Originally Posted by GFish

The bike is an 8 speed, maximum rear cog is 34T. Other wise I would have. I like your advice on going back to that hill and trying it over and over until I conquer it. I plan to do just that. That hill will be a reality check on my progress. When I got this bike in 1995, I actually rode up that hill in the 24x28 combo, which was the lowest gears on the bike. So now almost 19 years later at 57 years of age, I needed to stop in the 24x34. I don't really feel any different today, but obviously time and age does catch up to all of us at some point. Yesterday, I realized my conditioning wasn't good enough, and I felt really old, more so then I had in a long time.

Isn't power about leg strength? It wasn't my legs that gave out, it was the lungs. I just couldn't get enough air and my heart was racing. Next time I'll wear the heart monitor to check heart rate.

I plan to mix up the riding between road and dirt. Likely more road since I can ride from the house. But I'll need to get after those hills and regain some youth.