Are you the type of cyclist that dreads the site of a hill loaming in the distance? I was, sometimes I still find myself dreading the upcoming hill, but as I read and learn about the art and skill of climbing hills this dread has become less and less.
I now become curious about what they might hold, how long will they be? How steep will they get? How long can I stay in the saddle?
Asking these types of questions for me builds an excitement, they challenge me to push myself a little further, to experiment with my riding style and find out if what I have been reading or watching will work for me.
Here are a few more ideas about how climb hills, some might work some might not, but anyway here they are. These ideas are from a book I have been reading a book Elite Performance Cycling, Successful Sportives by Garry Palmer and Richard Allen.
They start by mentioning that getting out of the saddle and powering up can deplete your energy and cause you to suffer from fatigue much earlier in the ride. They continue to say however, that if powering up means staying with a fast group of riders this could benefit you in the long run because riding in a group can result in major energy savings in the long run.
Longer climbs they say can be best dealt with by spinning at a cadence of 85-95 rpm in a gear that feels relatively easy, sustain this cadence and adjust your gears according to the gradient.
Becoming a skilful climber isn’t about fitness it’s more about teaching yourself how to pace your climbs, find a gear and pace you can maintain, don’t go at someone else’s pace as you may stick with them for the first few kilometres but if you blow up you can slip down the field very fast.
Finally do your homework on the climbs you will be up against, this will give you an idea of how to prepare in training and how to ride the event as a whole.
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