more re climbs
Subject: 5.3 Rating the Tour de France Climbs</PRE>
One of the most frequently asked questions is how do the organizersdetermine the ratings for the climbs in the Tour de France(TIOOYK).The Tour organizers use two criteria 1) the length and steepness ofthe climb and 2) the position of the climb in the stage. A third,and much lesser criteria, is the quality of the road surface.It is important to note several things before this discussion begins.First, the organizers of the Tour have been very erratic in theirclassifications of climbs. The north side of the Col de la Madeleinehas flip-flopped between a 1st Category to an Hors Category climb,even though it seems to be in the same position of a stage everyyear.Secondly, rating inflation, so rampant in other sports has raisedits ugly head here. Climbs that used to be a 2nd Category are now a1st Category, even though, like the Madeleine, they occupy the sameposition in a stage year after year.Let's talk about the ratings. I will give you my impressionson what I think the criteria are for rating the climbs based onhaving ridden over 100 of the rated climbs in the major Europeantours.Note that gradual climbs do not receive grades. It has been myobservation that about a 3-4% grade is necessary for a climb to getrated. Also, a climb must gain at least 70m for it to be rated.The organizers of the Tour de France also claim that the quality ofthe road surface can influence the rating of a climb. If the surfaceis very poor, like some of the more obscure climbs in the Pyrenees,then the rating may be bumped up.4th Category - the lowest category, climbs of 200-500 feet(70-150m).3rd Category - climbs of 500-1600 feet(150-500m).2nd Category - climbs of 1600-2700 ft.(500-800m)1st Category - climbs of 2700-5000ft(800-1500m)Hors Category - the hardest, climbs of 5000ft+(1500m+)Points awarded for the climbs ranges are as follows (from the 1990race bible):4th Category: 3 places: 5, 3, 13rd Category: 5 places: 10, 7, 5, 3, 12nd Category: 10 places: 20, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 11st Category: 12 places: 30, 26, 22, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1Hors Category: 15 places: 40, 35, 30, 26, 22, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1Steepness also plays a factor in the rating. Most of the big climbsin the Alps average 7-8% where the big climbs in the Pyrenees average8-9%.Please remember that I am giving very, very rough guidelines andthat there are exceptions to every rule. For example, L'Alpe D'Huezclimbs 3700ft(1200m), but is an Hors Category climb. This is becauseit usually comes at the end of a very tough stage and the climb itselfis unusually steep(~9%) by Alpine standards.More confusing is the Col de Borderes, a mere 1000ft(300m) climb outsideof Arrens in the Pyrenees mountains. I have seen it rated anywhere froma 3rd Category to a 1st Category !!! This is most likely due again, to itsplacement on the stage. The 3rd Category rating came when it was near thebeginning of a stage where its 1st Category rating came when it was nearthe end.Flat or downhill sections can also affect a climb's rating. Such sectionsoffer a rest to the weary and can reduce the difficulty of the climbconsiderably. This may be one of the reasons that the aforementionedCol de la Madeleine, which has a 1 mile downhill/flat section at mid-height,flip-flops in its rating.I am often asked how climbs in the United States compare to those inEurope. Most of the US climbs are either steep enough by Europeanstandards(6-8% grade), but are short(5-10km) so they fall into the3rd Category or 2nd possibly; or the climbs gain enough altitude, butare too long(they average <5%) so again they would fail to breakthe 1st Category barrier and end up most likely a 2nd or 3rd Category.Fear not, there are exceptions. Most notable to Californians isthe south side of Palomar Mountain which from Pauma Valley climbs4200' in 11 miles, a potential 1st Category ascent, though it mayfall prey to downgrading because of the flat section at mile four.The east side of Towne Pass in Death Valley is definitely a 1stCategory climb!A popular Northern California climb, Mount Hamilton, is similar toPalomar Mountain but, fails to be a 1st Category climb because of twooffending downhill section on the ascent and an overall gradient of 5%.For Coloradoans, you can thank the ski industry for creating long,but relatively gradual climbs that rarely exceed 5% for any substantiallength(5+ miles). I never had to use anything bigger than a 42x23on any climb in Colorado, regardless of altitude. Gear ratios of39x24 or 26 are commonplace in the Alps and Pyrenees and give a verytelling indication as to the difficulty of European climbs.One potential 1st Category climb for Coloradoans may be the 4000 ft.climb in about 15 miles from Ouray to the top of Red Mountain Pass.Also, remember we are rating only paved(i.e. asphalt) roads. Dirt roadsvary considerably in their layout, condition and maintenance because therereally are no guidelines for their construction. This makes it difficultto compare these climbs and inappropriate to lump them with paved roads.Also, it should be noted that there is not a single uniform rating schemefor all the races on the UCI calendar. What one race might call a 1stCategory climb, may be called a 2nd Category climb, even though the stagesof the two races are almost identical.One last note. I think it is inappropriate to compare the ascents ofclimbs by the European pros with the efforts of us mere mortals.I have said this time and time again and I will repeat it now. Itis very, very hard for the average person to comprehend just howfast the pros climb the big passes. Pace makes all the difference.Riding a climb is very different than racing it.</PRE>
http://draco.acs.uci.edu/rbfaq/FAQ/5.3.html</PRE>
Gator said:
I saw below that someone did a 2400-foot climb in about four miles. I did one of those myself on this road called Corkscrew Grade during the (so-called) World's Toughest Century, which had a few 22-24 percent sections.
I thought that was pretty beefy, but there HAS to be worse. For the record, I think the worst road section I've ever seen was that military road monstrosity in the 2002 Giro where the team cars were literally stalling and sliding backward off the road, which, if my calculations are correct, was a 637.9 percent grade. I could be a bit off, though.
So tell us, climbers, what is the most hellacious climb our great nation, or this planet, has to offer?
