On 2018-07-22 11:33, wrote:
I live in the flatlands and not a great climber but pretty solid
rider. I have done some climbs according to various categories that
are 3 and 4 rated. I got them ok on a 34-28 but not just easy. So I
see the Alpe D'Huez and the rating plus going up 8 % for over 8 miles
seems a bit much for me to comprehend.

Do most mortals who do the Alpe D"Huez go up without stopping during
the climb?
... One climb I do is overall about 6% and it goes on for 1.2
miles. The very last section gets to 9% or about maybe 1/4 mile. I
tell you I can get up no problem but I just cannot see keep that up
for another 7 miles. I am pretty spent the last 200 feet.


I hate climbs. The other thing is, I never know how steep something is
because there aren't any signs and even topo maps are not very useful
for finding out.


So I assume those climbing these on tours and such are pretty decent
cyclist but what gearing. Would a 34-32 really make it that much
easier to manage than say a 34-28 that I use now.


Every tooth more in back or less in front helps. Unfortuntely my current
road bike is limited to 42-32. When I was young and also weighed less I
could scale all hills with 42-21 but that was more than 30 years ago. It
is probably the reason why to this day I ride with much lower cadence
than others. Which tends to make bottom bracket bearings suffer. The BB
in my road bike has maybe 2000-3000 miles on it and already starts to
make clicking noises, despite picking an expensive one.


... They say sitting is
the best way to climb but I guess I just do not do enough of it to
really tell. I do know that when I am around more hilly terrain after
a few days I get better at climbing.


Same here but you have to keep at it at least once a week. Climbing
endurance is quickly lost.


Does the average cyclist planning to climb something like the Alpe D
Huez factor in a break of a few minutes at some point or points.


For me that entirely depends on whether there is a good saloon along the
way 8-)


... Any climbing experts in this group.


I am certainly not one. To me climbs are just a necessary evil of living
in a hilly area. It's always a net 1200ft coming back from the valley
with lots of ups and downs in between. Unfortunately it is not always
possible to let'er rip on the downhills to gain momentum.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/