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Unless you strictly ride places that are pancake flat, there’s a good chance you’ll encounter hills on at least some of your rides. And while many cyclists enjoy the challenge of riding up steep gradients, some of us don’t. Therefore, we require strategies and equipment solutions that can make the task of climbing even slightly easier and less painful. So, whether you face hills for long rides, training, or even commuting, there are a few things you can do to get up and over your next summit.
In the more than three decades I’ve ridden bicycles, I’ve admittedly never been a big fan of climbing. And a lot of the reason was simply that I wasn’t good at it. For a long time, I avoided going uphill whenever possible and steered clear of routes with any significant elevation gain. (That’s probably a big reason why I mostly rode downhill mountain bikes in bike parks—a discipline that utilizes ski lifts to transport you to the top of the hill—for many years.)
However, since moving to Pennsylvania five years ago to work for Bicycling, I’ve come to embrace riding hills, at least to a certain degree. While I would describe myself as a “climber”, I’ve learned to live with the fact that most of my ride will require going uphill at a few points. And I’ve adapted my riding to be more confident and comfortable on climbs.
For the past two weeks, I’ve been in Southwest France for a summer holiday, and I’ve had a chance to ride some truly amazing roads in the region. Last Sunday, I rode a stage of the men’s Tour de France, and over the past two days I’ve put my climbing skills to work riding a pair of the event’s most legendary ascents in the Pyrenees—Col du Tourmalet and Col d’Aspin.
Of the two, the Tourmalet is the toughest challenge. It’s an “hors catégorie” ascent, meaning it is “beyond classification” (i.e., the hardest climbs possible featured in the Tour de France). The shorter Col d’Aspin is a category 1 climb, which means it is one notch down on the difficulty rating—HC and categories 1 through 4—but it’s still much longer and more difficult than anything I ride at home. Both Cols are featured on stage 6 of the 2026 men’s Tour de France, a 115.7-mile route that includes five categorized climbs.
The Col du Tourmalet is one of the best-known climbs in the world, and its roadways have been featured more times than any other mountain in the Tour de France’s history. With an average gradient of 7.4 percent (and stretches hitting 12 percent), the climb’s Sainte-Marie-de-Campan approach gains more than 4,100 feet of elevation gain over its 10.5-mile distance. The Col d’Aspin, while still tough, gains a mere 2,600 feet over 7.4 miles with a 6.6 percent average gradient and has also been traversed scores of times in Tour stages.
These are some of the tips and tricks I used to reach the top of the Tourmalet and Col d’Aspin, which you can use to conquer hills of any size.
It’s Not A Race
Sure, the Tourmalet and Col d’Aspin are used in Tour stages, but unless you’re in an actual race, the only thing you need to do is get to the top. Pace yourself and save enough energy to finish strong.
My finish times on the climbs were nowhere close to any pro time, and many cyclists passed me while I was riding. But I completed them and had some proper type-two fun while doing it.
Hydration and Nutrition
Properly fueling for cycling efforts is important on any ride, but is especially critical on hot summer days. Be sure to have food in your body before you start a climb, and don’t forget to have water and a sports drink in your bottles. Also, keep gels, energy chews, and snacks handy so you can easily eat something when needed.
Stay Cool
Temperature regulation is key to completing longer climbs. Since your body temp often rises on climbs, and you’re moving slower than on the flats, wearing clothing that is easily removable or has zippers for ventilation is important, even on cooler days.
For super hot rides, use water to cool off your head and neck. You’ll even see Tour pros stuffing stockings full of ice in their jerseys to stay cool. Since I tend to overheat, I’ve found that using a Core Body Temp sensor helps me monitor my temperature and regulate my effort as needed to stay cool.
Keep Calm
When you watch the professionals climb, they often wear pained faces due to the hard effort. However, if you look closely, you will see that they usually have a light grip on the bar and relaxed shoulders. Death gripping the bar adds stress to your body that saps energy that can be used for tackling the kill. If you find yourself feeling tense, take a breath and try to focus on being “light”.
Strategy
Even non-racers can employ some strategy to ride hills more easily. You know that old saying about conquering hard tasks: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” The same thing applies to climbing.
A tactic I use is to pick a point further up the road (such as a sign, mailbox, or a bridge) that I can see and ride to it. Then, when I get to that spot, I pick another point and ride to that. And I repeat this as many times as needed to reach the summit.
The Tourmalet and Col d’Aspin both feature markers every kilometer that note the distance remaining to the top and the gradient. I used those signs to guide me up the climb and pace my effort. I drank some energy drink as I passed each one, and squirted some water on my neck halfway between each signpost to regulate my temperature.
Take a Break
It’s ok to take a break on a climb to recover, hydrate, wait for friends, or simply enjoy the view. And it’s also fine to get off and walk if your body needs it. Again, it’s not a race, and most times you’ll get another shot at riding a climb on one go on a different day if that’s your goal.
Since the Tourmalet is so long, I planned to stop about two-thirds of the way up for water and a break. At that stop, I decided to have an ice-cold Coca-Cola and met a nice couple from Australia who were also climbing the Tourmalet. On the Col d’Aspin, I planned to complete it without stopping, but a passing emergency vehicle caused me to pull over and put a foot down. Then, with about 1.5 kilometers to go, a fan camping out on the roadside offered to douse me with some water in the 94-degree heat—how could I say no to that?
Your Bike and Gearing
Before tackling climbs, you should know how to operate the shifters and derailleurs. Practice shifting before you head out, and check that your full gear range works (and any batteries are charged). On a ride a few weeks ago, I encountered a rider walking on a local climb who couldn’t figure out how to shift to their small chainring. It turned out that their SRAM AXS battery was dead; I showed them how to use the rear derailleur battery to shift their front derailleur, and they were able to continue riding.
Also, most contemporary road and gravel bikes have a wide gear range. Those low gears are there for a reason, so don’t be afraid to use them. At one point in my cycling life, I considered the granny gear (the smallest gear on your bike) as if it were an emergency bailout. However, those gears are there to be ridden, so use them to your advantage. According to my SRAM AXS data, when climbing the Col du Tourmalet, I spent most of my time in my smallest gear (a 37x36T).
