We havea loooong gradual hill. I got purty good at hills by following Ed's "accelerate the whole way" rule (it's about three miles)... you don't accelerate a lot, but you *never* slow down. You are toast at the top.
Short 9%ers would also be good... we sure ain't got those around here. We have the wind, though, and it works. I've gone back east to the hills and conquered them.