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arXiv · 1011.4778

Evaluating cumulative ascent: Mountain biking meets Mandelbrot

D. C. Rapaport
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Abstract

The problem of determining total distance ascended during a mountain bike trip is addressed. Altitude measurements are obtained from GPS receivers utilizing both GPS-based and barometric altitude data, with data averaging used to reduce fluctuations. The estimation process is sensitive to the degree of averaging, and is related to the well-known question of determining coastline length. Barometric-based measurements prove more reliable, due to their insensitivity to GPS altitude fluctuations.

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D. C. Rapaport. 2011-03-10. Evaluating cumulative ascent: Mountain biking meets Mandelbrot. https://doi.org/10.1142/s0129183111016257

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