I'm really not interested in going faster; OK?!!

[Pat "5mph"]

I like to go out with groups, because I can discover new routes faster than if I went to scout them by myself.
Most of out local groups I cannot keep up with, but there's two I can, and always enjoy going out with them.
Then there's our Belles group: I lead sometimes, so everybody must go at my pace unless they know the route
My average on a good day is 10mph, still there are slower riders in my groups!
If I go out with riders I don't know, I make sure to have the route in my Garmin, in case I get dropped.

 

[mjr]

There's something called the slow bicycle group. I qualify in spades. If I average 10mph I'm doing well! Some 10 yrs ago I removed the cycle computers from my bikes and started to really enjoy cycling.

40 miles with a group today. 10.2mph (edit: moving) average, but the stats that matter more are one hot pork roll, one cake, one beer, a crowd of trail bike riders and a classic car rally crossing our route at almost the same point, loads of good chat and tons of stunning views.

 

[xzenonuk]

40 miles with a group today. 10.2mph average, but the stats that matter more are one hot pork roll, one cake, one beer, a crowd of trail bike riders and a classic car rally crossing our route at almost the same point, loads of good chat and tons of stunning views.

sounds an awesome ride, im anxious as hell when other people are involved but even i can see that was a good ride and something i would eventually enjoy with more beer

the average speed isn't far off what i bumble about on, i tend to go between 9.something to 12.something

 

[lane]

I am not a particularly fast rider - say 12 to 13mph. This seems to coincide with speeds on a typical local CTC club run. I enjoy the rides when I can make them which being all day Sunday is not all that often. I also enjoy the shorter and easy paced evening summer rides which I can usually make. I'm happy to go on the club runs and when I can't equally happy to go for shorter rides by myself. Would I like to go faster? Well I don't obsess about it but it would mean I could go further in the same amount of time. What I don't want is to be a member of a cycling club with either an explicit or implicit competitive ethos.

 

[screenman]

You bet wrong. I looked.

Where are you? I do not know if any clubs who do not have members who go out for slower rides.

 

[screenman]

I am not a particularly fast rider - say 12 to 13mph. This seems to coincide with speeds on a typical local CTC club run. I enjoy the rides when I can make them which being all day Sunday is not all that often. I also enjoy the shorter and easy paced evening summer rides which I can usually make. I'm happy to go on the club runs and when I can't equally happy to go for shorter rides by myself. Would I like to go faster? Well I don't obsess about it but it would mean I could go further in the same amount of time. What I don't want is to be a member of a cycling club with either an explicit or implicit competitive ethos.

Lucky that we all have plenty of choice in clubs then.

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

I used to ride with someone who constantly pressured me to set out earlier and earlier. 7am was nice for me, but he woke at 4am normally and wanted to push me towards that.
I'll not mention some if his other habits but in the end and after loads of insomnia caused by the badgering I'm glad I moved away from the area and him.
He made riding a chore.

I've no interest in riding with others any more.

 

[Illaveago]

That's leisurely?
13-14mph was my old clubs avg...race pace to me and my heavy lump bike.

I would call 1.3 - 1.4 mph leisurely .

 

[furball]

I have no idea what speed I do. I really don't care. As long as the wheels are turning and I'm enjoying the run with a good old paper map for reference (mostly to identity things in the distance) nothing else matters.

 

[Aravis]

I've always ridden as I do now - briskly, but within myself, only tending to put in serious effort when really necessary. So I was never going to be particularly quick. One characteristic is that on roads which are completely flat I often struggle to maintain momentum, and end up being slower that on a road with gentle rise and fall where there is more to keep the legs "interested".

Quarter of a century ago I was about 3mph quicker, though I only have my memory to tell me that. I think it is true though. When I started cycling regularly again about 2½ years ago, accepting this reality was an essential step in rediscovering the enjoyment. Although I've never ridden for speed, I do keep an eye on how I'm doing from ride to ride because it's an indication of well-being. If I can see I'm a little bit faster than I was on a comparable ride a few weeks earlier that's one of the many things that help to make a ride a good one.

I'm always completely happy to be riding alone. For me it's the natural way. But when I do ride with others, which is typically about two or three times a year, it invariably makes a refreshing change.

 

[Vantage]

Where are you? I do not know if any clubs who do not have members who go out for slower rides.

Bolton.
Plenty of clubs round here offering 'slow' rides but all saying their slow is 12-13mph avg.
That speed for me at one time was possible but difficult. These days it's impossible. No where near enough strength in my legs or stamina to keep it going for long. The stroke saw to that.
The council run social rides are catering for my needs these days. The difficulty there is I'm crap at socialising.

 

[rivers]

I'm just happy to be out on my bike, no matter the speed. Saturday's club run average was nearly 17mph for my group and yesterday my wife and I went out for the day where our average was about 10mph over 32 miles and we stopped for lunch and later in the day a pint. Tonight, I'll go out for a social ride with some mates and we'll average 13-14 for the evening. Sometimes I like going fast, sometimes I feel like a social, and if I'm out with my wife, we're pootling about. I don't understand the cyclists who can't adapt and slow down for their mates or family who just want a social ride.

 

[mjr]

I used to ride with someone who constantly pressured me to set out earlier and earlier. 7am was nice for me, but he woke at 4am normally and wanted to push me towards that.
I'll not mention some if his other habits but in the end and after loads of insomnia caused by the badgering I'm glad I moved away from the area and him.
He made riding a chore.

I've no interest in riding with others any more.

One person was a dick, so you give up on all group riding. Seems like throwing the baby out with the bathwater to me, but whatever makes you happy.

10am usual start for my local, which allows more people to ride to the start (it's a rural area), means more winter rides can still go ahead because ice has melted and allows 2-3 hours riding before lunch. A few rides start earlier when we want more daylight (like the autumn century rides) or we're meeting another ride (like the Reach Ride in a fortnight).

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

One person was a dick, so you give up on all group riding. Seems like throwing the baby out with the bathwater to me, but whatever makes you happy.

10am usual start for my local, which allows more people to ride to the start (it's a rural area), means more winter rides can still go ahead because ice has melted and allows 2-3 hours riding before lunch. A few rides start earlier when we want more daylight (like the autumn century rides) or we're meeting another ride (like the Reach Ride in a fortnight).

I decided I'd rather do things when I pleased. Yes thanks it makes me very happy
Yesterday I changed my route, had a good look at the scenery around the Holme Valley, stopped and watched a race go by as it climbed from Crow Edge. I never knew what time it was or where I'd decide to go next. Some TPT, some tarmac and a rocky track descending into Thurlstone. It was bliss!

 

[swansonj]

I'm sure I've said before, and this thread revives it: there is considerable ambiguity in how people describe speeds. The following denote considerably different levels of effort:

X mph is the speed we typically cycle at on flattish roads
X mph is our average when moving (excluding all stops for regrouping, traffic lights etc)
X mph is our average between refreshment stops (including stops for traffic lights and regrouping and roadside drinks but excluding all cafe stops)
X mph is our average from start to finish of the ride (including all cafe stops)