Rollers and momentum

[Becky]

For what it's worth, I tend to pedal harder on the downhills if I see an uphill ahead. Once I'm on the uphill, I try to ease the pedaling and change gear just a second before I need to do it. Two seconds if I need to switch to another chainring. Practice allows me to do this pretty seamlessly now so to avoid losing momentum. On a 2-km hill however momentum becomes pretty irrelevant: it will help you for the first 300 meters and then you're on your own. A mantra will be more useful than momentum at that stage.

This is pretty much what I do. It's taken me a long time to get comfortable with it. Keep practicing, and the technique will come. For short rolly hills, you may be able to gain enough momentum on the downhill to power up the other side without downshifting or by downshifting just a cog or two.

I spent a winter using the "Hillacious" Spinervals video (the one with the Great Harvest Bread Co. team), and the techniques that I learned from it have really had a positive impact on my climbing ability. If you're a trainer user, this might be an option....