Originally Posted by
canklecat
For short, steep climbs I'm finding it easier and less tiring to stand in a taller gear and keep up some forward momentum. But my conditioning is iffy so if I haven't reached the crest in 30 seconds I'm gonna have to walk the rest of the way up.
Yeah, to a large extent, my gear sets my speed. Lower gear, and the slower I go. Which also means more time on the hill. Finish the hill in a minute or two, and I can go quite fast. Spend 10 minutes on it and it is quite a different beast.
I do wonder about those tortoise and the hare riders. The hares reach the top, then get off the bikes and rest waiting for the tortoises to catch up. Once the tortoises get to the top the hares are well rested and ready to hop on their bikes and take off before the tortoises catch their wind.