Hillclimbing 101

Why hillclimbs?

A hillclimb is the purest race format there is: no drafting worth the name, no tactics to hide behind, just you, the grade, and a clock. It's also the friendliest kind of racing to start with. Fields are small, nobody crashes going uphill, and the finish line comes with a view.

Pacing

Start easier than feels right. Every climb in the series is long enough that the first ten minutes should feel restrained, if you're breathing hard in the first mile, you're spending points you'll pay for double near the top. On steady climbs (Whiteface, Prospect) settle into one hard, sustainable rhythm. On variable ones (Kearsarge, Greylock, App Gap) ride the steep pitches firmly and recover on purpose on the shelves.

Gearing

Spin. If your cadence drops under 60 for more than a few minutes, you want a bigger cog. Each climb guide on this site has a gearing note, the short version is that a compact crank with a 30-tooth cog handles the moderate climbs, and the steep ones (Washington, Ascutney, Equinox, Okemo) reward gearing below 1:1.

Fueling

For races under an hour, a bottle of mix and a gel before the start is plenty; eat real food two hours out. For Washington and the Kanc, treat it like a time trial, carry a bottle and use it.

What to bring

The unglamorous secret of hillclimbing is the summit bag: warm layers, dry base, gloves, and a shell, sent up before you race. The top of the mountain is a different season from the bottom, and the descent (or the wait for one) is where people get truly cold.

Your first one

Pick anything on the calendar, the season schedule shows what's next. Register, show up, ride up. You're in the series standings automatically from your first finish.