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Down in the Dirt
by Timm Muth
A monthly article by the author of Mountain Biking in North Carolina. Rants, raves, reviews and chain grease.

How I Learned to Love the Climb
November 03

When I first started riding, there was one aspect that I dreaded more than any other: climbs - long, steep, technical climbs. While my buds zoomed up 'em, I'd make a valiant attempt, spin out or have my legs catch fire, then just get off in disgust and start pushing. By the time I got to the top, either everyone else would be rested and ready to go (with a sad glance for poor Timm, the official Hill Pusher), or they'd already be gone - I could never tell which was worse.

But now, I love the climbs. OK, I still really hate the long grinders, like Clawhammer, the ones that have you ready to trade in your bike for a packmule. But the rest of 'em - especially the tough, stream-cross, switchback up, lots o' rocks, better carry some speed, straining everything you've got to make that last ten feet (like that new one out at Regency, whew!) - man, those ones, I just flat out love any more. When you make one of those, you feel like you've accomplished something on the day, regardless if the rest of your ride sucks, or if the boss pegged you for singing the company anthem off key or something. Climbs like those hurt like hell, but they let you know you're alive.

So for those of you who are still in that "I HATE these friggin' climbs!!" stage, here's a few ideas that might help a bit. Cause ya know, once you make the climb, that means there's a downhill on the other side!

As I see it, there's three different types of climbers: Sitters, Standers, and In-Betweeners.

Sitters
The simplest climbing method is sitting. David T is a Sitter. He spins like crazy coming into a hill, hunkers way down with his elbows pointing towards the ground, keeping his weight and front wheel down. Then he spins like a mad gerbil, and hums to himself as he climbs up the mountain. If it looks like he may need it, he's already sitting in the little ring, so calling on Granny is easily done. He'll try to drift into the climb at an easy pace, then start working his way down through the gears (starting at maybe a 1x5, then working down as needed) as he spins and climbs. No troubles, not in a hurry, just working his way up the hill, passing the poor wretches pushing their bikes up.

Sitter Advantages: Simple and steady. Superior traction. Nice rhythm for humming.
Sitter Disadvantages: Not much body English available if needed. Tough to develop burst of speed if needed. Wheelies possible. Requires good shift discipline, cause if you're not in the right gear at all times, you don't have any ummph left to power it up the hill.

Standers
My bro Curto, OTOH, is a Stander. Molehill or mountain, he's cruising into it fast as possible, standing and stomping on the pedals like they're on fire. He flies up and over everything in his way, bunnyhopping small obstacles if both the need and the speed are there. He's pushing bigger gears (2x5, 2x6) that most of us would use on a decent downhill. Gears? Shifting? Bah! An advanced Stander needs none of those - and is probably a good candidate for a single-speed bike. He or she relies simply on some decent leg strength, a lot of speed heading into things, and a good bit of coordination. It's not as easy as it sounds. You need to lean forward far enough to prevent the front wheel from lifting and you falling over on yo' haid. At the same time, you need to stay back enough to keep the back wheel weighted and prevent a spin-out.

Standers have the distinct advantage of occasionally just cruising up and over a climb at speed, and rolling on, while the sitter is still slowly downshifting and climbing the hill. Remember that Big Mo, as in Mo-mentum, is definitely your friend when climbing. If you're moving at a fair rate, one of those basic laws of physics dictates that you'll tend to keep moving, in spite of most obstacles. But if you go too slow, with little momentum to sustain you, then every single root or rock you hit almost stops you cold, and you find yourself constantly struggling just to stay upright and moving forward.

Stander Advantages: Plenty of power. Good body English. Front end is down. Fast climber, usually first one to the top.
Stander Disadvantages: Easy to spin out. Inefficient, can get cooked on long grinders. No humming or singing allowed, only lots of grunting.

In-Betweeners
Some of us just don't have the patience to sit and slowly climb, nor the cajones to stand and thrash up every hill. So we, the 'Tweeners, try to take advantage of both methods.
In-betweeners sit when possible (or too tired) and stand when they need the power or body English. Some times you'll stand until you start to spin, then downshift and sit. And other times you'll stay on the saddle for maximum traction, spinning smoothly right up to the lip of that big climb-wrecking root, then stand for a couple of pedal strokes for that burst of speed you need to clean it.

Tweener Advantages: You get to trade back and forth between speed/power and traction.
Tweener Disadvantages: Moving back and forth between sitting and standing takes some practice to prevent wheelies and keep your speed up. It also provides a lot of opportunities for a sudden spin-out and a crashing impact betwixt top tube and sensitive anatomy. Good shift discipline is a must, cause you've got to be in the right gear all the time.

Recommendations
Take a particularly bothersome hill, and assault it several times, each time trying a different climbing tactic. Notice what works best on different sections of the climb, and how that fits with your preferred riding style.

You may find that you like the smooth methodical pace of a Sitter, calmly shifting and spinning. Or you might love that feeling of flying that comes when you stand and just sail up over a hill. Sitting might work better for you when it's wet out, or your tired. And standing's the ticket when you know you've got a clear run up and you're feeling frisky. Both ways will get you where you're going. So whether you look to the story of the Turtle and the Hare for your inspiration, or you just keep chanting "Speed is your friend. Speed is your friend," as you fly up the climb, just remember this: The mountain must stop; but you can keep going.

Old Dirt

"Bicycles are almost as good as guitars for meeting girls."
- Bob Weir