Originally Posted by
MrCrassic
So I need to start preparing for the race weekend at Army, and if there's anything that I suck at more is climbing.
I think there have been books written of my climbing slowness. Example: A hill with about a 10% grade (estimated) will make me crawl it at 6 mph or so. Not acceptable.
What is a good way to do these hill repeats? Should I concentrate more on pedal stroke/cadence or power? In other words, should I drop to the lowest ring/sprocket if I need to, or should I try my very best to hammer it down on a ratio with enough resistance?
I should mention that my bike is about 22 - 23 pounds, and that I weigh about 160. I mention this because I know that power to weight ratio is a big deal, especially on hills.
Thanks!
Get a lighter bike.
Do the hills in the biggest gear you can; you can sit and spin and watch everyone drop you, or you can hammer in a big gear and maintain some respectability. Start tomorrow.
While there's something to be said for spinning up a hill, a race isn't the place for that. You need to pour it on. Biggest gear you can stand without blowing up. Kick some *ss.