% Grade vs Degrees

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Do you think the guy burned up his truck with the brakes overheating? )</font>

I have no doubt that's exactly what happened. It's a little hard for us folks from down south to describe or comprehend the differences up there. For most of us, our depth perception is shot. I guess it's the clear, clean air that makes everything look so much closer than it is. When you start down that grade, it's straight as an arrow, you can see the road all the way down, through the valley, and up the other side, and it doesn't "look" like more than a couple of miles. I was driving my brother's F-Super Duty '91 Ford he had rigged with a 12' flat bed, a drom box behind the cab, a generator mounted under the bed, and the only load I had was 3 barrels of gasoline. It was a 460 engine with 5-speed manual transmission and I went down in 3rd gear all the way, frequently using the brakes. When we returned the next day, that burned truck was sitting in the middle of the road at the bottom and no one around. There was still one little fire burning under the cab. It was a cabover, 30-wheeler (something we don't see much down here, but since that was a private road, there were no weight limits).

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Do you think the guy burned up his truck with the brakes overheating? )</font>

I have no doubt that's exactly what happened. It's a little hard for us folks from down south to describe or comprehend the differences up there. For most of us, our depth perception is shot. I guess it's the clear, clean air that makes everything look so much closer than it is. When you start down that grade, it's straight as an arrow, you can see the road all the way down, through the valley, and up the other side, and it doesn't "look" like more than a couple of miles. I was driving my brother's F-Super Duty '91 Ford he had rigged with a 12' flat bed, a drom box behind the cab, a generator mounted under the bed, and the only load I had was 3 barrels of gasoline. It was a 460 engine with 5-speed manual transmission and I went down in 3rd gear all the way, frequently using the brakes. When we returned the next day, that burned truck was sitting in the middle of the road at the bottom and no one around. There was still one little fire burning under the cab. It was a cabover, 30-wheeler (something we don't see much down here, but since that was a private road, there were no weight limits).

 

[turnkey4099]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Salt River Canyon on U.S. 60 in Arizona carries a 6% grade. I agree it looks much steeper that it measures in degrees. Are there any places with greater that 6% grades on U. S. Highways, excluding dirt roads in the back country? I seem to recollect a 7% grade somewhere in my readings, but don't remember where that was, or if I was just dreaming.
)</font>

US 95 north from Lewiston on the lewistong hill. Posted 6% on the top three miles, 7% on the bottom 3 miles. Several escape lanes.

Oddly the front page of the Lewiston newspaper has a photo of a flatbed loaded with concrete block overturned at the bottom of the 21st street hill. Obvious driver error as his statement in the paper. At the ?? stoplight I realised I was loosing brakes and tried to gear down but couldn't. Loaded that way he should have been geared down before he even entered the grade. That light is at least a mile up a very steep and busy thoroughfare. A miracle no other vehicles were involved.

First fatality on that grade was very shortly after it opened. Flat bed loaded with steel, took escape ramp down on the 7% portion, went over the top of the ramp, impacted side of ravine on other side and of course the load went through the cab. That ramp was modified with a BIG birm of pea gravel at the top.

For grades try the Coquehalla in Canada, runs from Kamloops to (near) Vancouver (can't recall the name of the terminus) with a southern branch down into the Okanagan valley at Peachland I clocked one stretch of 13 solid miles of 6 and 7% grades with no let up. There is one pitch just before the western terminus that has to be more than 7% but I didn't see a sign. Everytime I drive it I wonder what it would be like on a skateboard or one of those lay-down hill coaster thingies.

Harry K

 

[turnkey4099]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Salt River Canyon on U.S. 60 in Arizona carries a 6% grade. I agree it looks much steeper that it measures in degrees. Are there any places with greater that 6% grades on U. S. Highways, excluding dirt roads in the back country? I seem to recollect a 7% grade somewhere in my readings, but don't remember where that was, or if I was just dreaming.
)</font>

US 95 north from Lewiston on the lewistong hill. Posted 6% on the top three miles, 7% on the bottom 3 miles. Several escape lanes.

Oddly the front page of the Lewiston newspaper has a photo of a flatbed loaded with concrete block overturned at the bottom of the 21st street hill. Obvious driver error as his statement in the paper. At the ?? stoplight I realised I was loosing brakes and tried to gear down but couldn't. Loaded that way he should have been geared down before he even entered the grade. That light is at least a mile up a very steep and busy thoroughfare. A miracle no other vehicles were involved.

First fatality on that grade was very shortly after it opened. Flat bed loaded with steel, took escape ramp down on the 7% portion, went over the top of the ramp, impacted side of ravine on other side and of course the load went through the cab. That ramp was modified with a BIG birm of pea gravel at the top.

For grades try the Coquehalla in Canada, runs from Kamloops to (near) Vancouver (can't recall the name of the terminus) with a southern branch down into the Okanagan valley at Peachland I clocked one stretch of 13 solid miles of 6 and 7% grades with no let up. There is one pitch just before the western terminus that has to be more than 7% but I didn't see a sign. Everytime I drive it I wonder what it would be like on a skateboard or one of those lay-down hill coaster thingies.

Harry K

 

[Boomerang1]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">( Salt River Canyon on U.S. 60 in Arizona carries a 6% grade. I agree it looks much steeper that it measures in degrees. Are there any places with greater that 6% grades on U. S. Highways, excluding dirt roads in the back country? I seem to recollect a 7% grade somewhere in my readings, but don't remember where that was, or if I was just dreaming.
)</font> SR 177 between Superior & Hayden Az. has a 10% grade with curves. US 77 between Globe & Winkelman has a long 7-8% with curves. US 60 between Globe & Superior has 7% with curves. I drive a smooth bore Haz Mat semi tanker on these roads every day. Average speed on a 10% is 49.5 mph. 19 mph uphill & 80 mph downhill.

 

[Boomerang1]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">( Salt River Canyon on U.S. 60 in Arizona carries a 6% grade. I agree it looks much steeper that it measures in degrees. Are there any places with greater that 6% grades on U. S. Highways, excluding dirt roads in the back country? I seem to recollect a 7% grade somewhere in my readings, but don't remember where that was, or if I was just dreaming.
)</font> SR 177 between Superior & Hayden Az. has a 10% grade with curves. US 77 between Globe & Winkelman has a long 7-8% with curves. US 60 between Globe & Superior has 7% with curves. I drive a smooth bore Haz Mat semi tanker on these roads every day. Average speed on a 10% is 49.5 mph. 19 mph uphill & 80 mph downhill.

 

[NewToy]

That 10%er must be quite a ride. I get a kick out of some of the driveways you can see in WV while travelling the Interstate. Some of them are just sooo steep, I can't imagine trying to traverse them in the winter. I guess it cuts down on the Jehovah's on Saturday morning.

john

 

[NewToy]

That 10%er must be quite a ride. I get a kick out of some of the driveways you can see in WV while travelling the Interstate. Some of them are just sooo steep, I can't imagine trying to traverse them in the winter. I guess it cuts down on the Jehovah's on Saturday morning.

john

 

[DaveNay]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( That 10%er must be quite a ride. I get a kick out of some of the driveways you can see in WV while travelling the Interstate. Some of them are just sooo steep, I can't imagine trying to traverse them in the winter. I guess it cuts down on the Jehovah's on Saturday morning.

john )</font>

There are driveways in WV that are so steep, I have always wondered how they get the asphalt to stick to the mountain! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[DaveNay]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( That 10%er must be quite a ride. I get a kick out of some of the driveways you can see in WV while travelling the Interstate. Some of them are just sooo steep, I can't imagine trying to traverse them in the winter. I guess it cuts down on the Jehovah's on Saturday morning.

john )</font>

There are driveways in WV that are so steep, I have always wondered how they get the asphalt to stick to the mountain! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif