Length (m) |
Average Gradient |
Men's CR |
Woman's CR |
Strava Segment |
1000 |
10% |
2:25.6 Malcolm Elliott (1981) |
2:55.7 Mary Wilkinson (2020) |
On the southern outskirts of Burnley, you can find Crown Point. It's one of the less technical hill climbs with minimal bends and minor changes in gradient. Despite living close, I very rarely ascend it's one of the most awkward climbs for route planning but I am never disappointed by the views from the top. I really should go up more.
Organised by Rossendale RC, Crown point HC traditionally comes the day before The Rake and I have used it as a warm up race on several occasions. Recently it has one of the smaller events, posting only 12 finishers in 2018, however with the limited 2020 calendar there were over 60 entrants.
The course record was set in 1981 by one of the all time greats; Malcolm Elliott. I came close to breaking it in 2020 but fell just 0.5 seconds short. I've heard Jim Henderson was 0.3s behind it one year, it's certainly one of the longest standing records.
Back to road itself; Crown Point is short and straight up. There isn't an awful lot to the climb at all. The steepest section comes well within the first half after around 300m and once past there the gradient drops off and it becomes more benign to the finish. It is over before you feel like you've got going so can it can be a difficult one to judge your effort.
I've ridden it in three open hill climbs now, firstly in 2017 where I won, in 2018 where I was third and in 2020 where again I took the victory.
Organised by Rossendale RC, Crown point HC traditionally comes the day before The Rake and I have used it as a warm up race on several occasions. Recently it has one of the smaller events, posting only 12 finishers in 2018, however with the limited 2020 calendar there were over 60 entrants.
The course record was set in 1981 by one of the all time greats; Malcolm Elliott. I came close to breaking it in 2020 but fell just 0.5 seconds short. I've heard Jim Henderson was 0.3s behind it one year, it's certainly one of the longest standing records.
Back to road itself; Crown Point is short and straight up. There isn't an awful lot to the climb at all. The steepest section comes well within the first half after around 300m and once past there the gradient drops off and it becomes more benign to the finish. It is over before you feel like you've got going so can it can be a difficult one to judge your effort.
I've ridden it in three open hill climbs now, firstly in 2017 where I won, in 2018 where I was third and in 2020 where again I took the victory.
2024 Event
On the build up to nationals I picked the local climb of Crown Point. It's slightly shorter than Dipton Lane but pretty similar.
2020 Event
With the reduced 2020 calendar, Rossendale RC HC had over 60 entrants, much more than previous years. The standard was good and due to it's similar length, I was using it as test run for the national hill climb on Streatley in 3 weeks time.
There was a 10mph block tailwind on the day which was a promising sign that Malcolm Elliot's 1981 course record could be up for grabs. Tragically there was heavy rain, drastically reducing my chances of the CR. It's good to race in all conditions as you never know what the weather can be on the day of the national champs.
I clipped in quickly and swiftly got up to speed. Once in the optimal gear, I hit the steepest ramp and kept stood out of the saddle. I pushed past the tough bit, maintaining speed and had averaged over 600W for the first 70s. As the climb died down, I knocked the pace off a little bit and kept it sustained.
Once at the golf course footpath I got out of the saddle and crushed it. I absolutely demolished the final stretch, I really felt like I was motoring to the line. I averaged over 560w for the last 30s peaking at 650w.
Overall I was pleased with my effort, I had a blistering start, dropped off a tad in the central section but then ramped it up to demolish the last 30s. My time was 2:26.1, frustratingly only 0.5s off the 1981 CR. Had it been dry and had I been held rather than pushing clipping in it'd have been mine (or if I was better).
I had very little wheel spin with the wet but I ran 50 psi in the rear which was a good call.
There was a 10mph block tailwind on the day which was a promising sign that Malcolm Elliot's 1981 course record could be up for grabs. Tragically there was heavy rain, drastically reducing my chances of the CR. It's good to race in all conditions as you never know what the weather can be on the day of the national champs.
I clipped in quickly and swiftly got up to speed. Once in the optimal gear, I hit the steepest ramp and kept stood out of the saddle. I pushed past the tough bit, maintaining speed and had averaged over 600W for the first 70s. As the climb died down, I knocked the pace off a little bit and kept it sustained.
Once at the golf course footpath I got out of the saddle and crushed it. I absolutely demolished the final stretch, I really felt like I was motoring to the line. I averaged over 560w for the last 30s peaking at 650w.
Overall I was pleased with my effort, I had a blistering start, dropped off a tad in the central section but then ramped it up to demolish the last 30s. My time was 2:26.1, frustratingly only 0.5s off the 1981 CR. Had it been dry and had I been held rather than pushing clipping in it'd have been mine (or if I was better).
I had very little wheel spin with the wet but I ran 50 psi in the rear which was a good call.
How To Ride
Crown Point is well worth smashing the first half and being tired for the end. The climb starts at 8% for the first 250m which lets you get up to speed before hitting the hardest section. The steep section is 12-13% for 300m and it's recommended to press on unsustainably here. The steep section doesn't last long and in the last 400m, the gradient slackens back to 8% allowing you to crush it to the line.
Once at the foot path for the golf club, it's worth opening up a sprint to the line. Similar to Blackstone Edge Old Road, you cannot quite see the finish until it's too late, so start early, at approximately the footpath and you should be ok to start raising your effort to the line.
Once at the foot path for the golf club, it's worth opening up a sprint to the line. Similar to Blackstone Edge Old Road, you cannot quite see the finish until it's too late, so start early, at approximately the footpath and you should be ok to start raising your effort to the line.
My Efforts
Year |
Time |
Power (W) |
Placing |
2020 |
2:26.1 (Tailwind) |
557 (Old PM) |
1st |
2018 |
2:34.4 |
520 (Oldest PM) |
3rd |
2017 |
2:43.4 |
510 (Oldest PM) |
1st |
2024 |
2:42.9 (headwind) |
535W |
2nd |
Previous Results
Year |
Men's 1st |
Men's 2nd |
Men's 3rd |
Women's 1st |
Women's 2nd |
Women's 3rd |
2020 |
Jude Taylor 2:26.1 |
Ben Greenwood 2:30.5 |
David Huck 2:31.5 |
Mary Wilkinson 2:55.7 |
Monica Greenwood 3:20.8 |
Sammie Stuart 3:22.3 |
2018 |
Kieran Wynne-Cattanach 2:26.8 |
Niall Paterson 2:28.8 |
Jude Taylor 2:34.4 |
Maisy Vasic 3:59.9 |
- |
- |
2017 |
Jude Taylor 2:43.4 |
Jon Wild 2:59.0 |
William Brown 3:04.7 |
Julie Holden 4:12.3 |
Eve Davies-Heywood 5:30.3 |
Lisa Greenwood 5:52.5 |
2024 |
Kieran Wynne-Cattanach 2:38.1 |
Jude Taylor 2:42.9 |
Marcus Cram 2:43.2 |
Rachel Galler 3:33.4 |
Monica Greenwood 3:38.3 |
Ruby Blanc 4:17.1 |
The final stretch before it flattens out to finish. Sprint from here.
