Speed timing : how do you eat yours?

[GrasB]

Using the rolling average for that distance range plus 10s per junction (guestimated) gives a much better clue as to how long a ride will take than the door to door average & no junction biasing. From there I'll add 15 to 30 min to give a nice buffer & take that as my ride time. It's not rocket science but it seems to work very well for distances up to 50 miles (maybe further but I've not really done enough solo rides that long to know).

 

[jimboalee]

Using the rolling average for that distance range plus 10s per junction (guestimated) gives a much better clue as to how long a ride will take than the door to door average & no junction biasing. From there I'll add 15 to 30 min to give a nice buffer & take that as my ride time. It's not rocket science but it seems to work very well for distances up to 50 miles (maybe further but I've not really done enough solo rides that long to know).

This theory is very similar to my 'stop junction' method in the eighties and nineties. It worked well.
Especially appropriate when the route is to a railway station to get on a train, 15 - 30 minutes should be allowed JIC a tyre deflates...

 

[Fiona N]

You guys must ride in weatherless places - the biggest factor (apart from personal fitness) to take into account riding around here is the wind not traffic or junctions.
Yesterday's ride had a 20km gentle descent which I usually use as a bit of recovery between two hilly sections. Under 'still' conditions, you can trundle along at 35-40kmph with minimal effort. Yesterday, however, the wind got up while I was on the way out but a tailwind on steep hills doesn't make a big difference and I just felt like the hills were a bit easier than normal. So the fact that I was pedalling hard to maintain 30kmph on the descent cost a lot of time and effort and left me struggling up the final climbs home. I was nearly 30 minutes slower than usual over the 100km

 

[GrasB]

I just up my work rate & drop to a more aggressive riding position. This works with wind speeds up to about 20mph at 3rd floor level, noticeably slower at ground level with things like trees etc. shielding you. You can also factor in wind speed within reason.