When You Conquer Hills, The Flats And Downhills Become Routine

It’s something we’ve all asked ourselves at the foot of yet another seemingly endless climb – should we sit or should we stand-up? And yet surprisingly few people know the answer.

You’ll have noticed that some riders prefer to keep their bottoms diligently on their saddles, churning away at the pedals, their relaxed upper bodies making it look far easier than it feels.

Other riders prefer to stand up and power their way up the slopes, their bikes leaping forward with every pedal stroke.

Knowing when to sit and when to stand could potentially propel you up our next hill more quickly and easily.

For many people, it all boils down to personal preference – however there is some logic you can apply to climbing that might prove useful next time you’re at the bottom of a big ascent.

PLANNING YOUR PACE

Ride a little easier on the flats, especially on the down hills in anticipation of an ascent; do not lose speed at the start of the uphill. Practice this technique to adapt your body to a slightly changing pace. The goal is to avoid being penalized for pushing harder, and to recover quickly when cycling easier.

Work at least 10% harder on the uphills, especially near the top, where you slow down and aerodynamics are less important. All your effort goes into getting you up the hill rather than into fighting the wind, whereas in the downhill, all your energy goes into fighting the wind. In order to go just a little faster, you must pedal a lot harder. In addition, riding just a little faster will gain you minimal time, because you are already going fast (i.e. increasing speed from 14 mph to 15 mph is more significant than going 33 mph to 34 mph). You should still pedal through the downers, but also try to rest, drink and maintain aerodynamics. If you are going at least 36 MPH, tuck your knees in and coast since pedalling makes you less aerodynamic.

Practice hill climbing techniques often.

An advanced standing technique is to throw your knees at the handlebars, which gains extra power on the upstroke and lets your weight take care of the downstroke. This can be practiced once you have developed a smooth climbing rhythm. Practice standing techniques on the flats or gradual hills. During races it may be fastest to stand for 30 seconds, or maybe for one minute. To prepare, it would be wise to practice standing for up to three minutes. Don't swing the front wheel off-center when climbing out of the saddle. Weaving up the road scrubs off speed and wastes energy. Ride straight!

Go hard occasionally, but focus on proper form and rhythm. Let's face it: when you conquer hills, the flats and downhills become routine. In time, you will look forward to taking the hilly routes and your friends will ask you to slow down on the hills.