I got a chance to redeem myself at the Highway to Heaven Hill Climb this past Saturday after having to abandon a completely disappointing Tour de Christiana the weekend prior due to a lingering respiratory infection and an anomalous knee flare up. I like riding up hills, especially steep ones, so I was excited for this event. I’d done my hill sprint workout on the lower (and steepest) slopes of the course last week so I had an idea of what was in store and what kind of watts I might be able to push and sustain up that section in order to finish strong. Right out of the blocks I tried to ride a bit conservatively, but was surprised to see the watts I was cranking out were actaully what I was pushing at the end of my 1-minute hill sprints a few days earlier. Mildly concerning, but I felt good so I went with it. This course was about power, but also about being smart with your gearing, so when I couldn’t shift into my big ring after the first steep pitch, I probably lost a second or two. Luckily, I was able to shift up for the last 400 meters and have a good dig to the line. If it was redemption I was after, I got it. When the results were posted, I took 2nd place.