Mill Street Blues

I've been trying to plot courses that are hilly. The stress of climbing a hill is the best training I know of, and the exhilaration of flying down a steep or exceptionally long one is the best reward.



As I strain to make it up a hill, I have to remind myself that really, the hill is a friend. It's making me stronger if I could just see it.

I've been hearing about Mill Street from a riding mate, and I knew I'd been near it, so after the delightful (three quarters of a mile) descent from 14th Street on Springhorn/Ball (it changes names as you glide down it), I looked around until I found it. It didn't take long, it's near where Ball dumps out to Merriam Lane/Southwest Boulevard.

I can't believe you can pour concrete on a hill this steep, it'd just slide off. I know they have that hot shot stuff, but damn. I made it about halfway up, parallel with the last house on the left, my front wheel popping up ever crank. It felt like, had I the lungs to continue the effort, I might tip over backward and dump myself.

The steepest road in the continental U.S. is Canton Avenue in Pitssburgh, PA, between Coast and Hampshire. That's a 37% Grade. There's a 45% grade in Waipio, HI, but I'm not sure it's paved. It's supposedly 'four wheel drive only,' but it sounds more like you need a winch to get up it.

I've failed to find a number for Mill Street searching the net, but I'm pretty sure it's the steepest thing I've seen in the KC Metro.

My average speed didn't really show it (maybe in part because of me dicking around trying to get into my granny gear before I fail to climb a hill I can plainly see is too steep for me at this point) but I felt stronger on this ride. As I cranked up Roe Lane, I realized I'd been climbing a while and cranking faster than usual and wasn't fading.

I averaged 11.6 mph on this ride, which isn't noticeably faster, but I sure felt like I was cranking better than I have been. 22.8 miles total, the top speed was 36.5 mph, hit almost out of the starting gate going down 54th Terrace from Lowell. If I could have gotten to the top of Mill Street, though, I bet I could have reached near-light speeds coming down it.