Cycling Uphill Faster

I have been up the Molard climb four times this year, and each time I sped up by a little. Twice my time improved by two minutes, and when I tried yesterday it improved by only a few seconds. With an average of 2000 meters of climbing per week I can feel the effects.

I can feel that I am climbing with more power and I can feel a big change on short climbs. There is a climb to enter Eysins and a few days ago I went up without tiring until the top. Yesterday when I climbed the Molard my heart rate peaked at 180 beats per minute but I had some strength left to try to sprint the last few meters.

Climbing isn't fun, when you're not used to it. It's hard. Your legs burn. Your bike feels heavy and your gears feel hard. With time though, and as you build muscle, so climbing does eventually become easier, and more fun.

Yesterday on one climb I went from being a certain distance behind the group and I worked to catch up. Eventually I caught up with some, and then others, and then I sprinted by the main group and slowed down. In the process I had a new sensation. Having enough power not to be slowed down by the gradient.

It was a new sensation to feel that I had speed and stamina while banking in an uphill bend. It was a nice sensation and I hope to have it many more times. Having the grit to ride up hills that were hard, and that progressively get easier and easier is nice.

I am in twenty fifth position for that climb this week, out of fourty four and around four hundred out of eight hundred for all time, within the group. Age is one excuse. The weight of my bike is another excuse, and a legitimate reason is that I haven't ridden as much as others so I can't compare with them yet.

The point of this blog post is not to show off, but rather to express that I experienced a new, fun sensation, when on a climb after the challenge, when I felt that I was climbing well, without struggling like I used to.

The Landscape Demands It

I saw that some people go on long rides, and climb twenty to foury meters. In Switzerland, if you do the same distance, you might climb 2100m. Climbing is part of cycling in Switzerland, so the more you practice the skill, the more you can enjoy what Switzerland has to offer.