On the subject of hillwork

I remember ascending the long span of the Williamsburg Bridge from the Brooklyn side, the way my heart rate shot up, how my leg muscles struggled for oxygen and how I couldn't seem to make it, at first, without stopping.  Granted, I stopped only for a few seconds--eventually I wouldn't have to stop at all.  I did that particular run quite a few times because it was the toughest thing I could thing to do.  I did it in the rain and snow, when it was hot and when it was freezing.  If I had to point to one of the reasons I was able to run a sub-2 hour half marathon in Burlington, Ontario in March of 2014, I think my choice would be my hillwork.
Of course Saskatoon has nothing that will mimic the challenge of the Williamsburg Bridge, but it does have the steep slope of MacPherson Avenue from Saskatchewan Crescent to Main Street.  That stretch stretches roughly 500 metres and is as steep as the aforementioned bridge, if not nearly as long.  My hillwork this winter has already begun to pay dividends, and I look forward to doing more of it.