Hills -- is it true?

[Geonz]

I'm strong on hills, but rarely get out of my seat - and I'm on a hybrid, and pretty positive there's a correlation there. I HATE the total change in balance; it just doesn't feel right at all.
It pays to shift early, and the other thing that really helps me is making sure to keep my stroke steadily going 'round and 'round the whole big circle.
I got stronger doing intervals without standing up. THere's a little excuse for a hill near me (there are very, very few hills around here) and doing repeats up that sucker does a lot for the endurance and strengtha nd speed.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Donna,
I didn't start standing up on hills until I'd been riding over 2 months most every day. At first, I coould not balance at all when standing...scary! Don't expect to be able to do everything before you get a bit more experience. There's nothing "wrong" with you- you just need more time to build up your skills (just like I do as well).
I practiced on a SMALL hill, and partway up I would put my hands on the hoods and pull myself to stand- I would just stand for one downstroke on each foot, wobble along, then had to sit again. With practice, I could stand for several strokes, and now it's just plain FUN to stand and power my way up a short hill....when I *can*. Long hard hills now...that's a real challenge and I usually spin them in low gear, envision clouds, and keep my breathing deep and even.

P.S. I just love your avatar picture