In preparation for a certain 100-mile bike ride I and some of my friends have signed up for called the Blue Ridge Extreme (BRE), I made the following chart of some DC-area hills that we like to ride on:
Vertical Horiz Avg
Hill Climb (ft) dist (mi) grade
Great Falls, bottom to MacArthur Blvd 201 1.2 3.2%
Conn Ave to Wisconsin on Newark St. 157 0.8 3.8%
Rock creek “mountain,” outbound 160 0.8 3.8%
Lee Hwy, N. Oak to top of little Veitch hill 161 0.7 4.5%
Military Rd, 1st hill southbound + 2nd northbd 105 0.4 4.6%
Military, 2nd hill southbound 83 0.3 5.4%
Fort Myer, gate to top just before pool 112 0.4 5.4%
Tilden, Rock Creek to where it levels off 162 0.4 8.3%
BRE, big hill #1 1,584 3.2 9.4% (map)
Chain bridge 150 0.2 15.8%
These calculations were made using Google map sites; I did my best but I can't say how precise they are.
I must say, I'm really wondering what the hell I've gotten myself into on this one. I'm no good at doing hills, and it was pointed out after I signed up that this race is in August in Virginia. Oh well, I've always wanted to ride along the Blue Ridge; this may cure me of it.
(this chart has been updated since I first posted it)
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