Hills -- is it true?

[Trekhawk]

DO shift BEFORE it gets difficult.

If you have a moderately recent road bike you have a pretty broad selection of gears just 1-2 teeth from each other. I shift down one or two gears at the time, as soon as there is any resistance. I keep my cadence relatively high through the hill. Of course I still might be passed in the end by strong cyclists, but the idea is not to loose momentum, and to avoid loosing speed quickly (which will definitely happen if you wait until it's hard to shift down).

Good luck!!

I read an article lately that said pretty much what Grog is saying. It said change earlier rather than later and if you still have energy near the top change to a harder gear and power over the crest.
LOL - cant tell you if that works because well hmm.....Im yet to have energy near the top of any big climb.