Originally Posted by
big john
If you're climbing 16% grades you don't need advice about cadence from us.
Why? since I've had a child 3 years ago I'm not really fit. Mainly commute twice a week to work (60/70km round trip depending on the route chosen) because I don't have much free time.
I live in Catalonia, in a town near Barcelona. Here it's difficult to go anywhere without hitting at least one 10% climb. This is not Holland. I replaced my 11-28 cassette with a 11-32 for this reason (and I would use a 11-34 if my derailleur accepted it). With the 28 I could climb a 16% grade, but my legs were trashed at the top and I have a history of knee issues.
This is one of the climbs I regularly do when coming back from work:
After this climb, I have to keep mostly climbing for 12 more km with a lower grade (not more than 10%), except fort a really short section (maybe 150m) that peaks at 18%. After that it's all downhill until home.