How Fast?

[Wigsie]

Just an update and a quick query, absolutely LOVING my new Spesh Allez Elite. Picked it up saturday afternoon and after what felt like the slowest journey home took it for a ride, then rode Sunday, then took it to work so I could ride it in my lunch times.

But I cant seem to get faster than a certain level, I dont mean maitaining faster average speeds over distance I mean as a burst of speed.

Obviously if I rode off a cliff I would hit 120mph pretty swiftly and if you go down an insanely steep hill you can go fast (as fast as your nerves let you).

On a reasonably flat road with low/no wind how fast is a good top speed in a burst? I cant get over 23mph!?! Are reports of high 40's just guys talking crap or going down a massive hill with a hurricane for a tail wind?

 

[HLaB]

I think on a flat with no other elements involved I'd get up to around 25mph on a surface that rolls well but I've never really took notice of individual flat sections. My fastest was going down the String Road in Arran 47.6mph only to get stuck behind a Suzuki not so swift that braked on every corner.

Edit: that's a seriously fast Lee , I don't I've ever come across anything that long uninterrupted, on a good surface and I could never reach that speed anyway even in perfect conditions.

 

[maurice]

To get 40+ you need a fairly steep hill to accelerate you up to that, never going to do it on the flat unless you're a pro.

 

[RedBike]

On a reasonably flat road with low/no wind how fast is a good top speed in a burst? I cant get over 23mph!?!

The bad news is 23mph is rather on the very low side for a sprint effort.
It very tough to maintain anything much over 20mph though.

 

[a_n_t]

max speed of 27 mph on last weeks chaingang and no, I didn't last long!

 

[Albert]

Riding on the flat I can just about get up to around 30 for a very short while on a good day. Holding anything above 20 for any length of time is hard work. My maximum all time speed is 52mph down a long steep hill

 

[marinyork]

Does maximum speed matter that much? On my hybrid on a flat section (less than 1% gradient) I can do 20+ mph and even did 26mph the other day. My average speed is substantially lower than most other people though because where it matters, others are going faster. When I'm doing 13mph they are probably doing 18mph. I suspect though that of these people that can average 17mph and people talking about doing 30 or 40mph they aren't talking crap to be able to average that.

 

[Fab Foodie]

On the flat I'll kick along at just about 20mph with a lot of grunting, short bursts 25mph on a good day. Max speed ever is 49 mph coming down Ventoux where I averaged 60kph top to bottom... The most awesome 22 mins of my life!

 

[dudi]

Well, i've done just shy of 200 miles since i fixed my bike 11 days ago. and my average has been 17.2mph my maximum was 28.8mph, but I can't say that i've put any sprints on...

I don't think that max speed is as interestig as average speed.

It also depends very very much on where you're riding... 90% of my miles aredone on nice fairly empty country roads... if you're riding in towns and have traffic/peds//lights to deal with, you won't get as high a speed as you might do in the wilds...

 

[bonk man]

In my 20s could get up to about 35 mph in a sprint, especially if there was competition nowadays about 30 max on a good day on a good bike
Time trialling average on a 10 miler is about 23 mph which is never going to win me much...........
Fastest down hill is over 50mph [ Clee Hill was the fastest with the wind behind me .. ] .. I have seen 50 off road [ wide fire track ] but that was unbelievably frightening, brief and not totally intentional

seriously,,, mid week semi serious training runs, 35 miles at about 16 mph winter and 18 ish summer .

 

[Alun]

Mark Cavendish was timed at 47mph crossing the finish line of a TdF stage last year. That's pretty fast after 100+ miles of racing.

 

[Wigsie]

Thanks guys, I am more keen on and watch my average speeds closer than top, just wondering what was possible, the 23mph was on a flat albeit not entirely straight cycle path round a lake whilst trying to get onto a road to avoid traffic 10 minute either side of my commute is plagued with traffic and slow bits with a 10 mile stretch in the middle of fast (on the way home anyway) A roads where the average speed comes back up, currently though thats at about 16.5 mph, and i would lie to get closer to 20mph for that route in the summer as the weather/my fitness improves!

Not sure I have that element of fearlessness anymore to hit high 40s down a hill! The fastest I have ever gone in a car was uphill (German Autobahn's before i get in trouble), i just have a thing about booting it downhill cars or bikes, never used to, damn you brain!

 

[Eat MY Dust]

have hit 51 mph going down Berridale in Scotland.

I really want to have a go down that hill. My mother in law lives in Dunbeath which is a couple of miles from there, but I've never taken my bike up.

I've hit 44 mph coming down Dunstable Downs and can reach 30 mph on the flat, but I can only sustain this for fleeting moments. Saying that, if I'm tucked in behind a bus/HGV I've hit 38 mph before (not really advised though!)

 

[MacB]

A roads where the average speed comes back up, currently though thats at about 16.5 mph, and i would lie to get closer to 20mph for that route in the summer as the weather/my fitness improves!

Well, from my perspective, you already seem pretty fast, I've yet to reach 12mph average for my 20 mile commute. My ultimate goal is to be able to do it in about 16.5mph which would get me just under the hour and a quarter. Considering you started fairly recently I'm impressed(and a bit jealous) that you're already averaging my ultimate goal

 

[Wigsie]

Well, from my perspective, you already seem pretty fast, I've yet to reach 12mph average for my 20 mile commute. My ultimate goal is to be able to do it in about 16.5mph which would get me just under the hour and a quarter. Considering you started fairly recently I'm impressed(and a bit jealous) that you're already averaging my ultimate goal

Ok the truth, I dont do it every day so when I do I put in that extra bit off effort and ache like buggery the next day! probably not the best way to do it but i like to keep the averages up. I do swim 1.5 miles every lunch time and play squash 2-3 times a week too so power/fitness is not the real problem, its recovery from using the different muscle groups that hits me hard at the moment.

There are a couple of nice steep downhills on the way home i just have to get out of that hands permanently feathering the brakes 'just in case' mentality and go for it!