How fast?
03-12-05, 02:58 PM
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How fast?
Was just watching the aging video of the Tour of Qatar on cycling.tv, and can't help but wonder. I always thought the Pro Peleton cruised on the flats pretty fast. But, when watching these guys, I noticed the white lines on the road going by really fast. How fast do these guys usually cruise in the flats when in the pack?
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03-12-05, 07:02 PM
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Tiocfáidh ár Lá
I'm not sure of the exact speed but I just got dsl and I think cycling tv is a very cool thing 
03-12-05, 10:27 PM
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bingo. Believe it or not, there are long periods of 18mph on those long stages. So if they end up with an average speed of 25mph or so, then you know they had to make up that speed somewhere else.
03-12-05, 11:04 PM
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When it comes down to it though, these guys are capable of amazing speeds for long long distances. It's nothing for a chasing peloton to move along at 30-35 mph for miles on end. Final sprint leadouts are in the upper 30s.
This was posted elsewhere by someone who had done some semi-pro racing in Europe:
Its really much easier to understand how fast the pace is by considering how "hard" the race is. An average category 1 racer in the US will feel like a Cat4 racing against Cat1's on European turf - its that freakin hard. Race with the pros and the process starts over again. A seasoned European amatuer will likely suffer mightly in his first two or three seasons out with the big dogs. I believe that Lance's first pro race was so brutal he almost left the sport. There is a huge amount of adjustment time that a rider has to go through to ride at that level. It really does take years, becuase no matter what the hammer is always down.
This was posted elsewhere by someone who had done some semi-pro racing in Europe:
Its really much easier to understand how fast the pace is by considering how "hard" the race is. An average category 1 racer in the US will feel like a Cat4 racing against Cat1's on European turf - its that freakin hard. Race with the pros and the process starts over again. A seasoned European amatuer will likely suffer mightly in his first two or three seasons out with the big dogs. I believe that Lance's first pro race was so brutal he almost left the sport. There is a huge amount of adjustment time that a rider has to go through to ride at that level. It really does take years, becuase no matter what the hammer is always down.
03-13-05, 01:31 AM
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Originally Posted by Laggard
When it comes down to it though, these guys are capable of amazing speeds for long long distances. It's nothing for a chasing peloton to move along at 30-35 mph for miles on end. Final sprint leadouts are in the upper 30s.
This was posted elsewhere by someone who had done some semi-pro racing in Europe:
Its really much easier to understand how fast the pace is by considering how "hard" the race is. An average category 1 racer in the US will feel like a Cat4 racing against Cat1's on European turf - its that freakin hard. Race with the pros and the process starts over again. A seasoned European amatuer will likely suffer mightly in his first two or three seasons out with the big dogs. I believe that Lance's first pro race was so brutal he almost left the sport. There is a huge amount of adjustment time that a rider has to go through to ride at that level. It really does take years, becuase no matter what the hammer is always down.
This was posted elsewhere by someone who had done some semi-pro racing in Europe:
Its really much easier to understand how fast the pace is by considering how "hard" the race is. An average category 1 racer in the US will feel like a Cat4 racing against Cat1's on European turf - its that freakin hard. Race with the pros and the process starts over again. A seasoned European amatuer will likely suffer mightly in his first two or three seasons out with the big dogs. I believe that Lance's first pro race was so brutal he almost left the sport. There is a huge amount of adjustment time that a rider has to go through to ride at that level. It really does take years, becuase no matter what the hammer is always down.
I went by my LBS and talked to the owner (former cat 1) about the pace in a pro road race. He said, well it would be nice if you did under 30 MPH... hmmm
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03-13-05, 02:32 PM
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Yeah, the pro-1,2 crit I watched last week (had to cheer on my teammate) the average speed was easily over 30mph for 75min. On top of that, a lead group of 5 guys broke away and almost lapped the peloton. They were moving wicked fast.
