RunningAHEAD - Topic: Average speed on bike

run_ac_run

posted: 6/25/2008 at 9:47 PM

I have a question for all you more experienced bike folks. I've been looking at some logs, and I've realized that your avg speeds seem really fast to me. What's up with that?? Wink

Even thought I feel like I may average somewhere between 15 and 18 MPH (slow I know), I get home and the avg has fallen to 12 or 13 MPH. Do you reset the computer when you get out of traffic/lights/stops, etc? Or are y'all starting at a good location to just GO? When I ride, I leave from my house, ride thru some neighborhoods in town and work my way out to the country roads. Just wonderin' what everybody else does since I'm slow and turtle like... Big grin

Econo

posted: 6/26/2008 at 1:05 PM

somebody please reply -- I'd like to see an answer! My training mph sucks. I hate stopping at lights/intersections because it trashes the statistics.

protoplasm72

posted: 6/26/2008 at 1:18 PM

My computer stops when I stop. I still end up messing up the average cause I coast into stops when I see the stop light ahead but when I stop the clock stops so it's not that bad. There aren't many stops on my trail either.

Son, when you participate in sporting events, it's not whether you win or lose; it's how drunk you get. -- Homer Simpson

run_ac_run

posted: 6/26/2008 at 2:26 PM

Quote from Econo on 6/26/2008 at 1:05 PM:

somebody please reply -- I'd like to see an answer! My training mph sucks. I hate stopping at lights/intersections because it trashes the statistics.

WHEW! I was beginning to think after 18 views and no responses that I REALLY suck! Shocked

I haven't really watched what my computer does when I stop... I guess I need to pay more attention to it. I coast, too, so I know it kills my average. And, it takes me about 2-3 miles to get out of town to a road that I don't have to worry about stopping/slowing down. That doesn't help either. Anybody else???

tcerda

Supa Dupa Fly

posted: 6/26/2008 at 3:23 PM

I started biking in January, and its by far my worst of the 3 sports...so i'm definitely not "experienced". I've only gotten a handful or rides in over the past 6 months and i was averaging 12 or 13 mph and slowly worked up closer to an average of 15 mph with 16 being my max average in the sprint tri I did in April. I think its a matter of the more you do, the better you get and consequently the faster average speed.

~TC --There are 10 kinds of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who don't--

db7

posted: 6/26/2008 at 4:31 PM

I try to work out on a course with a fair amount of hills. I end up with a so-so average but feel this help in a race environment. Train hard, keep your cadence up and take it from there. DB

Tougher than most, dumber than the rest. "You can not count the miles until you feel them" TVZ

AmoresPerros

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posted: 6/26/2008 at 10:42 PM
modified: 6/27/2008 at 9:25 PM

I did a time trial on a hybrid bike, and stopped after 18mi because I couldn't sit anymore -- avg about 14.4. Four days later I did a sprint tri on an old road bike, and finished the 13.1mi bike portion averaging 18.8. That is a +4.4 gain which I attribute primarily to changing bikes! MTA: I put toeclips on the road bike the night before the tri, and they probably helped contribute to that speed increase too.

It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

Cashmason

posted: 6/27/2008 at 5:47 PM

Biking is my favorite event. Amores, hit it on the head. Bike speed depends on a lot of things. A big one is what kind of bike are you riding. A road bike has much faster gearing than a mountain or hybrid bike. So for the same effort you are much faster. Clipless pedals and aerobars also make a huge difference. If you are on a hybrid or mountain bike, slick tires are a lot faster than knobby tires. My average training speed is about 17 miles an hour. But I have 9 stop lights to get to the bike path and 9 more on the way home. On the path, if it is not windy, I will average over 21 mph. Those stoplights bring down the average. Hills and wind will reduce your average speed. Downwind and downhill do not cancel out the slower time going uphill and upwind. Heat and humidity will make you slower. So trying to compare your times to anyone else doesnt really matter unless they ride the same place at the same time you do, and they ride on the same type of bike. I live in a place with flat roads and perfect weather. My training times may be faster than your, but if we race together, you may very well kick my butt since you train in harder conditions.

GP160

posted: 6/28/2008 at 9:10 PM

I average about 16-17 for training rides at a comfortable pace. Race is more like 18-19 depending on the course. ??? Never paid much attention to it...As long as I finish I'm happy!

Ironman Louisville 8-30-09

shellaruns

TRIing to beat the heat!

posted: 7/2/2008 at 12:46 PM
modified: 7/2/2008 at 1:04 PM

I try not to pay too much attention to my overall average at the end of a ride. When I'm considering my training speed, I pay the most attention to it during the stretches where I don't have to stop. Like someone mentioned above, I coast to my stops and my bike computer only stops if I'm at a perfect standstill. All of that coasting and restarting gets computed into the overall average. During a tri, we're obviously not stopping at stop signs, lights, etc... For what it's worth, on a straight away in ideal conditions (no stopping, coasting, not a lot of head or tailwind, decent (not perfect) weather, etc...) I ride between 18 and 20mph. However, my bike average during a training ride under these same conditions is usually always in the mid 16's. My current ride is a Trek 2.1 WSD with Profile Design Airstryke aerobars, so I'm not on a tri bike, but I am on something that moves a bit more readily than a hybrid.

2012 Goals

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run_ac_run

posted: 7/2/2008 at 2:47 PM

Thanks for all of your responses... all are very helpful. I've decided that the biggest factor affecting my avg speeds is the fact that I go thru so much traffic/lights that it brings my avg down. (not to mention that I'm just plain slow Blush

) I do ride a road bike (Cannondale six13) with no aerobars yet. I rode a new course the other day at our lake house, which is pretty hilly compared to where I normally ride. There is hardly any traffic out there, and I noticed that even with all the hills, I had the fastest avg speed so far. I know there are many factors that have to be considered. I just need to ride a lot more and get better. Thanks for the advice!

COcarrie

go Care Bear go!

posted: 7/3/2008 at 12:44 PM

I am also quite the pokey one on the bike. Certainly my weakest of the three disciplines. I have about 1.5 miles to the state park where I can ride without lots of starts/stops. Still, my avg speed is just under 15 no matter what I do, it seems. The fastest I've ever gone on my road bike is 28 mph... down a hill of course. I think I'm a little afraid to go super fast. I guess I need to do some actual "training" vs going out and just "riding" for X miles or time.

AmoresPerros

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posted: 7/29/2008 at 2:00 AM

The fast bikers in my area generally say power readings are more useful measure of energy expenditure than HR or speedometer -- but I don't have a power tap myself.

It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

Tsunami

posted: 7/29/2008 at 4:35 PM

16-17 on the flats but I live in hilly new england and we dont have much flat. Laurie

Shamrock marathon March 2016. Burlington full or relay if I can find a partner May 2016. Wine and Dine half Nov. And a tri or two thrown in just for the hell of it.

pamiejane

posted: 8/4/2008 at 8:52 AM

My average is about 14 - 15 mph, and is slower than most people I know (I work in kilometers per hour though). If I start a bit out of town and don't have to slow for stop streets and lights it is better (but not much). It seems to be one of those things that takes a while to speed up. I have a Releigh with Aero Bars, and when I use them then my speed jumps up by about 1 or 2 km per hour.

Swim Bike Run

Average speed on bike (Read 302 times)