If it’s small, we may want to power over it. If it’s a convex hill (steepest at the bottom), it is definitely in our best interest to do so, even if it isn’t so small. To power over a small hill or over the steep part of a longer hill, one picks up speed on the flat before reaching the hill. How do you pick up speed?
Well, just pushing harder on the pedals will help, but it usually helps too to shift down a notch. Shift down to go faster? Yes, spinning faster, while it wears you out faster, will produce more power, and power is needed to accelerate.
In powering up a hill, it is not only necessary to shift down while climbing, but it is also necessary to shift a little early each time, keeping the legs moving faster (the cadence higher) than if moving at the same speed on level ground. An important part of shifting down and applying power earlier lies in the timing, and this is something that must be learned from experience.
If one applies too much power too early, the hill becomes harder to climb, due to becoming fatigued before reaching the top. If one applies too little power or waits too long, the hill is harder to climb, due to having to labor up it. However, if the right amount of power is applied at just the right time, the hill is much easier, which is why t wo riders of equal strength and weight won’t do equally well on the same hill.
At some point in climbing the hill, it may be necessary to apply even more power to increase speed without shifting down. This may happen where the road is starting to level out, especially near the top.
The solution to this problem is to stand up on the pedals, allowing the whole weight of the body to alternate from pedal to pedal. Standing can be very wasteful if done incorrectly and very successful if done well.
There is an alternate to standing: when sprinting, pull on the handlebars rather than stand up; this pulling on the handlebars allows you to push harder on the pedals. If the pedals are still spinning quickly, it makes better sense to pull on the handlebars than to change the gearing and then stand up.
If one is approaching a convex hill, applies power early, and powers over the hill, the speed is much greater than if one simply gears down as one approaches. You may think, but surely this is a tactic for racing alone!
Sometimes while crossing a bridge, you need to keep your speed on high to get off of the narrow bridge as quickly as possible. Another strong reason for using these tactics when touring: you can save energy over grinding up the hill.
However, the extra weight of the bike and also the fatigue of a long day do create limits to these strategies. But what about a concave hill, which is steepest at the top? Then it makes no sense to rush the bottom of the hill.
Climb at a steady pace, save your energy, and gear down as you reach the steeper part. On the steep part of a small hill, there are two choices: to keep gearing down or to stand up. Let the size of the hill mainly determine your choice, although other factors, such as the direction and force of the wind, are very important.
On a small hill, it’s generally less difficult and will produce a higher average speed to stand to take the hill. One problem with standing to take a hill is that it’s very awkward to shift up or down while standing, so it is necessary to learn how to judge the correct gear before standing up.
A small, even-grade hill is a little less complicated that the other two. If it is steep, you may want to rush the lower part. Since the correct gear choice is the same from bottom to top, it won’t be necessary to adjust your gearing once you reach a steady speed.
