# DK200 Climbing Grades



## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Anyone who's done the DK200 have some information on the range of grades for climbing? I know it's a ways off but was trying to figure out what cassette to use, 11-32 or 11-28 are choices which would be the difference between short or long derailleur on the back.


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## Blue CheeseHead (Jul 14, 2008)

Looking it up on Strava, past courses do not look too hilly. They do change year to year. A 28 should be plenty. If you are running a Shimano 11 speed, you might want to consider combining a 12-25 and the 11-28 to create a 12-28. The 11 will not be used much.

https://www.strava.com/activities/10102038/analysis


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Thanks, hadn't even thought of doing a search on Strava - lots of data out there. Looks like some pretty good 6 and 8 percent climbs along and some sections around 10. That's the information I was looking for!


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

I've never done the DK200 previously, but I plan to do it with a 11-28 this year. I did the Almanzo 100 on a 12-25 last year and that has I believe the same or more elevation (but over 100 mi) and some steep ones. Not an easy day at all but I figure if I can survive that I can make it on an 11-28.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

ddave12000 said:


> I've never done the DK200 previously, but I plan to do it with a 11-28 this year. I did the Almanzo 100 on a 12-25 last year and that has I believe the same or more elevation (but over 100 mi) and some steep ones. Not an easy day at all but I figure if I can survive that I can make it on an 11-28.


Congrats on making it on before it filled up, I'm in too. I've decided I'm going 11/32 which I already have on the bike - unless it looks like it's going to be a mudfest I might go to 11/28 so I can use a regular instead of long cage rear derailleur.


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

Srode said:


> Congrats on making it on before it filled up, I'm in too. I've decided I'm going 11/32 which I already have on the bike - unless it looks like it's going to be a mudfest I might go to 11/28 so I can use a regular instead of long cage rear derailleur.


Congrats to you as well - I can't believe how quickly it filled up. Have you done it before?


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

ddave12000 said:


> Congrats to you as well - I can't believe how quickly it filled up. Have you done it before?


Yeah it was amazing how fast it filled! I was signed up by 1/4 past the hour to make sure I didn't miss it, but thought it would be open till late afternoon at least. I guess all the press from last year and the mudfest raised the awareness and interest. Hope we have dry weather for it and the weeks leading up to it this year! This will be my first time for DK. 

I'm thinking about how to carry all the water now that the middle checkpoints are a 60+ mile ride from the previous. Normally for long rides I have 4 bottles on the bike, but that's not enough for 60+ if the pace get's bogged down by mud, I'd like to have 5 or 6 bottles to be safe and still avoid having a backpack (don't want something on my back for that long in the heat).


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## jct78 (Dec 12, 2011)

46/36 with 11-28 was more than adequate for me. 

i don't ever really remember being a real sustained climb. tons of rollers though.


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

Less than 4 weeks to go...I'm getting pretty darn excited! Doing Almanzo 100 this coming weekend, I plan to take it at my estimated pace for DK and see how I feel. I've gotten over 2k miles in this year so far, but haven't done as many long rides, or gravel rides as I had hoped by this point.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Same here, psyched! I keep looking at Emporia Weather to see how much rain they are getting, hoping it doesn't become a mudfest like last year. Training has been going decent for me, I'm a bit over 3000 miles this year with lots of structured workouts and 6 century + rides, 4 in the last 4 weeks and planning on 140ish Friday at DK Pace. Good luck and fingers crossed it's a dry week there before DK!


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Let me just say, I am VERY glad I went with the 11/32 option.


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

Srode said:


> Let me just say, I am VERY glad I went with the 11/32 option.


Nice. Did you finish? Took me 17.5 hours to complete - we were going pretty slow in the mid afternoon and breaks got longer and longer, but I finished right at 11:30. Gearing was fine for me - 11/28. With exception of a couple, i didn't think any particular hills were that terrible.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Finished at 18:38 with a little over 12.5 mph moving average. 9th place in the 60 and up age group. CP2 and CP3 took over 30 minutes each which slowed me down - I need to get more organized. Lubing the chain, changing socks and filling bottle can't take that long! The hot dogs at CP3 and a coke delayed me further, LOL - We got caught by a train at the first crossing before town too. The 11/32 just made it easier to climb seated and keep the cadence higher - I could have done it with a 28, but it wouldn't have been as easy. I was actually surprised how not tired I was, it wasn't till the last hour of the ride that I started to fade a bit.

I had 10,580 on my garmin for climbing, but a couple guys I went out there with at mid 11,000s, and one just over 12,000 - curious what you saw?


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

huh. I had 9458 on my Garmin (520). That's a big difference. I was also surprised because I remembered reading something about 7k of climbing. I didn't feel too tired until the very end either - I had been riding with friends and they got much more affected by the sun and heat than I was and subsequently threw in the towel on leg 3. Once I was on my own I decided I might as well burn every match I had left and try to finish before midnight. I did the last leg in 2:40 and made it in at 11:30 on the dot: https://results.chronotrack.com/event/results/event/event-21487 

I pretty much collapsed at the finish though lol. Great job on finishing!


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## Carpbum (Feb 10, 2015)

You guys are faster than me, but I ended up finishing on a 34/17 single speed. My moving time was a little over 17 hrs, with 2 1/2 hrs of down time I came in just under 20 hrs. My Garmin 800 showed 10,804' and only 205.48 miles. I had no problem with the hills when my rear shifter was working (11/32 in back) but I ended up walking up a whole bunch of hills after busting my rear derailleur cable. I cranked the lower limit screw all he way in and that held it on the fourth cog and allowed me to finish. Three days later my legs feel fine but I'm still very sore in the upper body, I ended up standing and doing the opposite of spinning. Don't even ask what shape my taint is in.<object type="cosymantecnisbfw" cotype="cs" id="SILOBFWOBJECTID" style="width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block;"></object>


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

That sounds fun! Great work to finish despite having mechanical issues! Speaking of mechanicals, I couldn't believe how many people had mechanicals in the first few miles. There must have been 50-60. Surprising to me.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

That's an awesome finish with a broken DR cable! I saw a bunch of hills with people walking bikes in the second half and figured they were just nursing their legs, and now realize they might have had mechanical issues too. Yes, the Mechanical issues and flats in the first few miles was a shock. Riders with broken DR hangers and flats littered the sides of the road, it was amazing. That rain storm at 3am dumped 1.5 inches of rain I heard. 

Lots of photographers out there but haven't been able to find any by number searches yet - maybe that will come later?


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## ddave12000 (Aug 16, 2013)

kimmorris.com is searchable by bib number


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