cadence that is the most comfortable for you, then soon you will kick as up this hills.

Just pop up and down Crystal Brook Rd a few times, the gentle murmuring of the Crystal Brook will soothe you as you climb the nice smooth tarmac with its own dedicated bike lane.

Crystal Brook is dry at the moment. It is lovely when it is flowing though. However I wouldn't say it is an easy climb. Welshpool Road is much easier, but the traffic sucks.

Brookton highway is an easy but long climb (for Perth).

Welshpool Road is an excellent training route, and very busy with cyclists at silly o'clock on a Sunday morning.

The good thing about it I find is it gets easier each time you attempt it so is a good guage of progress and there are a few mini flats towards the top just when you think you can't go any further....

f@f

I found this thread both heartening, yet frightening at the same time.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one struggling to climb - I've been cycling regularly for 2 months now, and have knocked off about 8 kgs in weight. That still leaves me at around 114 kgs though, and it doesn't make for a good power to weight ratio, nor a very pretty sight, when there's any form of upward incline (I'm pretty quick in straight lines downhill though).

On the worrying side, it sounds like there's only one way to get better at it - hard work and persistance, and that even with that, its still gunna hurt.

Hills? Perth has hills?

ColinOldnCranky wrote:Hills? Perth has hills?

Some councils call them "traffic calming measures"

Noone seems to have mentioned Mills Road East yet, up from Gosnells. I've been hitting it the last few Sundays at around dawn. ~5km steady gradient up. Comparable I guess to Welshpool Rd but quieter traffic wise and a bit more winding.

At the top, where it changes/joins to Canning Mills Road - you earn a lovely stretch before it comes out on Canning Road south of Pickering Brook. I've gotta start joining it to some of the other routes mentioned.

HappyHumber wrote:

ColinOldnCranky wrote:Hills? Perth has hills?

Some councils call them "traffic calming measures"

Noone seems to have mentioned Mills Road East yet, up from Gosnells. I've been hitting it the last few Sundays at around dawn. ~5km steady gradient up. Comparable I guess to Welshpool Rd but quieter traffic wise and a bit more winding.

At the top, where it changes/joins to Canning Mills Road - you earn a lovely stretch before it comes out on Canning Road south of Pickering Brook. I've gotta start joining it to some of the other routes mentioned.

Mills Rd East is a hell of a lot tougher than Welshpool Rd (well for a fat boy like me anyway)! Probably reaches the same elevation but a good 1 to 1.5 km shorter so steeper by a couple of percentage points. A nice ride however, even though it hurts.

I cracked it! 85km round trip this morning with 5 mates, up welshpool rd in one go without spectacularly bonking like I did up Gooseberry Hill rd then onto Pickering Brook and up Mundaring Weir Rd and down the zig zags and back home, felt pretty good and like I'd really achieved something special......quite inspiring and the morning mist made for some spectacular views........I love Perth

Well done. The loop you describe is a good little hills loop that I have done alot. I espcially like descending along the zigzag on a cool clear morning. it is most pleasant.

As an aside and for something slightly different as you come along Aldesyde Road and come to the intersection with Mundaring Weir Road turn onto Mundaring Weir Road but then slide off the to the right and go along Aldesyde where it comntinues on teh other side of Mundaring Weir Road. Follow it along until you get to Hummerston and turn right and follow it until you get back onto Mundaring Weir Road where it joins at about 2/3 of the way to Kalamunda. Bit steeper but virtually no traffic.

fixed wrote:I'm scared of Gooseberry Hill. >10%
Welshpool Rd is easier o_0 ~5-7%
Kalamunda Rd has too much traffic for mine though is a nice descent
Dont be tempted to climb the zigzag, just give cyclists a bad rep

Just got an email from PIHC where they stated they were going to climb zigzag, so I've emailed them back pointing it out that it is one way and they are giving cyclists a bad rep doing this. I am looking forward to the reply email.

I went down the Zig Zag last weekend and had trouble keeping clear of the groups coming up as well as the many going down. Not a good thing on a popular but narrow road.

If you're looking for hills then perhaps after you've come down the Zig Zag turn right on Ridge Hill Rd to get to Scott then Marriott, find the roads to connect Coulston, Darlington, Ryecroft, Thomas and Phillips to get up to Mundaring. The climb has a few moments. There are markers along that route for Saturday's Tour de Perth event and a lot of riders out that way. You can descend from Mundaring on Great Eastern Hwy but you could also take Mundaring Weir Rd back to Kalamunda, again following the event markers for this Saturday's.

Baalzamon wrote:Just got an email from PIHC where they stated they were going to climb zigzag, so I've emailed them back pointing it out that it is one way and they are giving cyclists a bad rep doing this. I am looking forward to the reply email.

What date are they talking about, Baalz? Their website is 12 months behind. It wouldn't surprise me if they're piggy backing off the road closure for the events Just4tehhalibut is referring to in Kalamunda.

The couple of PIHC events I attended a year or two back, they seemed especially cognisant all things legal & safety. Almost to the point of contrariness, IMO. They're a business I guess - they need to cover themselves.

Otherwise I shall tip-toe away from brewing flame war about going up the Zig-zag. I'm sure others are likely to chime in on the matter soon enough