Prostreet71

Well i haven't been riding long. Its been 25 years since I rode a bike. Friday June 20th I did 3.3 miles. Every day I have aded miles. Today I did 10.8 miles. My commute is 13 miles way way which wouldn't be a problem if it was all flat. I have to Go over the Santa Susana Pass which is a 540 foot incline over 2.1 miles. I did 3 tenths of a mile up the hill today. I tried 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear but man that is tuff. The 3 tenths of a mile coast down at 18 mph was nice. Is there any secrets to getting up big hills? For now i will ride to the bus stop and take the bus to the other side of the hill then bike the rest of the way to work. Any suggestions on how to make it to the top of the hill?
Thanks

Vodalus

double check to make sure your seat isn't too low.
https://sheldonbrown.com/standing.html

but other than that, the only thing is practice. i think over time you'll get used to it. good luck!

huhenio

sitting, standing, and walking are the roughly 3 power positions of the pedal powered cycle.

gtd

Yeah, the trick is to keep doing it. Two things come into play. First, you just get stronger from repetition. Second, you get mentally stronger from repitition, which makes it seem much easier.

But maybe three gears isn't enough? I'm not saying you should replace your bike, just that if you have a three speed and hills it might take longer to strengthen yourself than if you had the latest twenty-four speed model with a really easy granny gear. I used to deliver large Washington, DC newspapers over hills on a single-speed behemoth, every morning, so it's really just a matter of getting accustomed to the particular ride.

If you ride every other day, your muscles get a break. Try that for a while.

You can do it . . . .

Lebowski

for me when it comes to hills theres 4 options:

1) ride up in "granny gear" IE the lowest one at 8 mph, this is fun it requires little energy and is actually a good "rest"

2) blast up it at 15-20mph in a mid-high gear (wont work on huge hills)

3)struggle in a medium gear and go slower than a pedestrian and get worn out

4) walk.

my advice is if you are going the same speed or slower than walking theres no point riding up the hill, you are just going to wear your self out. walk it.

elfich

Granny gear.

Either put a small ring on the front deraileur (30 teeth) or put a cassette with a 32 or 34 tooth granny gear on it. It should help.

ken cummings

Be careful about pushing for too much too soon. particularly after such a long time off the bike. Several times I've heard the recommendation to not add more then 10% to your mileage or effort per week. When I get more active after a long period of sloth my knees will hurt if I go too hard. For now taking the bus over the hard part sounds like a good idea. Can you get off at the top of the Pass and ride down? I did the same three times in Colorado only the passes were over the Continental Divide and the descents were several thousand feet. Wheeee

StephenH

Low gear and slow.

If you try to ride up in too high of a gear, it kills your legs. If you have a low enough gear to get up, you may wind up going slower than walking, but you get better as you do it more. If you're making it partway up now, just keep riding, and you'll find yourself going farther and farther up. If you have a 3-speed, you may be able to switch to a larger rear gear or smaller front gear and help some (will reduce your top speed some too, but should be okay).

maddyfish

Well 275 feet/mile isn't that steep. You will get used to it. I am amazed at the hills I climb now at 13-15mph that I couldn't get up at all in the past.

CliftonGK1

Keep at it. I climb a 600' rise over 2.25mi to get to my apartment every day at the end of my commute.

Industrial

Depends on what kind of bike you have. Granny gear is extremely different on many of my bikes. 39-23 isn't much of a granny gear at all on my road bike yet...the 22-34 on my mountain bike makes me feel like I could almost go vertical.

What kind of bike do you have? What kind of gearing? There is no reason to "man up" and even try to push some ridiculous gear up a giant hill if you are starting out. Any hill that a passenger car can go up can be done with the right gearing on a bicycle, it just might take a while until you get stronger.

Neurodoc

I've whined - I mean, posted about the big frakking hill I have to go up every morning. It's about a 15% grade and spanks my sorry arse.

But I've learned the key is to forgive myself. It's okay to stop part of the way up and wait for my heart rate to go down. It's okay to walk the bike up the steep sections.

Little by little it's getting easier. Oh, it's still really really hard, but - my lungs don't burn, my chest isn't tight. So keep at it.

Fribley

Someone on here metioned this i tried it today and it seemed to work pretty well. Take two normal/easy pedals with your right foot then powerstroke the third, then two more normal/easy ones and powerstroke the 6th with your left foot. i was able to maintain an average higher speed doing this without a whole lot more effort.

huhenio

owenh

Granny gear and take it easy
just relax and enjoy the ride you will eventually pick up speed

envane

Guys, if he has only three gears like he implied in his post, he's probably on an old 3-speed and doesn't have a granny gear.

Like everyone said, put it in low gear and don't be embarrrassed to go very slow. 5% grade is not a big deal, you'll get good enough to do it.

HOV

Here's a strategy for the overall ride that will help your climbing ability:

Save your energy on the flats, and don't even pedal on downhills. Conserve conserve conserve. But when you reach a hill, any hill, stand up and BLAST!!!! Sprint up them bad boys. Soon you won't have to stand.

maddyfish

It is never ok to walk your bike up a hill. Man up. If you can't make the hill on your bike, then your bike should make it up the hill on you. Carry it. Carry it up the hill if you can't ride up the hill.

capolover

The last mile of my commute is a one way road up a giant hill.

It busts my ass, but it's fun. I use my top grips and stand up a bit toward the top.

Just don't ever stop and feel the buuuuuuuuuuuuurn.

Screw a 3 speed. I have one speed

jpdesjar

ride a fixed for a while and strenghten those legs up

Prostreet71

Its a 21 speed bike and I tried starting up the hill using the first 3 gears. I have 18 speeds left.

ItsJustMe

Practice, practice. I went to college in a town built on the side of a valley. When I first started riding there, I walked up almost every hill. After a summer of riding there, I didn't even downshift that much on the long low grades (about 4% for a mile) and went up the crazy hills without too much trouble (downshifted, on hills 10-15%) (Yes, really, they were built long ago. They close those roads in the winter).

DataJunkie

Drop to your lowest gear and spin up it. You could purchase a heart rate monitor to help you pace yourself.
As you get stronger go up in gears.

You can also alternate between sitting and standing but pacing yourself is more difficult.
Powering up a hill in a high gear while standing is fun.

JustBrowsing

Put it in the highest gear and see which breaks first--your chain or your legs.

capolover

haha, thats why I ride a fixie. I would put a geared bike in the highest to get up a hill faster so I figured cut out the middle man.