Are you a slave to...

[Roadrunner78]

Took me a while to post this thread, i figure there can't be anyone else like this.. can there? I'm a slave to my average speed! It never use to be like this.. I use to have a speedo that did an overall average but then i got a Garmin. So every ride has its individual average, so i gotta beat it like an addictive computer game.

So for therapy, i have 4 bikes. Fixed, MTB, carbon road bike and Brompton. The Brompton is going speedo free. The down side is calculating its mileage but i can do rough calculations of that. Sometimes you gotta enjoy the ride and not stare at a computer sweating and pushing. So far so good. Maybe i should restrict the Garmin to carbon road bike rides only.

Am i the only one?

 

[Dave 123]

I get a christmas bonus every year and I like to convert it into a little something rather than it just fade away as money does.
I was thinking of a Garmin... you may have put me off!

 

[lesley_x]

You are definitely not the only one! I've not got a computer on my new bike and have been contemplating leaving it that way.

 

[EltonFrog]

No, not me, don't give a toss, though I do have a garmin, to record my rides amd count the calories.

 

[paul04]

I do use the strava app on my phone just to track the miles I have done. but I don't bother with average speed.

 

[uclown2002]

Guilty as charged!

Although not as obsessed as I once was. I'm the same with average heart rate too. Clear indication of how hard I'm working.

 

[Rob3rt]

Ditch all measuring devices and embrace the sheer joy of it.

And if the joy is derived from a sporting interest in which increased performance is the measurement of progress?


Average speed watching is a mugs game though! My average speed can range from ~10mph (48 hill reps on a 20% incline with a cobbled surface) to 28+ mph (time trial race) depending on what I am doing so what does average speed actually tell me?

 

[Dusty Bin]

Average speed is only useful if you are measuring improvement over the same route and the weather conditions are similar each time. But if all you do is go out and batter yourself every single ride in an attempt to improve on your average, you will never improve it anyway.

 

[ColinJ]

My average speed can range from ~10mph (48 hill reps on a 20% incline with a cobbled surface) to 28+ mph (time trial race) depending on what I am doing so what does average speed actually tell me?

That your average speed is higher than that of 90% of cyclists, but your average modesty isn't?

 

[numbnuts]

No matter how hard I ride my average is still the same.............pathetic

 

[Kies]

I have a 3.2 loop around my home. Have seen this steadily increase since owning the Garmin from 13mph to 17.5mph
All other riding, I don't watch it that much. The Garmin is used to track routes and mileage.

 

[snorri]

And if the joy is derived from a sporting interest in which increased performance is the measurement of progress?

You are doomed, progress is short lived, you are measuring your progress towards decrepitude.

 

[tyred]

Not I.

Life is too short to waste it rushing around like an eejit.

 

[Rob3rt]

That your average speed is higher than that of 90% of cyclists, but your average modesty isn't?

Well someone has to balance out the "I am rubbish at....", "I am incompetent" and "I will never be able to..." posts.

 

[michaelcycle]

Am i the only one?

Why yes, yes you are...

Not really. Lots of people, including some of my mates, seem obsessed with it for some unknown reason. Personally, I don't track any metrics at all at the moment but I may do in the future. However, I if I do I will go directly to the source and track power output instead.