Strava question.

[Dorset Boy]

As the Goat says. That said, Strava have been trying to clean things up to gradually reduce similar or even identical segments. However given there are millions of segments worldwide, this will take a long time.
You can use live segments in connection with your phone and headset so will see better where a segment starts or ends.

 

[Solocle]

The thing I was looking at earlier regarding Strava had some funny tales from extreme Strava riders. Everything was perfect for them pre ride, the stars aligned, they set off and the wind changed half way through their effort! Lol. They knew that was it so just went home in a sulk, lol.

Others were flying, bang on target for a KOM, and then came across a set of temporary traffic lights which had suddenly appeared. Same again, stopped and went home in a huff, lol.

All sorts of unforeseen things can happen. If you're in the zone and gunning for a PB you'd be gutted wouldn't you?

I think the most extreme one of mine would be this.

Looks rather suspect, I'll admit! But I was indeed riding a normal road bike.

The trick was drafting a rather large lorry . And even then, only took KOM on the segment I created, I have a 10th place on a longer stretch.

 

[figbat]

A few years ago the Women’s Tour of Britain came through my area. I happened to ride part of their stage a couple of hours before they did. I came across a downhill section I know well and thought surely on a downhill segment I could be competitive, especially as I know the road and it’s a quite rural lane?

Turns out I can’t, I wasn’t even close. I can’t imagine how they can go significantly faster than me when gravity is more a factor than strength, but they can.

 

[ianrauk]

A few years ago the Women’s Tour of Britain came through my area. I happened to ride part of their stage a couple of hours before they did. I came across a downhill section I know well and thought surely on a downhill segment I could be competitive, especially as I know the road and it’s a quite rural lane?

Turns out I can’t, I wasn’t even close. I can’t imagine how they can go significantly faster than me when gravity is more a factor than strength, but they can.

That reminds me. A good few years ago, myself and a friend were on a ride in deepest darkest Kent. When we spotted a ladies team cross the junction ahead. We tried to catch up with them. Could we? Of course we couldn't.

 

[esoxlucius]

Years ago I never saw that many women cyclists out on the road but nowadays I see loads, which I think is great.

However, it's not so great when they come flying past you! Lol.

 

[Alex321]

A few years ago the Women’s Tour of Britain came through my area. I happened to ride part of their stage a couple of hours before they did. I came across a downhill section I know well and thought surely on a downhill segment I could be competitive, especially as I know the road and it’s a quite rural lane?

Turns out I can’t, I wasn’t even close. I can’t imagine how they can go significantly faster than me when gravity is more a factor than strength, but they can.

They know there is nothing coming the other way, so don't need to be able to stop in the distance they can see. They will also have more optimised bikes than most of us, with tyre pressure and size just right, probably more aero. And you will always go faster in a group than solo, assuming everybody in the group is at least close to the same standard.

 

[Solocle]

A few years ago the Women’s Tour of Britain came through my area. I happened to ride part of their stage a couple of hours before they did. I came across a downhill section I know well and thought surely on a downhill segment I could be competitive, especially as I know the road and it’s a quite rural lane?

Turns out I can’t, I wasn’t even close. I can’t imagine how they can go significantly faster than me when gravity is more a factor than strength, but they can.

I have one segment like that from when I did an internship in Leeds, except it was the Harrogate UCI World Championship (mens).

Yeah, those guys are pretty speedy . But I did actually manage to at least be competitive.

And I in fact was substantially faster than Stefan Küng, who finished 3rd

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

It doesn't show how useless segments are at al. It shows that segment times aren't as useful as you might think, but even there, it is more so than you are suggesting.

If you think you have done the segment a lot more than it shows, then either the segment doesn't start (or end) exactly where you think, and you have sometimes joined or left it other than at the start or end, or the segment starts or finishes very close to the boundary for where it cuts off rides for privacy. As the exact position of the boundary varies randomly (to make it hard to triangulate your home position), that means that the segment will not be shown except when it is all outside the boundary for that ride.

This particular segment is along the canal bank - so along a path that is only a foot or so wide with no way on or off on a bike

so I cannot be accidentally missing the start or finish on the path

I suspect the problem is accuracy of the GPS
the segment itself seems to follow the middle of the actual canal for some distance
and from that I presume that my route can be similarly off track and hence some rides do not pass the conditions for having actually followed the route
in spite of the actual path being impossible to wander off by more that a few inches either side

 

[steverob]

If you know the name of the segment, then at the bottom of one of your rides where you didn't match it, you can click on "Don't see the segment you're looking for?" and it will give you a list of segments you almost matched so that you can see for what reason it didn't show up.

Most of them it'll be because you weren't going in the same direction or you routed off before the segment ended, but occasionally it will show one where there was a little blip either in your route, or in the route that the original segment creator used, that means it doesn't regard it as a good match.

 

[Alex321]

This particular segment is along the canal bank - so along a path that is only a foot or so wide with no way on or off on a bike

so I cannot be accidentally missing the start or finish on the path

I suspect the problem is accuracy of the GPS
the segment itself seems to follow the middle of the actual canal for some distance

Yes, I've seen some like that, or which cut the corner on a road.

and from that I presume that my route can be similarly off track and hence some rides do not pass the conditions for having actually followed the route
in spite of the actual path being impossible to wander off by more that a few inches either side

You are probably right here - and if the segment goes away from the real path, then it will have been the GPS of the person creating the segment which was faulty.

It may have been some time ago, and GPS devices have improved significantly since then. Or it may just have been losing the signal, and interpolated in a straight line from where it lost it to where it regained it.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I hold the KoM on a Strava segment in central London with a speed of 70.9 km/h (44mph)

https://www.strava.com/segments/13106975

It's a long story, but there was an article in the Telegraph, complaining that pedestrians were being repeatedly terrorised by cyclists riding through urban areas at over 40mph due to this newfangled Strava craze. All complete anti-cyclist nonsense, and utterly unfounded.

I discovered that the 40mph instance that they found was done on a turbo trainer doing a virtual ride round London. Not only that, but the turbo data points just weren't suitable for measuring short segment speeds, so the calculated speed was utter nonsense, nothing like the simulated "speed" on the turbo. Armed with this knowledge I got on my turbo, gave it everything through the segment, lied to Strava about it being a real ride, and now have a KoM.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

All hail the turbo

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I hold the KoM on a Strava segment in central London with a speed of 70.9 km/h (44mph)

https://www.strava.com/segments/13106975

It's a long story, but there was an article in the Telegraph, complaining that pedestrians were being repeatedly terrorised by cyclists riding through urban areas at over 40mph due to this newfangled Strava craze. All complete anti-cyclist nonsense, and utterly unfounded.

I discovered that the 40mph instance that they found was done on a turbo trainer doing a virtual ride round London. Not only that, but the turbo data points just weren't suitable for measuring short segment speeds, so the calculated speed was utter nonsense, nothing like the simulated "speed" on the turbo. Armed with this knowledge I got on my turbo, gave it everything through the segment, lied to Strava about it being a real ride, and now have a KoM.

and provide "evidence" to the Daily whatever to show how dangerous and reckless ALL cyclist are

they don;t need much in the way of facts at times

 

[esoxlucius]

got on my turbo, gave it everything through the segment,

Even more impressive when you consider you didn't even have a tale wind! Or did you cheat and place your cooling fan behind you during the effort!! Lol.

 

[HLaB]

A few years ago the Women’s Tour of Britain came through my area. I happened to ride part of their stage a couple of hours before they did. I came across a downhill section I know well and thought surely on a downhill segment I could be competitive, especially as I know the road and it’s a quite rural lane?

Turns out I can’t, I wasn’t even close. I can’t imagine how they can go significantly faster than me when gravity is more a factor than strength, but they can.

That reminds me the ladies tour was supposed to go through my home town and I thought I'd lose my favourite KOM set in 2012, I did eventually lose it, circa 9 years later by 2 sec in 2023. I think as I set it on an older technology bike I'm still KOM