OK, I’m going to hit this topic head on and right up front. Lots of you are talking about the hills on this year’s route. I can sense there is a lot of anxiety about it. Yes, it’s the hilliest RAGBRAI in history, but Iowa has not grown more or bigger hills. If you have done RAGBRAI before, you’ve experienced them. You will be doing a few more of them this year but they aren’t bigger or harder, just more. So to try to convince you that you can do it and it won’t be that bad, I am going to give you my standard tips on conquering hills.

First, hills feel harder than riding on the level because you are working against gravity. But unless you are riding a single speed bike, you have gears to make it easier when the road tilts up. Learn to use your gears, all of them; then use them. As you see the road going up, shift to an easier gear and try to keep your cadence up. Your cadence may drop some compared to riding on the level, but try not to grind away at 60 RPM. Find a gear that allows you to keep your feet going around at a decent clip. You will go slower, but hey, RAGBRAI isn’t a race! It may seem like it’s taking a long time but for every uphill there is usually a downhill coming soon where you can make up some time.