Comments on: Sassafras Mountain

By: aaronwest

aaronwest — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 01:49:15 +0000

That is great, thanks so much. That looks to be a tough climb, especially the steep spikes and the .25 mile section, but doable even for weak legs like mine. I’ll give it a try soon. Thanks again!

By: kartoone

kartoone — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 23:17:45 +0000

Aaron, I’ve done both climbs and would agree that Sassafras is a harder climb because there are several sections that are extremely steep and then a couple downhill and flat sections which makes it hard to get into any kind of rhythm on the climb. As far as the gradients go, here is my iBike data for the climb starting at the intersection of Hwy 178 in Rocky Bottom. http://toonecycling.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sassafras-time.gif You’ll note that there are two different sections with gradients just over 20% … 21% for the first one and 20.2% for the second one. The toughest section, though, is a nearly quarter mile long section with average gradient around 18%.

By: aaronwest

aaronwest — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 22:31:09 +0000

Also sorry to hear of your loss, but thanks for sharing about Sassafras. Do you possibly know the average / highest grade going up? I have heard it’s a tougher climb than Caesar’s Head.

By: kartoone

kartoone — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 01:42:01 +0000

Thanks Billy. I enjoy writing them, too. This corner of South Carolina is such an amazing place to ride. It’s no wonder there are a lot of pros and up and coming pros that call this area their home.

By: Billy Ritch

Billy Ritch — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 03:06:43 +0000

Sorry to hear of your loss. I do enjoy reading your descriptions of rides and races though.