# SC Mountains



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

I'm a bit of a rookie here, have been riding my whole life mostly MTB and just recently bought a road bike. I like to climb, took the bike out for a ride up Rodeo out of Soquel, seemed I was not geared right unless I was maybe 20 years younger, what would you all recommend for SC MT. riding gear ratio? I'm not pro and I'm not 25 year old who weighs 140 lbs., I'm 40 years old 210 lbs. I'm out for fun and some excersize. Thanks all!


----------



## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

When I started riding the road bike I went with a triple (52-39-30) and a big cassette (12-27). It was perfect for spinning up any of the road grades that I would encounter. Now I'm stronger and I've changed to a bike with a compact (50-34) with a more standard cassette (12-25), and I swap in the 12-27 if I'm planning to hit one of the few really steep hills (e.g. Bohlman). With hindsight I probably should have gone with the compact in the first instance, and I've now swapped that bike over to a standard double (53-39) for general riding around. But it really depends on your strength, your endurance, your preferred pedalling style (spin versus mash), and the grades you are going to ride (max grade, average grade and length). Also, if you are a rookie don't underestimate how much you will improve with some training.


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

Thank you very much for your reply! This is all very good information. I believe the set-up I have is the 12-25 cog on the rear and 53/39 up front. I think it's really good for flats and rolling hills, I just need to ride more as well and get stonger. I'm sticking with this set-up at least for a few months to see how this works out for me. Thanks again!:thumbsup:


----------



## Mtn2RoadConvert (Aug 28, 2006)

If you're going to be riding in the area much, and are looking to get to some of the better riding areas, you'll encounter some pretty good climbs. When I changed over from a standard to a compact crank my climbing improved considerably. Your current combination is okay for flat and rolling terrain, but throw in a couple of good climbs where you gain 1,500 ft of elevation or more and you'll be much more fatigued at the end of your ride. I know this from personal experience.


----------



## CHL (Jun 24, 2005)

HI RRsufer:

If you don't have any problems with the 39/25 & 12-25 combination, then you must be in fairly good shape. Just ease into each climb and enjoy the scenery. To be honest, the majority of the best rides I have done included hills (wait until you ride in the Lake Tahoe region). I must say that having the 27 in the back has saved me several times. It's just nice to spin in an easy gear (I think of it as my bail out gear).

CHL


----------



## sometimerider (Sep 21, 2007)

Rodeo Gulch is not one of the toughest climbs in the area. See this thread for a list of the bigger ones.

But RG has a pretty steep mile that can test your gearing. If you find yourself desperate for a lower gear, you will be in even more trouble on tougher hills. But, as others have said, you will get stronger (and have less need of low gears) with more training.

For comparison purposes, the Almaden club has a good page. Put "Rodeo Gulch" on graph 1 and some other climb, such as Mt. Madonna on graph 2.

View attachment 193295

(graph 1 is shown as solid orange)


----------



## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

RRsurfer said:


> Thank you very much for your reply! This is all very good information. I believe the set-up I have is the 12-25 cog on the rear and 53/39 up front. I think it's really good for flats and rolling hills, I just need to ride more as well and get stonger. I'm sticking with this set-up at least for a few months to see how this works out for me. Thanks again!:thumbsup:


If you want to ride the steeper climbs in the mountains, or many of them in one day, that's not low enough.

Many of the fastest climbers in the area run a 34t or 36t small chainring. These are very good racers I'm talking about, not recreational riders. I'm a mediocre racer and a decent climber, and I'm using a 34x27 low gear. There's a number of climbs in the santa cruz mountains where I use it. We have some steep roads out here!

When I started riding again at age 40 I started with a 53/39 and a 12-25 because that's what I used back in the day. Then I got passed up Metcalf by an older guy who was turning the pedals comfortably with a triple while I was struggling to turn over my gearing. I switch to a triple after that. Now that 110mm BCD compacts are popular and I am a bit stronger I have switched to those. But I still run lower gearing for extra-hard races like the Everest Challenge.

For your size and fitness I'd recommend a triple. You get all the gearing combinations that you want and the only drawback is a very small weight increase and a loss of posing points... but who cares what your bike looks like? It's how it works for you that matters.
Don't get the Dura-Ace triple crankset, it uses proprietary chainring bolt patterns.

I don't believe in the "buy big gearing and hope to get strong enough to use it" theory. It'll just teach you grind up hills at too low an rpm, make you hate climbing, and possibly damage your knees. Even with appropriate gearing you'll get faster as you climb more, and you'll do more if it doesn't suck.


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

ericm979 said:


> If you want to ride the steeper climbs in the mountains, or many of them in one day, that's not low enough.
> 
> Many of the fastest climbers in the area run a 34t or 36t small chainring. These are very good racers I'm talking about, not recreational riders. I'm a mediocre racer and a decent climber, and I'm using a 34x27 low gear. There's a number of climbs in the santa cruz mountains where I use it. We have some steep roads out here!
> 
> ...


Yeah, I'm going to go with your recommendation, I live here in Santa Cruz and will be spending quite a bit of time in the Mountains. I much rather spin up these climbs than mash, plus my riding buds love to ride the mountains, MT. Charlie, Eureka Canyon, Bonny Doon, etc... we don't do to many South County rides. Thanks all again for the your info! Yeah, as far as Rodeo Gulch this was just a quick ride to get a feel for the bike, It's a nice short loop but it did make me realize i'm going to need different gearing for the kind of riding I like to do.


----------



## dougrocky123 (Apr 12, 2006)

*Rodeo*

Its right around the corner from my house and is a weekly after work ride for me. I'm on a Roubaix Expert with compact 50/34 with a 11-28. I need all the help I can get! See you there!


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

RIDE REPORT! Ok, so I took the TCR out Sat. Rode up to Scotts Valley, Bean Creek Road, from Bean Creek to Glen Canyon to Mt. Charlie, up to the top. Along Summit Rd. to Highland, down Eureka Canyon to Corrolitos and then Freedom to Soquel Ave. and home. Good little ride, bike ran great, the gearing was not to bad, in fact I did not mind it at all. Mt. Charlie has a couple steep but short climbs, I like the recovery sections on Mt. Charlie, climb than flat for a bit. Summit Road had some traffic between highway 17 and Old San Jose but I was flying down that road in fact I felt like I was really flying! I was curious how many MPH I went? Highland Road was sweet, a bit rough but with all the creeks running it was like really neat sounding, water falls at at every turn just about. Eureka Canyon top section was like mountain biking, but smooths out nicely for a nice long downhill, super fun! All in all I had a great ride even though I was solo. I was super happy with the bike and how it rode, may need to get a new saddle(suggestions?) can't wait to hit the road again!


----------



## sometimerider (Sep 21, 2007)

RRsurfer said:


> RIDE REPORT! Ok, so I took the TCR out Sat. Rode up to Scotts Valley, Bean Creek Road, from Bean Creek to Glen Canyon to Mt. Charlie, up to the top. Along Summit Rd. to Highland, down Eureka Canyon to Corrolitos and then Freedom to Soquel Ave. and home. Good little ride, bike ran great, the gearing was not to bad, in fact I did not mind it at all. Mt. Charlie has a couple steep but short climbs, I like the recovery sections on Mt. Charlie, climb than flat for a bit. Summit Road had some traffic between highway 17 and Old San Jose but I was flying down that road in fact I felt like I was really flying! I was curious how many MPH I went? Highland Road was sweet, a bit rough but with all the creeks running it was like really neat sounding, water falls at at every turn just about. Eureka Canyon top section was like mountain biking, but smooths out nicely for a nice long downhill, super fun! All in all I had a great ride even though I was solo. I was super happy with the bike and how it rode, may need to get a new saddle(suggestions?) can't wait to hit the road again!


That's just the kind of ride that my club does. If you like group rides, check us out.


----------



## dwgranda (Sep 8, 2009)

I weight similar to you and I top out around 45mph on old san jose. I imagine you don't have to be a good rider to get thereabouts. I agree with the posters recommending a compact. I tried to take on King's mountain (7% avg) with a 39-26 and had trouble turning the cranks over at a decent clip. HR never got below 172 yet I was putting out less than 250 watts. Now I have a compact 50/34 and the hills are feel a lot easier even though I'm putting out the same or more power as before.



RRsurfer said:


> RIDE REPORT! Ok, so I took the TCR out Sat. Rode up to Scotts Valley, Bean Creek Road, from Bean Creek to Glen Canyon to Mt. Charlie, up to the top. Along Summit Rd. to Highland, down Eureka Canyon to Corrolitos and then Freedom to Soquel Ave. and home. Good little ride, bike ran great, the gearing was not to bad, in fact I did not mind it at all. Mt. Charlie has a couple steep but short climbs, I like the recovery sections on Mt. Charlie, climb than flat for a bit. Summit Road had some traffic between highway 17 and Old San Jose but I was flying down that road in fact I felt like I was really flying! I was curious how many MPH I went? Highland Road was sweet, a bit rough but with all the creeks running it was like really neat sounding, water falls at at every turn just about. Eureka Canyon top section was like mountain biking, but smooths out nicely for a nice long downhill, super fun! All in all I had a great ride even though I was solo. I was super happy with the bike and how it rode, may need to get a new saddle(suggestions?) can't wait to hit the road again!


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

Got the compact crank and 11-27 cog, all Shimano Ultegra. Took me a little bit to get used to the gearing but now that I went and rode up to Scoots Valley, Bean Creek, Mt. Charlie along the Summit Rd. to Bear Creek to Hwy. 236, up Jamison Creek Rd, to Emprire Grade which you think would be all down hill after the Jamison climb but you have to climb a bit more after that hellish climb, and down Empire to SC. Did this ride Sat. AM, I froze riding down Bear Creek and really froze riding down Empire. Lucky I had brought an extra thermal top, that saved me from freezing to an ice cube. Along the ridges it was super windy and even had rain. I was about 5 miles from Santa Cruz when the awful feeling of my rim rolling on the road, no not a flat! I was so cold I had to warm up my hands first before changing. A fine morning it was. Looking forward to riding in warmer weather. Love the gearing for the SC mountains.


----------



## dwgranda (Sep 8, 2009)

I feel you, downhill + cold rain is absolutely brutal. Had never done it until I did the SD gran fondo last month. You don't forget that kind of cold.


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

No you do not forget, but I'd do it again. I will just pack some dry gloves, and more lower body layers and something to keep my head and ears warm.


----------



## tinman143 (Aug 14, 2009)

i'm glad i read this thread. will change my 130mm bcd 53/39 to 50/34 and keep the 12/27 rear. do i just buy 130mm 50/34 rings and swap them out? btw, what temperature does it average around this time in SC mtns?


----------



## PaleAleYum (Jan 12, 2006)

tinman143 said:


> i'm glad i read this thread. will change my 130mm bcd 53/39 to 50/34 and keep the 12/27 rear. do i just buy 130mm 50/34 rings and swap them out? btw, what temperature does it average around this time in SC mtns?


Sorry Tinman, to get a 34 inner ring you will have to switch to a compact crank. The spider on a 130 bcd will only go down to a 38 chainring.


----------



## tinman143 (Aug 14, 2009)

^ yeah i've been doing some research on that


----------



## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

tinman143 said:


> what temperature does it average around this time in SC mtns?


Cold.

It's variable depending on local microclimates and time of day. Best bet is to check weather underground's personal weather stations in the areas you want to ride.


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

Ok, loving the road bike, been riding it more than the MTB, plus trails are super wet. Looking for some routes people ride in the SC Mountains. I have been up Mt. Charlie, all up and down Scotts Valley, Bean Creek. What are all your favorite routes/Loops? I was looking for less traffic routes. I was looking a google maps and found a road off E Zayante, Fern Ridge to Lower Hutchinson to Lon Rd. to Hutchinson Rd. all the was up to Summit/35. Has anyone rode these roads, are they paved or are they dirt with large dogs wanting a taste of you? Looks like you could even connect to Mt. Charlie from Old Japanese Rd. to Pierce Rd., this would pop you out on Mt. Charlie. Would love to hear of SC Mtn. loops
Thanks in advance all!


----------



## robwh9 (Sep 2, 2004)

RRsurfer said:


> Ok, loving the road bike, been riding it more than the MTB, plus trails are super wet. Looking for some routes people ride in the SC Mountains. I have been up Mt. Charlie, all up and down Scotts Valley, Bean Creek. What are all your favorite routes/Loops? I was looking for less traffic routes. I was looking a google maps and found a road off E Zayante, Fern Ridge to Lower Hutchinson to Lon Rd. to Hutchinson Rd. all the was up to Summit/35. Has anyone rode these roads, are they paved or are they dirt with large dogs wanting a taste of you? Looks like you could even connect to Mt. Charlie from Old Japanese Rd. to Pierce Rd., this would pop you out on Mt. Charlie. Would love to hear of SC Mtn. loops
> Thanks in advance all!


Well, there's Soquel to Corralitos, up Eureka Canyon Rd which turns into Hightland Way, left on Summit Rd, and left on Soquel San Jose Rd back to Soquel. The Summit Store, just past the Soquel San Jose Rd turnoff, is a nice place to stop.

You can make longer loops by continuing north on Summit to Mt. Charley, Zayante, or Bear Creek Rds.


----------



## sometimerider (Sep 21, 2007)

RRsurfer said:


> Looking for some routes people ride in the SC Mountains. I have been up Mt. Charlie, all up and down Scotts Valley, Bean Creek. What are all your favorite routes/Loops? I was looking for less traffic routes. I was looking a google maps and found a road off E Zayante, Fern Ridge to Lower Hutchinson to Lon Rd. to Hutchinson Rd. all the was up to Summit/35. Has anyone rode these roads, are they paved or are they dirt with large dogs wanting a taste of you? Looks like you could even connect to Mt. Charlie from Old Japanese Rd. to Pierce Rd., this would pop you out on Mt. Charlie. Would love to hear of SC Mtn. loops
> Thanks in advance all!


Fern Ridge is private and is specifically marked "No bicycles". The only time I tried it a resident stopped and gave me a long spiel about how some cyclists had somehow abused the property along the way - thus they no longer desire to have any.

You might want to check this thread. The climbs listed are mostly low traffic or have a decent shoulder.

You can also browse through my routes on bikely.com. 90% of them should be in Santa Cruz County - with many of those being mountain routes.


----------



## RRsurfer (Mar 8, 2010)

Robwh9 - I know this ride you mentioned. It's a great ride with really nice views up on Highland. Summit Store is the call for sure, great rest stop! 

Sometimerider - Yeah, thats what I thought about Fern Ridge . But I believe legally they really can't keep you out because it is a county road, not a private gated community. But whatever they don't want you there than I won't go. Most likely they are all growers  Thanks for posting the links as well, great info!


----------

