Fairly simple question, but what is it that makes one runner better than another at going up hills?
You can have two guys with identical PRs, say 15:30 for 5k, but one will run noticeably faster than the other uphill. Why?
First thought would be the obvious answer, power to weight, but I've even seen runners of similar build and weight have variation in how well they run hills. Perhaps it's changes in the musculature and one runner is able to apply more force relative than the other due to the changes in the stride.
I honestly have no real idea here, and was curious if anyone has insight either of their own or from literature as to what the physical cause is for this discrepancy.