A fear of Climbing?

[asbo]

Folks,

I think I may have a problem. I used to race DH as a nipper but have recently taken up mountain biking in the form of XC/freeride.

My one sticking point however, is the climbs. I just cannot for the life of me make it up a decent hill. Part of this is fitness (or lack thereof), but I fear there is a psychological element to it also.

Does anyone have any tips on how to tackle the climbs?

[ewenm]

Break it down into little sections in your head.
Improve your technique - choosing the right gears, body and weight position.
Improve your fitness.

[WildCards]

ewenm said:

Break it down into little sections in your head.

I tend to look no further than 5/6 feet ahead my front wheel when i've blown and really can't be arsed. Climb the hill one pedal stroke at a time.

[Marcellus]

I hate and am crap at climbing too!!

I do the following;
> look a couple of feet in front of my tyre... all I've got to do is get my tyre to that point
> have a playlist on your ipod for climbing... the only time I use my pod whilst riding is on a climb when everyone that I'm riding with has dropped me
> don;t try and beat them!!

[mchammer89]

Try riding fixed/singlespeed to increase your climbing ability, nothing helps build climbing strength like it.

[Gazzab]

I love the climbs, well the ones with some technical stuff - not the long boring ones.
I see this as the most important bit for me - get the fitness benefits of climbs.
My climb improvements started with:-
Dont be afraid of granny gear - ignore the heroes who dont use it.
Pedal slow and concentrate on pedaling in circles (ie not just pushing down but also the lift and drag and push sequences of pedalling)
Save some energy for the rough terrain ie when you see some roots then you can attack for a couple of metres.
Look at a hill and dont allow yourself to fail by not making it to the top - ie dont put a foot down etc
Try and stay ahead of people that are fitter than you - I find once I am behind that they out drag me but if I am ahead I generally stay ahead (unless they are mentalists).
Keep your elbows tucked in when you feel the front wheel lifting.
Try and assume an upright position when the terrain isnt too steep so as to allow lungs to catch up.
Try not to allow the inner voice to gain control - the one that says stop and rest. I try and think of the best climbs I have managed and repeating those.
All in my humble opinion.

[Parrot of Doom]

Depends what angle of climb you mean. I love the long gentle climbs over a mile or two, I can ride up those at speed, all day. I do however despise the 1-in-3 climbs that leave your lungs burning, and I can't stand it when my front wheel gets light.

I find on the really steep climbs, just turning your brain off and concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other gets me through it. That, and leaning over the bars.

[vz-r_dave]

I hate climbs too, try and get yourself to lift assisted sites

[anonymous-user]

some tips, utilise your pedal stroke, most people suffer because they are only using the downstroke and mashing the pedals really hard on each downstroke, swinging the bike from side to side and wasting loads of energy. keep upright and spin consistently. use the upstroke of one pedal to assist the downstroke of the other.

dont hunch over the bars, keep your body upright so you can get air in your lungs. a lot of people see a hill and lean too far forwards, the rear wheel unweuights and they lose traction so try to stay just forward of centre rather than too far forward so you are over the bars.

use the gears effectively, dont just go straight to the granny. small victories do work, aim for points about 30 eet ahead though. plan your route up the hill, dont let ruts or dry streams dictate yourt route as they will invariably be full of little rocks and things...keep smiling...shout a bit....have a few fun size choclate bars in the bag as a reward...always useful!

[timnoyce]

I'm not the fittest person in the world but I really enjoy the climbs. I prefer the short/medium length steep climbs to the long drawn out steady climbs as it takes much longer to reach the goal!

Whenever I negotiate a hill the first thing I think is "great!", this instantly puts you in the right frame of mind so that you will try and enjoy the hill, the moment you start having negative thoughts, you will find it more difficult. I generally try and keep in as high a gear as possible but still keep the legs spinning, (you dont want to be weaving about in granny gear not making any progress, and you don't want to be in such a high gear that you can barely spin the pedals). Don't be afraid to get out of the saddle and give it some beans towards the end, but make sure that you can really see the end, once I powered towards what I thought was the top only to discover beyond the corner there was more! This was thoroughly demoralising, and I was balls'd! Also, when you reach the top, try and keep cycling don't stop and pass out on the floor. Take it easy, remember to breathe and take on some water. Always remember, what goes up must come down... so at the end of any uphill you should benefit from some gravity assisted stuff later in the ride!

My advice is, go to Afan and ride the Whytes Level, there is some really technical uphill riding which is amazing, you will be inspired to improve your uphill ability so that when you return you'll be able to hit it with more speed!

[cone]

Must be a mental thing as personnally I've always enjoyed climbing off / on road , I see a climb as a challenge not a chore. Obviously fitness plays a massive role , but also experience of rythm / pace etc and how to pedal properly - the long the the short the steep the gentle bring them on. One tip I picked up years ago , when the going gets tough is to count your pedal strokes in 3s helps keep a fluid rythm .

[neil_bolton]

vz-r_dave said:

I hate climbs too, try and get yourself to lift assisted sites

I'll go with this one.

Or ride in Norfolk.

Or with fat people.

[Chris71]

At the risk of stating the obvious, I try and blast up the shorter climbs and settle into a gentler rythm on the longer hauls. I seem to end up in an almost meditative state - usually get a song lyric in my head or something.

[daz05]

I fear the psychological element may be that you have the condition commonly known as over active knife and fork syndrome!

There is a cure I promise

[With a Teabag]

You vagile bean! What are you doing?

My chiropractor Kylie is in the mountain biking club up here she has the body of a goddess you bounce coins off her abs FFS you need to start slowly. Build up to it……..get on an exercise bike first and build up your leg power before you decide to become the "king of the hill".

[vz-r_dave]

neil_bolton said:

vz-r_dave said:

I hate climbs too, try and get yourself to lift assisted sites

I'll go with this one.

Or ride in Norfolk.

Or with fat people.

Or with fat people... love it

East Anglia what a ste area for riding eh.

[Marcellus]

With a Teabag said:

..........Build up to it……..get on an exercise bike first and build up your leg power before you decide to become the "king of the hill".

Not wanting to be a "king of the hill" but I live halfway up a 10mile 7% Cat 4 TDF climb so if I go either way out of my front door I've got a 5miles of climbing to do............ I ride virtually every day from May to November and ski the rest of the year.... my legs are in good shape but I still can't climb for a monkeys!!

[daz05]

Marcellus said:

With a Teabag said:

..........Build up to it……..get on an exercise bike first and build up your leg power before you decide to become the "king of the hill".

Not wanting to be a "king of the hill" but I live halfway up a 10mile 7% Cat 4 TDF climb so if I go either way out of my front door I've got a 5miles of climbing to do............ I ride virtually every day from May to November and ski the rest of the year.... my legs are in good shape but I still can't climb for a monkeys!!

Maybe you should get a car then.

[Lost my mojo]

Move house?

Maybe move to Holland

[pdV6]

neil_bolton said:

vz-r_dave said:

I hate climbs too, try and get yourself to lift assisted sites

I'll go with this one.

Or ride in Norfolk.

Or with fat people.

See you later for a ride!