The Cowlyd - Simon Warren Cycling Climbs of Wales [Very Hard]

[@htukmumfie]

well done, mate. looks like the key is not to blow your doors before the hairpins through the trees, and then you need to recover in time for the little ramps: otherwise ok. looks like a "double caper hill" kind of effort?

[@WheelygoodCycling]

Thank you, Sir! 🙏 It’s very much about the pacing, this one; the main reason the top is hard is because the bottom does a pretty good job of wearing you down. The hairpins could be tricky; I was lucky and had no traffic, but if you’re forced to the inside of one of them you could be in for a tough time of it… I’d never thought of it in terms of a number of Caper Hills, but, now that you mention it, I think that’s really close: it’s _hard_, but definitely manageable!

[@252Scooby]

Oh thanks for this , it’s a big one & i reckon it’s the hardest dead end climb in Britain then maybe affon du . Did you have to stand up on any of this climb ? Imagine the decent is scary

[@WheelygoodCycling]

Cheers! It’s always tough to make comparisons between climbs, because everyone has different predispositions and preferences. I can’t say too much about Afon Ddu, because I didn’t make it to the top: the damp road surface made it too dangerous for me on the day (you’ll see when the video comes out), but it felt harder than The Cowlyd, as did Abdon Burf. I think it’s because the Cowlyd is ‘rampy’ whereas the other two are utterly relentless. They’re all monsters and you could make a great case for any one of them! The descent isn’t too bad: you just need to you keep your weight back over the saddle…the one down Hardknott is definitely scarier! I rode this entirely seated: I tend to climb that way (and I make an extra effort when I’m filming so as not to rock the camera - even up Bamford Clough), but I know I’m a bit of an outlier with it.

[@syrus3k]

@@WheelygoodCycling what gearing do you use? Based on your power I reckon you're far, far lighter than I am too haha

[@WheelygoodCycling]

I rode that one with 34 / 32, although something a little smaller might have been useful! 🤣 I was around 70kg when I did that trip, which did help on the steeper stuff. I’ve a bit more power now, but a bit more bulk to haul up to the top too … win some, lose some, I guess!

[@924eightball]

where is this

[@WheelygoodCycling]

It starts from Trefriw, south of Conwy