I live in the MD suburbs of Washington, DC, about 12 miles north of the Capital Beltway, neither on the eastern shore, nor in the mountains of western MD. It's relatively flat but with rolling terrain. My typical 25-30 mile rides over rural roads will usually give me between 1000 and 1500 feet of climbing (as estimated by RouteSlip) with most of the climbing concentrated over a few miles near my midpoint. The last two miles are mostly uphill. It's definitely enough to give me a workout and push me towards my current limit.

Is improved hill climbing a factor of better conditioning and training or a matter of improved technique? I usually only get out for one of these rides once or twice a week. The rest of my miles are logged on a trainer stand.