Originally Posted by
CrankyOne
On flat you should be able to get a fair amount of power unless you're on a beach cruiser or something where the seat is too far back. A key to Dutch bikes is the geometry that aligns your body properly and places it so that your own weight does much of the work.
On a Dutch upright bike, your legs do all the work because your entire weight is placed on the saddle.
Originally Posted by
CrankyOne
Going up hill changes things a bit. Similar to a seat that's too far back, your weight is now back behind the pedals instead of over them. Leaning forward helps to place your weight over the pedals again. Generally though, if you lean too far forward you actually loose a bit of power. However, if you lean extremely far forward (so that your back begins to arch) then you get it back and then some (E.G., you're riding similar to on a drop bar road bike).
You can't lean forward on a Dutch upright bike because the handlebars are too close in front of you and will be pressing against your chest, again due to upright Dutch geometry.