Silly Question

[Meaux]

Is there a way to train for riding up hills without hills? DH and I live in Houston, where it is very very flat and we've been riding around in the TX Hill Country. THESE HILLS ARE KILLING ME!! We are going to be riding in the MS150 from Houston to Austin, which is a ride right into the Hill Country. So, if anyone has any suggestions, let me know. PLEASE!!

[han-grrl]

We simulate hill climbs with heavy resistance...sooo...i would maybe suggest pedalling through flats in harder than normal gear (but not mashing, and not hurting knees, of course!)

on a trainer, you can lift up the front wheel so it is a few inches higher than the back...i guess that is supposed to help too (although i just found i was just sliding around on the saddle, maybe thats the point...? )

[salsabike]

I have also read that riding into the wind is a reasonable facsimile, although not exact, of course.

[Fredwina]

Reminds me of a Story
An unnamed pro rider was on the same team as Tinker Juarez. he was not doing good on climbs, so Tinker suggested that the do a rider together, and he was show him how to train for hills.
The day for the ride came. Tinker had gotten to the trail head first, He threw the other rider a backpack and told him to put it on.
The other rider was surprised at the weight of the Backpack. He asked Tinker what was in it.
Tinker replied "Rocks" :D
On more serious, I used to weigh 100 pound more than what I do know. I do climb a lot better, so maybe Mr. Juarez is on to something.....

[RoadRaven]

Lots of good suggestions... and I will just agree with the good advice you have been given...

- carry more weight (like the pack with rocks... though perhaps something more 'comforatble' - my oldest son trains for hills on hills, but he fills one water bottle with water, and the other with sand...)

- grind into the wind, or try and spin but at a higher resistence...

- setting your trainer at an angle and a high resistence is def supposed to help

- spin classes do alot of heavy resistence/standing stuff, that can help...

... but ultimately, the best training for hills... is hills...

Good luck...

[Cassandra_Cain]

Hi...

I'll say it right from the start, you could potentially be a fabulous climber without having done any training on hills. Key word is, potentially, because it depends on a lot of things.

The big difference between riding hills and flats, is that while climbing you tend to have much more of a steady and consistent resistance. That means your power (output), is also more steady vs. the flats, where you can easily coast and soft pedal.

In addition, air resistance and drag become minor factors while climbing, whereas in the flats they are very substantial.

So back to your question....you want to climb well but don't have hills? I've got ideas for you.

1 - Get real friendly with headwinds, hard as it may seem, they can be beneficial because they mimic the more steady resistance you would get while hill climbing.

2 - Even easier, get an indoor trainer - that will give you very steady resistance with no worries about terrain, etc.

One other thing that is very important, that is having a good set of gears. Having a good granny gear will allow you to keep your cadence higher and spare your legs from having to crank out lots of force to turn the pedals. A 25 is fine but you may find a cassette with a 27 is even easier - no shame in sparing your legs!

There have been tremendous climbers in the professional ranks who originate from places devoid of mountains.

The bottom line to climbing is power to weight ratio.....more power and less weight will get you to the top faster, easier, and more comfortably.

Best of luck to you for that ride!

[Triskeliongirl]

I had a friend train for the mt washington hill climb in a flat place. She found the only hill in this flat place, and just kept going up and down it over and over. Alternatively, come down to san antonio for a weekend or two. You are welcome to ride with our club (san antonio wheelmen). The hill country touring club even has a special weekend event soon called the fredricksburg fall folly or something like that.

[SadieKate]

I heartily recommend that everyone subscribe to the RoadBikeRider newsletter. Great little read with good tips (thanks, yellow).

Funny you should ask this question. Read #7 from this week's newsletter:
http://www.roadbikerider.com/267n.htm

[Meaux]

Thanks for the great tips! I will definitely be putting those to use. DH and I are looking into trainers, can anyone suggest any good, reasonably priced ones?

[Cassandra_Cain]

Thanks for the great tips! I will definitely be putting those to use. DH and I are looking into trainers, can anyone suggest any good, reasonably priced ones?

Hi...

I have a Kurt Kinetic road machine trainer that is fabulous. You can get it directly from the manufacturer or at one of several online dealers. http://kurtkinetic.com or http://www.1upusa.com

A pair of trainers I don't have but have had a great deal of positive feedback from people I know, are the velodyne and tacx:
http://www.velodynesports.com & http://www.tacx.nl

Anyone of these would be an excellent choice. There are other trainers out there that are less expensive, but I'm unfamiliar with them and their reliability, etc.

FYI - I used to think of indoor trainer rides as just something to do when it was cold or the weather uncooperative. However, I've realized they are absolutely invaluable for training and plan to do them year round.

It would be neat to hear about your riding experience in that MS150 you've entered :)