Not going to use the same phrase that I did in my post Joy Ride. Though ‘Just keep pedaling’ would work to get you up a hill, I believe that there is more to it. And trust me, it is no Joy Ride to bike up a hill on a trail with roots, rocks, and grassy sides to the path.

There is an adage that says ‘Work smarter, not harder’. I have always believed in that giving a hardy cheer to not having to work harder. But that is my laziness talking, my pension for procrastination claiming hold as to its reason for existence. Neither of those can exist when it comes to facing a hill before you on the trail.

To be smarter about getting up the hill requires embracing physics as a tool.

Momentum is the first tool, the more you, the more it returns in your favor. The most valuable work takes place before the hill, not on it. Get to the highest gear possible before the climb, which when riding a trail is only an eight to ten second sprint and shift.

Secondly, gradually relax the pedaling pressure you apply as the assent goes, shifting every time the legs are no longer churning at a mid to upper speed. The gear shifts make it possible to use your higher energy legs to maintain the momentum further up the hill.

Once you get to the lowest gears, get back in the seat because the momentum is gone. Pump until the top is reached (there’s the keep pedaling part). When I do this well, the top is reached right after switching to the lowest gear making me move the pace of an average sloth.

Found another obstacle on my ride today that surprised me (and I don’t mean the stick that bounced up striking my shin). There were a few apples on the trail to dodge. As I passed though the fruity obstacles I envisioned hitting one causing it to squirt to the side and splat on a tree. Would have been fun, but the other choice was the bike flopping on its side causing me to do the splatting, so I weaved through uneventfully.

So finish the week working smarter, not harder and you make it to the top to celebrate a Happy Friday.