Slowing to prolong getting closer to the climb

[Viper5]

Well done a few more hills..Well I call them hills but others may call them speed bumps..

Decided not to slow down on the flat to prolong the inevitable climb. This only resulted in meeting the climb with no pace. Having hit the climb at mach 1 I managed to get way further up before I looked like a numpty. Goal to get up and over before I flag.

 

[rugby bloke]

Progress is progress, don't knock it !

When I started I used to find hill climbing was as much in the mind as in the legs. I got to the stage where I convinced myself that I had to stop for a breather before tackling certain climbs. With time and practice they do become less daunting and once you have conquered them its a great feeling. Just keep up the hard work nd remember the phrase - "Its only a hill, get over it ".

 

[mjr]

Well done. Riding a Dutchie with a bottom gear of around 40 inches, I pretty much have to hit any significant climb hard unless I want it to be a slow mash or getting off and using the 24-inch gear. It's surprising how many climbs I can actually get all the way over before starting to mash.

 

[steveindenmark]

Regardless of what you are riding, once you hit a hill the momentum you have gained beforehand quickly disappears. That the way it is. I am not a good climber but I have learnt to spin well and can still continue at the top, regardless of what I have climbed up. You need to learn patience.

 

[Gert Lush]

Practice this phrase. 'Just keep pedalling' That's what I do when my head says stop.

 

[Deleted member 35268]

My first tricky hills were often met with failure and doing a U turn back down at less than half way, over time I would go further and further. Now I fear no hill (other than the Devils Elbow).

 

[steve50]

I hit the hills as fast as my legs will allow, the speed carries me further up the hill than a slow approach would, as the bike slows I change gears to keep the legs spinning and get up off the saddle to get the power into my legs. Hills used to seem daunting just twelve months ago, now they are a challenge that I have to conquer.

 

[ColinJ]

I hit the hills as fast as my legs will allow, the speed carries me further up the hill than a slow approach would, as the bike slows I change gears to keep the legs spinning and get up off the saddle to get the power into my legs. Hills used to seem daunting just twelve months ago, now they are a challenge that I have to conquer.

I don't think that technique will help you much on Trooper Lane ...



(That is one of the few videos that I have seen that makes a steep climb actually look steep!)

I've never tackled that one, but I might nip over to Halifax one day and give it a go.

 

[Elybazza61]

Spin,Spin,Spin,,,,

I may be doing a bit of this on Sunday

 

[screenman]

I just hit them hard and fast and keep the momentum going over the top, I do live and ride in Lincolnshire though.

 

[Serynia]

Hills.....I take any progress I can get. I used to avoid them if possible but recently started including one I would always avoid. Last two times definitely felt easier and today I made it to the top in ne go without wanting to die at the top. In the words of Dory "Just keep Swimming" it gets better with every climb

@ColinJ you must be mad... let us know if you survive that

 

[ColinJ]

I just hit them hard and fast and keep the momentum going over the top, I do live and ride in Lincolnshire though.

That helps!

Obviously, with monsters like Trooper Lane (see my previous post) you don't get to do that, but I do encounter short climbs that I can hit at speed and really attack.

Here a couple that I like ...

HERE. Watch out for cars coming the other way, gravel on the bend at the bottom of the descent, and occasionally a cat which has wandered out in front of me before now, power up from the cottages and bear left up the steep little climb of Shaws Lane. Enjoy panoramic views to the right from the top over to the Vale of York!

HERE. If the road is dry and clear, get into top gear and accelerate down into the dip exercising caution on the LH bend. If you cross the bridge at the bottom at over 30 mph, you continue to pedal hard in the big ring and you are feeling good, then you might just make it up the climb to the cottages on the right, where the road flattens off. (These days, my legs only get me 3/4 of the way up the other side and I am forced to change to the middle ring to finish it off!)

 

[steve50]

I don't think that technique will help you much on Trooper Lane ...



(That is one of the few videos that I have seen that makes a steep climb actually look steep!)

I've never tackled that one, but I might nip over to Halifax one day and give it a go.

Trooper lane is just on the road from me, good luck tackling that one, you would be better strapping an engine to your bike.

 

[cyberknight]

Find what works for you,im a stand up and give it the beans in a big gear climber , if i try to sit and spin i just go slower and run out of go quicker .Mate at the club is the opposite though as he can drop me on anything long if i try to ride like him .

 

[Davos87]

If I ride out a particular way There's a 17% hill I have to do to get back to the village where I live. It's steepish but relatively short and although a bit of a leg burner I have done it on many occasions.
Even though it's familiar to me and I know what to expect I ALWAYS feel a sense of apprehension and slight butterflies as I approach it. Maybe it has something to do with the fact it's a narrow two way road and often cars have to slow down behind you as you make your way up it. I don't like cars coming up behind me if I'm gasping up the hill. Silky but I always feel a bit self conscious. If Im honest when I plan my rides, I often ( probably subconsciously) set off in the opposite direction knowing I won't have to tackle it on the way back. Hills do funny things to your way of thinking about them so maybe it is more about the head than the legs.