Originally Posted by Eclectus

Find the the routes you can handle without grinding out your knee cartilage. If you're taking on some 18% grade hills, that's very steep, and your cadence is 40, you need to learn how to stand up, for this cadence at very least, or you need to go to a 22-front triple, or you need challenge the hill, when it beats you, walk it the rest of the way, or to turn around, and work on going farther with more practice runs.