# My toughest climb to date-Mix Canyon (pics & video)



## freighttraininguphill (Jun 7, 2011)

*My toughest climb to date-Mix Canyon*

Well, I finally got around to climbing Mix Canyon. I joined a women's cycling club that just so happened to have a ride up Mix/Cantelow yesterday, so I drove down to Vacaville for some good old fashioned steep hill bliss!

I felt sorry for one of the riders. She forgot that her road bike with a triple only had platform pedals, so she ended up sacrificing her socks to make a pair of ******* toe straps. This worked okay for her until the steepest section near the end, where she had to walk. I got a call from her while I was waiting at the summit. She told me to start descending and she would turn around and descend when I got to her.

It was a stair-step climb for a while, then the extended 15% and up started and during the last half-mile or so I finally had to shift to my lowest gear-a 24x34 on a road triple with mtb gearing. I'm not strong enough to rock a compact double up grades in the teens, so I stick with a triple.

The Tough Ascent website says it's a 4 mile climb, but it's actually 4.7 miles.

I didn't have to stop as many times to let my rims cool on the way down as I thought I would. Once the steepest section is over, it's not too bad. I stopped a couple times to take pictures, and once to let my rims cool.

This climb is harder than the one I did last weekend-the 5-mile Corkscrew Wall near Foresthill. My speeds dropped to 2.5 to 3 mph on the steepest sections.

On the way back to Vacaville we rode over Cantelow, so that's another hill I was curious about that I finally got to climb. It reminds me of some of the El Dorado Hills climbs.

Video: https://www.pinkbike.com/video/485791/

A sign of the suffering to come?  This is right before the last steep section.


























******* toe strap










The California Triple Crown awards breakfast took place at the same park my group ride started from.










Screenshot from descent part of ride video










More pics are here: Pictures by hardmf1 - Photobucket


----------



## Mr. Versatile (Nov 24, 2005)

Looks tough. I see the buzzards were circling.


----------



## freighttraininguphill (Jun 7, 2011)

Mr. Versatile said:


> Looks tough. I see the buzzards were circling.


They were a little late . Didn't see that one on the climb. I've had plenty of climbs, both road and mtb, where I saw them circling slowly overhead. I always get a laugh out of that .


----------



## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

Now that is one tough climb!


----------



## Third Son (Sep 15, 2011)

I guess you do love to suffer....wonderful climb!


----------



## Ridgetop (Mar 1, 2005)

Looks great. Hadn't tried that one before.


----------



## centurionomega (Jan 12, 2005)

*you so crazy!*



freighttraininguphill said:


> My speeds dropped to 2.5 to 3 mph on the steepest sections.


Still faster than walking it though. :thumbsup:


----------



## freighttraininguphill (Jun 7, 2011)

deleted


----------



## freighttraininguphill (Jun 7, 2011)

deleted


----------



## freighttraininguphill (Jun 7, 2011)

deleted


----------

