This years Benchmark !

I always need something to train for to enjoy my cycling the most. I was just looking at the winter events and thought a 6hr MTB race in June and the Epic again in August might be fun to aim at. In this light I went for my usual short training ride and decided to take some stats on it and note them down. This gives me something to work at bettering over the coming months.
The hill I dubbed Col de McCloud some years ago is in an old farm that has been split up into large acreage blocks. I can do a good climb from the creek to the far ridgeline that looks west and today I was pleased to find a tree that had fallen has been removed so I can ride it all now without footing. This changes sometimes as the steep dirt trail degrades but I am pretty fit now so it should stay rideable. (more power makes slippery climbs easier) There are one or two very short slightly downhill bits but otherwise it is definitely uphill. My granny is 22t front to 25t rear sprocket and this is needed.

Climb distance 2.14klm Total elevation gain 266 metres
Average grade 14% (max 25%)
I rode it twice today but only timed it the second time at 22min 19seconds
It is a grunt in places but it feels good when it stops!
Short postscript.... I do have a 28t granny I saw today (the next day). Don't think I could make it on 25t yet. My first climb the day after the above time was 18min 30sec. It was a cool afternoon about 18deg. This makes a big difference as I found out in Timor last year trying to climb at 35degC in high humidity. It dropped me about 3 gears at least.
....best time ..7th July 17min 10sec 14degC