MOW COP

STOKE-ON-TRENT, STAFFORDSHIRE

Mention Mow Cop to cyclists in the West Midlands and their faces may well turn pale with fear. The climb’s final section is so steep that during sportives, photographers position themselves here just to capture riders as they topple sideways. To fully test your legs, begin from the railway crossing at its base. Climbing gently past a few houses, the road gets steeper as you bend right then left, then steeper still up to a fake brow. The surface is lumpy and rough but overall in good condition. Over this brow, the gradient lessens. Pass a right turn and aim straight ahead at the wall of tarmac that you have to scale next. Rising dead straight now, and increasingly steeper, your destiny awaits in the form of a 25% 200-metre ramp. Engage your lowest gear, get out of the saddle, and force your pedals past the Cheshire View inn, the proximity of which dramatically emphasises the breathtaking gradient.