I prefer friction shifting myself for hilly country. Real nice to slip all the way into 1st/granny gear on one shift when I come upon a hill and realize that I'm gonna need to gear down more than a few notches, because it's such a monster. Plus, I can shift from first all the way to the highest gear for downhills (yes, I like pedalling downhills...speed, man, speed!)

Bar-cons are set at a more convenient spot than down-tube shifters are