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100 Greatest Cycling Climbs, Simon Warren (2010)
Frances Lincoln 9780711231207 Pocket sized 174pp £8.99
A nicely executed gazetteer of tarmac ascents in the UK on which
to perform pedalling heroics
 
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When does one who rides a bicycle as a means to get about, become a
cyclist? The tipping point, I would suggest, is the moment at which they
first make a detour to take in a hill, rather than seeking a route that
avoids the ascent.
For make no mistake, cyclists like it when the road starts to rise.
Hills are the feature moments in any major race, touring accounts regularly
have the big climbs as their centrepieces, and bragging about climbs bagged
and cols conquered are a staple of conversation in lycra wearing circles.
Quite why hills should exert such a magnetic appeal is another matter.
Self propelling yourself up any steep incline is undoubtedly a grind.
It is rewarded by the sense of achievement and the buzz of having got
the better of an immense physical obstacle.
But, the transcendental feeling that envelopes you as you roll over
the crest of a hill is something more than the sum of those parts. That
the Italian poet Petrarch is reputed, in 1350, to have kick started the
Renaissance and initiated the romantic movement when he made the first
ascent of Ventoux - just because it was there - gives some indication
of the power of those emotions.
Against that backdrop, Simon Warren's pocket-sized collection seems
like an idea so good, that it is hard to imagine why no one has thought
of it before.
There is a photograph of each of his selections, a description of the
climb, a profile chart and a map and instructions that will lead you to
the bottom of the hill. He also catalogues the length of the climb, the
scale of the ascent and provides indication of how long it should take
you to get to the top.
One might quibble with his selection - it is in the nature of any selection
that personal favourites have been omitted. Brassknocker Hill in Somerset
would have been on my list, and I would certainly have included some of
the mighty climbs of the Scottish borders. He acknowledges, however, that
such moans are inevitable.
Fundamentally, though, this is an excellent little compendium, that
anticipates, in its 'fill-them-in-as-you-go" chart at the end of
the book, that readers will try to tick-off his selection. If Warren has
any sense, he will launch an on-line companion that will allow his readers
to log their results and share other information. If he did that, he might
find that, not only has he written an excellent book, but that he has
also kicked off craze.
PS June 10
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