Hey, both DH and I were passed by a rollerblader going up Oak Hill (4 miles) in Harvard, MA. This is a well known training hill for cyclists and I heard the guy coming and thought he was another rider, since he had a helmet on. He wasn't a young guy, either. I thought OK, I'm just a slow old lady (I was going maybe 8-9 mph), but when DH told me the guy had passed him, too ( a pretty strong rider), I thought, hmm, there must be something wrong with us!
I'm like you, I will get up just about anything, but slowly. Your story made me laugh.