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Sir Chris Hoy draws up ten-strong shortlist of Nation's Perfect Hill - is yours on the list?

Best descents include 2 from Scotland, 2 from Yorkshire, 6 from Southern half of England - but Wales misses out

You may recall that back in May we reported that Sir Chris Hoy had launched a search for the Nation’s Perfect Hill to Ride Down – well, the nominations are in and a shortlist of ten has been drawn up, including Arthur’s Seat in the four time Olympic champion’s home city, Edinburgh, and Ralph Allen Drive in road.cc’s own home town, Bath.

Sir Chris and fellow judges including Etain O’Carroll, editor of the Lonely Planet Cycling Guide, whittled down the final ten candidates from hundreds of nominations that had been received under the initiative, which was launched to tie in with this year’s Sky Ride programme.

The accompanying gallery of images shows each descent in all its glory - anyone familiar with Edinburgh will point out that Salisbury Crags is actually shown in the picture from there, but technically it is a spur of Arthur's Seat, so that's why it's there.

Factors influencing whether a descent made the shortlist included its historical significance, the view from the top and the actual route.
Besides Arthur’s Seat, Scotland is represented in the list by the Rest and Be Thankful road, also known as the A83 west of Loch Lomond, which gives stunning views across the Highlands.

Another descent close to road.cc’s heart that makes the list is Cheddar Gorge here in Somerset, while in Southern England, Silver Street in Lyme Regis, Hampshire’s Winchester Hill and Ham Common in Richmond-upon-Thames all feature, as does Newlands Corner near Guildford.

That leaves just two more spots in the top ten to be filled, and both those descents are in Yorkshire – Holme Moss and Blackstone Edge.
While many will be delighted to find their own favourite descent has made the list, there is bound to be disappointment in some quarters, not least in the North West and also in Wales, which doesn’t have a single descent featured.

So, what are your thoughts on the top ten? Did your favourite descent miss the list? And of the ten that do feature, which one do you think will prove the most worthy winner once the decision has been made? Let us know in the comments below.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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39 comments

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andrew miners | 12 years ago
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along the A470 wales cambrian range the brecons etc great views and good routes cant believe no ones put these up!!!

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dandan | 12 years ago
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Ham Common, Richmond-upon-Thames. Really? That's a totally flat road going around the edge of Ham Common. Surely some mistake.

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killing-joker replied to dandan | 12 years ago
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rather than Ham Common, which is very flat, he must mean Star and Garter Hill next to Richmond Park

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bashthebox | 12 years ago
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I must respectfully draw attention to Rule#55: http://www.velominati.com/blog/the-rules/#55

Descents are lovely, as long as you've gone up the other side.

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PeteH replied to bashthebox | 12 years ago
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bashthebox wrote:

I must respectfully draw attention to Rule#55: http://www.velominati.com/blog/the-rules/#55

Descents are lovely, as long as you've gone up the other side.

Agreed.

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Mariachi | 12 years ago
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Glad Ralph Allen Drive made it, really is a great descent - I usually go up Widcombe Hill beforehand so I feel like I've earned it!

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idadown | 12 years ago
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I'm surprised Newlands corner made it in there... if he's talking about the main road up/down - I ride this most weeks. There's better downhills at Leith Hill.

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Trekkie | 12 years ago
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MMMh Rest and be Thankful. The road is a nightmare to descend. To many impatient drivers on a A-class road that now has a semi-permanent warning of land slides..... What ever happened to the Bealach-na-Ba from Applecross to Kishorn!

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awkward | 12 years ago
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My favourite descent is Kirkstone Pass towards Ullswater. Long, steep enough to get some real speed up, brilliant corners and wide enough to not worry too much about traffic. Absolutely exhilarating.

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