Climbs quite well as long as your seated while pedaling, climbed it 2214m last weekend based on Strava. Climbs better than any other 180mm bike I have been on, but due to the standover height that setup probably won't work if your much taller than 6ft. I think building it up super light also plays a role in its climbing abilities. Also ditched the 650b and went back to 26, 26 running in the shortest cs setting is way more fun.