“Old La Honda” Details (Zwift Climb Portal)
Key Details
- Category: 2nd
- Length: 5.6 km (3.5 miles)
- Elevation Gain: 396 m (1,299‘)
- Average Gradient: 7.1%
- Country: United States
- Watopia Climb Segment
- Watopia Descent Segment
- France Climb Segment
- France Descent Segment
- 5 W/kg: 16 minutes
- 4 W/kg: 20 minutes
- 3 W/kg: 26 minutes
- 2 W/kg: 37 minutes
Strava Segments
Time Estimates
The first US-based climb added to Zwift’s Climb Portal, Old La Honda is a popular benchmark climb for Bay Area locals due to its low traffic, steady grade, and shady clusters of majestic redwoods.
Here’s the “official” IRL segment, which is a bit shorter than Zwift’s:
My local climb, will be cool to sample it in the portals rainbow colors! I’LL Try to beat my PR 26:27
Classic page of Old La Honda (which also used the term “benchmark climb”, which Lucas got from me, having used it on the Western Wheelers climb page, as well as Low-Key Hillclimbs, back in the day): https://graphics.stanford.edu/~lucasp/grade/oldlahonda.html
Lucas measured the gradient using a hand-made gradiometer, which he used to take gradient samples every 10 meters or so.
The picture of the gradiometer on his intro page was/is great. What a nerd’s nerd, I say affectionately.
Nice climb,short and to do with power above ftp
recommendations for what this climb would go well together with for a longer session? =)
I just rode it yesterday. If you turn right at the bottom of the descent, marked “Mt. Ventoux”, you ride to the Marina, and from there you can climb as far as you like, either up the Ventoux climb part or full way, or just the Petit KOM portion.
Side note: this climb would really fill a nice niche in Watopia: similar altitude gain as Epic but with far more consistent gradient. There’s a 17% section near the bottom which I don’t think is present IRL, maybe they got that from this page, ignoring the “inside of switchback” comment? https://graphics.stanford.edu/~lucasp/grade/oldlahonda.html. But in any case it’s only thru the turn. It would fit nicely as a spur off the new southern coastal route, reaching a similar altitude as the Epic KOM. IRL the typical descent from the top is Highway 84, but of course Zwift could use anything of similar altitude gain.
Alternately Zwift could have a climb from the southern coast connect to the Epic KOM climb at an appropriate place: anywhere along the climb (excluding radio tower) would work: from the pass there would be a short descent to the Epic road. Alternately one could then climb the Epic road, turn left to the pass, then descend the new climb to the coast.
Agree Zwift would definitely benefit from a climb like this, I am put off many as spinning up them at a crawling pace is no fun. This is the right length with great consistency in gradient, loved riding it today
The profile looks fairly consistent and it looks, at least from the gradient, to be something that will ride a lot like Col d’Aspin, only shorter.
I used to live near OLH and have climbed it dozens if not hundreds of times. Did the Zwift version this morning — remarkably accurate. I knew exactly where I was even without any scenery. My time was also what I would have expected IRL with similar effort. I’m still curious why the segment on Zwift is 3.5 miles when it’s 3.1 IRL?
I think the figure factors in the lead-in that you ride in Watopia or France before the climb begins.
Old la Honda where can I find the clime?
Segment KOM already dominated by someone at 50% elevation. I thought Strava and Zwift had found a solution to avoid that, but apparently it doesn’t work…
I did this last night. Had “warning” when choosing 50% that it wouldn’t count for leaderboard. Checked Strava after, and it’s termed “excluded”
When I lived in RWC, I climbed this on the weekly. Such a good ride and a scary one down hill.
@Eric Schlange Hi Eric, any plans to do Time Estimates for the 125% hero mode of the portal climbs? Thanks! =)
Nah. Too many variables. 4 versions of each climb, at 4 different paces… gotta keep it simple.
Everested it at 125% yesterday, got the stats for 3W/kg if you want. Strava VAM is buggy for 125% btw, the EL they use to calc it is based on 100%.
Since when do you keep it simple:)
How do you enter it, cant see old la Honda in any of the climb portals
Theres only 2 climb portals available. Did u scroll all the way down in the zwift main menu? There u can see Old la Honda.
Never thought to scroll down in that menu, found it, thanks! Merry Christmas
A Bay Area map would be very very epic. So many awesome climbs I would love to train on without traffic lol.
The Strava segment for this “Old La Honda (Bridge to Mailboxes)” is 2.98 miles, 8%, 1255 feet. But the Zwift version is longer, has 40′ more climb, and only 7.1 avg grade. Where is the extra coming in? The Strava route starts from the bridge – but no matter where you start, that shouldn’t make up a half mile of road.
No idea. I’ve found that Zwift’s segments are generally longer than the IRL ones… and I have no idea where they’re getting the data to create the segments.
On this climb, Zwift’s seems to go a bit longer at the end. But not much.
I wonder if it has something to do with cutting corners (IRL) vs taking the long way around on Zwift’s GPS data.
Even with cutting corners and adding to the end, it’s not quite clear where they come up with an extra half mile…. But it’s great that they added a climb from the U.S. (especially one I have ridden a lot), so I am not complaining…
This climb is awesome! My favorite climb IRL and it delivers in Zwift. Perfect distance and it’s a great workout even if you “do it easy”. It is a bummer that it can’t be accessed at any time. This climb has truly re-ignited my interest in Zwift.