First sportive - comments and questions

[SirDickieBird]

Who knows, it may have been different: you may have done a comedy collapse and given everyone a good laugh.
Seriously, try them. If you like them, use them. If you don't, don't. They're unlikely to have any speed benefits, but many (including me) prefer them.


Depends how long you spent in the toilets. You seem to have been going insanely fast between them though.

Sorry - think I might have misled people unintentionally - average moving speed of 15.8mph yes...sorry! Wasn't trying to make myself look quicker than I am...

Didn't get a finishing/overall time so only know what Strava told me.

 

[SirDickieBird]

To put the speed into some context, assuming the quoted climbing figure of 2,800ft (853m) is accurate, that's a very flat ride - notwithstanding that there might have been one or two proper hills along the way. And probably some wind.

Still a good, strong riding for a newbie, but it does make me suspect that the front riders would have been going considerably quicker - I'd guess likely to be averaging >20mph. I also suspect they won't have stopped at all on a ride of that distance (except for punctures).

If you want to finish higher up the field, fewer and shorter stops are going to make the biggest difference. An average speed of 15.8mph is respectable enough, but I'm assuming that's a moving average; it's the overall average speed that really counts, and even stopping for just a minute or two will make a big difference there.

If you want to get faster, ride more.

I think the front crew were probably going 20+ yes. Strava-stalking suggests that too.

Going to try and find a club that has the right sort of pace for me I think. One I looked at had their "slow" group rides as around 18mph(!) while others seem to only have rides around 12/13mph.

 

[smutchin]

Funnily enough, I was just thinking that you should consider joining a club. It will definitely help you get faster and vastly improve your experience of riding in groups.

You should try riding with the 18mph group - for the first few times, it will just be a case of seeing how long you can hang on to their wheels, but keep pushing yourself and it won't be too long before you're able to keep up with them without killing yourself.

 

[jefmcg]

Didn't get a finishing/overall time so only know what Strava told me.

So what was your elapsed time?

 

[Okeydokey]

Sounds like a cracking effort on your part, well done!