Long, Steady Grades
On big climbs, effective climbing is about monitoring your effort so you never redline.
Body Position
Stay seated for prolonged periods. Slide back in the saddle a bit for leg extension and leverage. Relax your upper body and open your chest by pulling your shoulders back a bit. Hunching over inhibits breathing. Stand intermittently to give certain muscle groups (not to mention your butt) a break.
Cadence and Gearing
Your cadence should be high (not below 70 rpm; 80 to 90 is ideal). Mashing gears fatigues you fast. Spinning–like a low-weight, high-rep weight workout–lets muscles recover faster. Amp up your effort for steeper pitches, then revert to a lower intensity.
Effort
Keep it measured. Start by setting your pace roughly at what you think you can sustain, then back off a notch so you have some cushion if the grade steepens.
Additional Tip:
Stretch on the bike: Stand and push hips forward to help your low back. To loosen your shoulders, slide backward and round your back. Pin shoulders back to lengthen your neck.
Rollers
You’ll go fastest on rolling terrain if you maintain your gearing and cadence as much as possible.
Gearing
Stay in the gear in which you began climbing for as long as possible. Shift down only to keep your cadence steady. When you can see over the crest, shift up a gear to power over the top.
Cadence
Try to spin at 70 to 90 rpm. If you drop too low, you’ll get bogged down; but if you go too high, you’ll unnecessarily lose momentum.
Effort
Attack the bottom of the roller at the same intensity as on the flats–but gradually increase the effort as you ascend. The ensuing descent lets you recover while maintaining speed.
Body Position
Keep your hands on the hoods just as you would on the flats. Remain seated until your cadence drops by about five rpm, then stand; don’t shift until your standing cadence drops another five rpm.
Additional Tip:
Training? Use rollers as unstructured intervals. Pushing to the limit on one roller only to have to recover quickly for another will give you the ability to respond to attacks or put in your own double kick.
Short and Steep
Sharp inclines are best tackled aggressively.
Gearing
Start in the same gear as on the flats, but be prepared to shift quickly and often to maintain cadence.
Cadence
Maintain a lower-than-normal cadence of 60 to 70 rpm. Spinning will cost you momentum on the steeps. You want to hammer the pedals.
Effort
Go hard. Conquer these pitches as fast as possible.
Body Position
Stand in the attack position, hands on hoods, body crouched. If seated, put your hands on the bar tops to open your chest and slide back slightly in the seat for maximum pedaling leverage.
Depending on the climb length, you’ll either stand the whole time or alternate seated and standing. Stand when the gradient pitches up; sit when it backs off a notch, but keep the cadence consistent.
Additional tip: Don’t pull a Schleck: When shifting, ease off the pedals a bit; the reduced tension will speed the shift and keep the chain in place.
Climb In The Pack
If you’re a weaker climber, start at the front and gradually drift back, so even as you lose ground you maintain contact with the group. This is more efficient than chasing from the back.
If it’s a competitive ride, don’t get boxed in on the shoulder. And the shorter the hill, the harder you should work to keep an attacker’s wheel. Or discourage attacks by setting the tempo.
If you get gapped, keep your tempo steady. The pace up front might moderate, allowing you to catch back on.
Watch other riders’ form: Jerky pedal strokes, hunched bodies and other signs of deteriorating technique tell you they’re tired.