25 mile TT

[scott s10]

also 25s are very hard mentally i find , i can do a 22 minute 10 mile tt but for 25 i did 1 hr (which is quite alot slower than the 10 speed) near enough the other day in the nat 25, youve got to think that its a 10 mile but just keep pushing through the pain for the wholw 25

 

[marzjennings]

Will

That's sounds spot on. I'm not a racer, I just enjoy cycling. I can normally average around 19mph over distances of 20-30 miles. Realistically I would be happy with a sub 1.15.

There are clearly some good time trialists on this forum!

You may surprise yourself. If you're comfortable riding around 19mph for casual road rides of 30 miles and with the extra adrenaline of racing you may average 21-22 mph. Plus, even though you can't draft other riders, having someone 30 yards ahead setting a good pace may also help drive a higher average speed.

Don't forget to warm up before the race?

 

[Brahan]

My club are holding a 25 mile TT soon, and I have been asked to compete.

I have never done a TT before.

What would be a reasonable time?

Hello addictfreak.

First of all - well done for giving TTing a bash, whatever your time you'll love the feeling of pulling in to the HQ after leaving everything you've got out on the road.

If you have a speedo on your bike make sure that you've gone about 2 miles before you really start pushing it, as you don't want to fill up with lactic acid in the first few hundred yards - I've done it before and spent the rest of the ride wondering where my power had gone, not good.

Although it's called a Time Trial, you really shouldn't worry too much about your first time, just leave a mark so you have something to aim for the next time.

Good luck.

 

[NickM]

If you have a speedo on your bike make sure that you've gone about 2 miles before you really start pushing it...

This is good advice. Your body takes about three minutes to adjust heart rate and breathing to the level of effort being demanded of it. Go hard enough to stimulate that adjustment to race pace, but not so hard as to make yourself blow up, in the first few minutes of the race.

And the ideal is to maintain the maximum steady state power output that you can produce for however long it takes you to cover 25 miles. So don't blast up drags and recover downhill - accept that you will go slower uphill, and make sure that you maintain effort downhill.

 

[Ian H]

I did my first 25 for over a year last weekend. Rather chuffed with a 59.17. To put that in perspective, young Tom, whose minute man I was, came past me after about ten minutes and recorded 49.56. He also was chuffed.