What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
- goneriding
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Re: Steepest Rd - can Lining up the posts settle debate ?
Postby baralah » Thu Dec 29, 2011 7:27 am
I've always wanted to try Arden St. But Man speaking about room for cyclists, that street is like a suicuide street. And have tried Bronte Rd few times, my mate puked when we reached the summitwombatK wrote:I think Arden St North from Dolphin St, just North of Coogee beach, is longer and even more fearsome. The gradient doesn't really kick in til you pass Bream St.fatherofmany wrote:My father lives in Greenwood Ave Coogee, it's an insane hill.
And closer to home Georgiana Terrace in Gosford (the bit that runs off Henry Parry) is just plain dumb, my car doesn't even like it in first.
If you want to check this out, don't bother looking in Google Earth for elevations, or looking them up on http://mapmyride.com - the SRTM3 data for elevations doesn't work very well around coastal areas or places where there are steep changes.
But here's a way you might be able to estimate road steepness. Turn the Google maps streetview (as per link above) using the 90 turn arrows until you looking at right angles to the road. If that's parallel to the gradient, look for the angle that vertical posts, such as power poles, make to the ground - choosing one that extends to car-roof level (where the google map camera was mounted). In the case of Arden st, there's a cutting with a fence that makes angle measurement a snap. I found it reaches about 12 degrees, or approx 21% (near what google streetview labels as 174 Arden St).
If you want some hill challenges, there's more north between here and Bronte Rd. Bronte Rd from the beach west to where Leichardt St joins it is also seriously difficult - averaging about 8% over 1 km, and streetview photo measurement shows a few places around 17% or so.
Another tough one is the hill just west of Waverley cemetery St Thomas St, Woollahra.
Anyone living around here would find plenty of use for granny gears. If you're not too sure if your heart is up to it, Prince of Wales Hospital is nearby and has an excellent cardiac unit.
Lining up posts on Greenwood Ave Streetview indicates a gradient around the 20% mark too, so yes, it is steep - but shorter than the Arden St or Bronte Rd climbs.
It's a bit like Cronin Ave, Penshurst also around 20% for about 120 to 150 m - my poor mum pushed myself and 2 siblings up and down this hill to get shopping from Hurstville when we were newborns, and from 2 years on I walked it regularly. The hills on the Hurstville side of King Georges Rd are also a fair climb.
34 Wattle St, Bowen Mountain is, however, far more fearsome than any of the above. Lining up the posts indicates it's around 20%, and I think that's steeper than any part of Bowen Mountain Road. What makes it more fearsome is that to get there you have to climb constantly from Richmond (about 14 km away) - and you're at an elevation close to 420 m.
However, it's 22km from the nearest cardiac unit (Nepean Hospital) and 14 km from the ambulance station . While it might be a great place to train Cadel Evans' successors, it could not be fairly considered part of metropolitan sydney
- humanbeing
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby humanbeing » Thu Dec 29, 2011 11:33 am
The steepest hill around Sydney is the Otford Wall, climbing from Otford to Helensbourgh south of the RNP. Otherwise, Awaba St, Balmoral.
Cheers,
Peter
1995 Bosevski - Athena
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- Addictr3
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Thu Dec 29, 2011 3:15 pm
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Schmenz » Thu Dec 29, 2011 3:19 pm
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:29 pm
Yeah prob Sherbrook, its not long but its fairly steepSchmenz wrote:sherbrook rd or salisbury rd probably
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby jimsheedy » Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:46 pm
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Fri Dec 30, 2011 10:11 am
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby jimsheedy » Fri Dec 30, 2011 10:19 am
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Sat Dec 31, 2011 12:47 am
Will do..jimsheedy wrote:next time your heading out to palmy turn left at kevin ave ( just past central rd) then left again at park about 50 mtrs on and start climbing. Let us know what you think.
What about that road heading up from back of Brookvale Public school to Beacon Hill? Not sure on the road, but its a damn killer.
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby csy75 » Fri Jan 06, 2012 2:29 pm
will have to test out awaba and collaroy
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Tue Jan 10, 2012 11:45 am
Just checked Strava, was 11%
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby jimsheedy » Tue Jan 10, 2012 12:23 pm
csy75 wrote:battle boulevard only 9-10% and parriwi road 9%...
will have to test out awaba and collaroy
Awaba is about 16 - 17%
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby csy75 » Wed Jan 11, 2012 8:27 am
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Ozkaban » Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:07 am
Most probably Sherbrook. Made it up at the beginning of a ride, but when I came around again after 50km I had to walk the last bitAddictr3 wrote:Yeah prob Sherbrook, its not long but its fairly steepSchmenz wrote:sherbrook rd or salisbury rd probably
There's a hill in Berowra which is steeper - Acacia. I've measured it at just on 13 degrees, which converts to 20-something percent. Haven't attempted to ride up that yet.
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Ozkaban » Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:11 am
Just found an online calculator. 13 degrees comes out a 23.1%. To measure it I used one of these from my Woodworking shed. Accurate to 0.1 degOzkaban wrote: Most probably Sherbrook. Made it up at the beginning of a ride, but when I came around again after 50km I had to walk the last bit
There's a hill in Berowra which is steeper - Acacia. I've measured it at just on 13 degrees, which converts to 20-something percent. Haven't attempted to ride up that yet.
Just zero it at the top of the hill on a long board, then walk down to a likely bit and check again. The long board helps iron out surface variations.
Cheers,
Dave
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby familyguy » Wed Jan 11, 2012 12:16 pm
Alexander St. Cracked 80km/h down it in the late 80's on my old Miyata. Young and stupid? Check!Addictr3 wrote:Collaroy there is a killer of a hill, same street as where the Collaroy Movies are; never ridden it. I ride a fair bit of Avalon, Palmy etc. I still think that Hill near Hornsby is the Steepest from a standstill,
This gives you an idea of the upper part, which is decently steep. Its not long, less than 1km top to bottom, but you rarely see people climbing it.
Jim
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby fatherofmany » Wed Jan 11, 2012 1:54 pm
And for those wanting to punish themselves even more after a Mt White climb, turn left at Mt White into Morgans Rd After about 3 and a bit km you get to a part which drops about 70m in a km including a short stretch that's about 30m in 200m. Keep riding for a break in Wendoree Park. Be careful there is some loose stuff due to trucks tearing up the surface a bit of late (building going on) Not sure if there's any water for refill but there may be at the RFS. Then you get to turn around and climb back out.
FoM
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Addictr3 » Wed Jan 11, 2012 2:36 pm
Will take pics tomorrow, I'll climb the bast...familyguy wrote:Alexander St. Cracked 80km/h down it in the late 80's on my old Miyata. Young and stupid? Check!Addictr3 wrote:Collaroy there is a killer of a hill, same street as where the Collaroy Movies are; never ridden it. I ride a fair bit of Avalon, Palmy etc. I still think that Hill near Hornsby is the Steepest from a standstill,
This gives you an idea of the upper part, which is decently steep. Its not long, less than 1km top to bottom, but you rarely see people climbing it.
Jim
- Sweeper59
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Re:
Postby Sweeper59 » Wed Jan 11, 2012 2:50 pm
I'm a Road & Traffic Engineer, and the steepest road I have designed was 25%. It was a narrow, private accessway which served a couple of properties. We had to build it from concrete and place horizontal grooves at 10cm intervals to help with vehicle traction.sogood wrote:If the road is paved, then there's bound to be a limit in its grade.
The local Council standards recommends a maximum grade of 14% for all new local roads, although we have a couple of older roads at around 20%. Buses and trucks struggle to get up these grades.
The absolute maximum for driveways is 25%, although I recall a builder taking on Council and eventually getting approval to build a driveway at 30%. I've seen this place, and it's ridiculous. The owners can't park on the driveway because their car doors are difficult to open. They can't control their garbage bins and can't get businesses to deliver anything. I saw a guy deliver firewood to the property, but he couldn't get his trailer up the driveway, so he dumped the load out in the street. The poor owner had to carry it up to the house - a couple of logs at a time.
Nobody looks back on their life....and remembers the nights they got plenty of sleep !!
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Re: Re:
Postby Addictr3 » Wed Jan 11, 2012 4:21 pm
30% that is insane. So the owner likes to climb every day then?Sweeper59 wrote:I'm a Road & Traffic Engineer, and the steepest road I have designed was 25%. It was a narrow, private accessway which served a couple of properties. We had to build it from concrete and place horizontal grooves at 10cm intervals to help with vehicle traction.sogood wrote:If the road is paved, then there's bound to be a limit in its grade.
The local Council standards recommends a maximum grade of 14% for all new local roads, although we have a couple of older roads at around 20%. Buses and trucks struggle to get up these grades.
The absolute maximum for driveways is 25%, although I recall a builder taking on Council and eventually getting approval to build a driveway at 30%. I've seen this place, and it's ridiculous. The owners can't park on the driveway because their car doors are difficult to open. They can't control their garbage bins and can't get businesses to deliver anything. I saw a guy deliver firewood to the property, but he couldn't get his trailer up the driveway, so he dumped the load out in the street. The poor owner had to carry it up to the house - a couple of logs at a time.
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby DaveOZ » Wed Jan 11, 2012 4:25 pm
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby fatherofmany » Thu Jan 12, 2012 9:22 am
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby Ozkaban » Thu Jan 12, 2012 2:26 pm
I rode down Rothwell and up Monteith one morning looking for a good way from Fox Valley Rd to Kissing point road. I thought I was going to explode getting up Monteith. What a stupidly steep hill. Mind you, coming down Rothwell, I had the brakes on pretty much full and was worried about not making the dead 90-deg corner at the bottom. I stay on the other side of the highway now to the top of kissing point rdfatherofmany wrote:Not sure if it's been mentioned yet, Rothwell Rd Turramurra - 33°44'16.93"S 151° 7'2.19"E for google earth. Rode it the other day (thankfully on the Suzuki), it's short and steep and taken from the Kissing Point Rd end, left into Monteith, left at the bottom into Montrose St then right , no runup. I remember driving it many years ago in a little hatchback, in the rain and spinning the front wheels all the way up.
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Re: What is the steepest rd in Sydney?
Postby csy75 » Thu Jan 12, 2012 3:23 pm
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