Commuting - Is your commute a personal time trial?

How many people here treat their personal commute as a time trial?
I usually don't have enough patience (plus I leave too late) to go at a leisurely pace knowing that I can clean up when I'm at work so I always end up pushing it.

Oh dear, erm....yes, exactly.

:)

Yes - but my times are nothing to be proud of. I think it would be better if I did intervals on my commute, so I could blast up the little hills I encounter instead of being already poofed at the bottom of the hills.

wow, thought I was the only person that did this...

my times are surely nothing to brag about either - except to myself anyhow. I even have interval checkpoints, so I know if I'm ahead or behind the 'split' :)

I don't do it every day, but most days, since I usually get up with just enough time for a coffee and then have to dash.

Odd thing (or not): I get better times on my single speed (road bike) than on my geared mountain bikes...

well...duh...<g>

Actually got a nice 30 minute ride out of my doctor...I had to wait to get ultrasounded, and I had a nice 30 min ride in the sun instead of sweating in the waiting room...it gets warm when you're not zooming!

Gotta stop for the lights, though...otherwise death by stupidity is waiting around the corner...

ride safely,
Tom

How many people here treat their personal commute as a time trial?
I usually don't have enough patience (plus I leave too late) to go at a leisurely pace knowing that I can clean up when I'm at work so I always end up pushing it.

my top speed is not limited by my ability to push the pedals just by the probability of ending up under a car/bus/tram etc

I race my average speed. I cross a river at the mid point of my commute. I may set a goal for the last half to be at the same average speed as the first, or I will simply set a goal on the onset of the ride, (taking in factors of wind and legs, etc.) My times are nothing to brag about either... But last week I toppled my personal best by 4mph!!! (The 18mph tail wind helped! ;) )

My problem now is that I can't read my computer on the morning commute. The average speed is my competition to keep pushing. I want to add a light but I'm afraid of killing my night vision.

Yes. Last night, I beat my personal best for the trip home by more than 1 1/2 minutes!!! With a combination of luck with traffic lights and a decent energy level, I made my eight-mile, long-way-home commute in 28:31 (it was 27-something if you don't count stops at traffic lights). Average speed while the wheels were turning was 17.something.

Yeah, I know some roadies go a lot faster, but I'd never broken the thirty-minute barrier, I live uphill from work, and I generally have two loaded panniers (excuses, excuses). It helped that I passed a guy who decided to keep up with me for a mile or two. Not wanting to get passed by the guy I passed kept me moving.

I always try to either beat my best time or my best average speed. Ironically, I always find it in me to be able to push harder going home even though it's a slightly longer route and more uphill.
The worst feeling is having any kind of wind going to work. Headwind means it'll suck getting in. Tailwind means it'll suck going home.

Some days it is. Some days it isn't. Today it wasn't. :o

I definitely treat it as a goal to beat my previous times and basically go faster/more consistently than before.

The one thing I am worrying about though is i think this means i'm riding much closer to my max relative to heart rate. Will i not get the various benefits if i'm pushing that hard e.g. am i supposed to be backing off? I really prefer going faster, particularly on the ride home where a good third of the ride is a steep hill descent necessitating not enough actual work. Besides its just more fun to fly <relative to myself not riders who don't suck>

I like to haul as much ass as possible going to work and back. If I get dropped, I keep up with the person who dropped me. I've been taking the long way home lately, which involves more hills and less lake induced wind, and I've been getting faster.

Yes, unfortunately I always seem to be running late in the morning. I really wouldn't call it a time trial, too many traffic lights that must be stopped for and I also carry a big 20# backpack. I look at it as a way to get faster.

My current in to work commute is 12 miles, my goal has been to do it in under 30 minutes (avg 25mph), currently my best is 32 minutes and change. I don't think I'll hit my goal this year, I'm just not a morning person :(. The worse thing about the morning commute is that I don't warm up, its roll out of bed, prepare backpack, roll bike out onto the street, reset computer, start timer and go, one day I'll be paying for that. :(

My commute home is 20 miles and unfortunately it too is a race against time (usually done in under an hour), don't like riding in the dark :eek: , if I don't have the time, I ride the short way home (13 miles) :mad: . Its no fun riding in the dark unprepared. :eek: I usually try to improve on the morning average or at least maintain it while doing some hills and more miles.

Wow, 25, I average around 16 in the city which I thought was good.

The worst feeling is having any kind of wind going to work. Headwind means it'll suck getting in. Tailwind means it'll suck going home.
That is not the worst feeling... the worst feeling is when you have a headwind in the morning, suck it up because you think you'll have a tailwind on the way home, only to find that the wind did a 180 while you were working... not THAT sucks! Unfortunately it happens quite often and is very noticeable going uptown on the west side...

As for the personal time trial... absolutely! I keep a tally of all my commutes and I can see how my speed has improved over the months. I give myself a target... it used to be "anything under 45 minutes is good", nowadays it is "anything under 32 is good". Much like yours, my average speed is 16 mph, which I think is pretty good in the city...

i mix overall blasting on a regular commute w/ interval type stuff, i don't log my times daily, but enough to notice when i've been able to consistently shave another minute so off the time, as opposed to just having gone really fast that day, & i enjoy getting into to work & noticing i got there w/ a "split" that i used to have to work at, but has become notably easier

Wow, 25, I average around 16 in the city which I thought was good.


I'm out in the suburbs, on the northshore of Long Island. Not as many traffic lights as the city but usually the lights are at major intersections where you have to stop or you'll get run over :( . 25 is a goal that I've not attained yet for the commute :( . I think its attainable if the light gods are with me and I'm really warmed up and awake or if I can latch onto a pack of fast riders going in the same direction as I (unlikely).

Well duh of course it's like a personal time trial. :rolleyes:

My commute is in two segments: a 4km dash up Broadway to the train station (downhill for the first mile but I have to zig-zag like crazy for potholes), then a pretty hilly 10-11km ride from the end of the train ride. My best time on the way to the train? 8 minutes and change (don't remember exactly I was in a HUGE hurry). My best time on the 2nd leg is 31:58 (yeah it's hilly!). On the way back my best time is something under 20 minutes (again in a hurry don't remember exactly) to the train. I never clock the leg from the train to home, because there's way too much traffic for it to be meaningful.

In any case this week a new traffic menace has appeared on my morning ride to the train: school buses! Public schools started class this week here and it's really amazing how much traffic they create. No way I'll be below 9 minutes again any time soon (or even near that).

Yeah, another great way to enhance your time is to make sure the amount of daylight left is a little less than your fastest time.

Absolutely. For three or four commutes a week I try to put the hammer down, and for the others I can it easier. I use the "time-moving" on my bike computer as my clock which removes some of the penalty for traffic lights. My best time is around 36 minutes for 12.5 miles. Like the other guy on this thread, I'd like to get it up to an moving average speed of 25 mph, which is likely to take years and a lot less beer than I'm accustomed to drinking.

Contrary to the majority of replies, I generally just enjoy the ride.
Once in a long while, I'll try to really push the pace.

baker

I don't specifically *try* to beat my best time, but I generally check my time when arriving at work or home. Since starting the commute to our new office in March I don't think my time has varied by much more than 2 or 3 minutes. It's usually right around 48 minutes in the morning and 52 on the return trip, that's for a 14.6 mi. commute with a moderate amount of elevation gain in both directions. Work is on the opposite side of a sort of "valley" from home...

No, that would ruin it for me.

Yes, I do, although it's been getting frustrating to do so as I've reached a point in my 10 mile, Brooklyn-to-NYC commute where the traffic is a very real hinderance. I was on vacation recently and found my average speed was much greater in the country with no traffic. There's probably a total of 500 yards every day when I might as well be walking, and there are maybe a half dozen times every morning when I come to a complete stop. Catching lights makes a big difference, but I'm tempted to do my commute at 4am one day just to see how fast I'm physically able to do it.

Well I did,until I decided to become a rider again. I bagan as a "rider back in 73, then a racer,then a MTBer then a MTBrace,then a Single speeder,now I consider myself a rider again,,now average speed puter ruining my rides and commutes--JJ

I give every one of you commuters a BIG thumbs up for what you do every day. Some of you ride 20 miles or so just to work and the same for the return. Amazing! And you guys that ride some, hop a train, then ride some more is truly foreign to me. All of you guys have got my respect. I would ride my bike to work (11 miles) but an interstate bridge is in the way. Commuters are the "Rambo's" of the biker dudes.
No Girlie Men Allowed

Mornings I push it. Evenings, I try to take my time...

...but...

(Oh, well. :D )

Yeah, now that fall is here, there's gonna be plenty more of those 180 wind reversal days.
I've been thinking of taking my OCR but I'm not sure how it'll handle on the broken pavement.

It depends on how I feel. Some days it's training, other days it's just spin easy and enjoy the fresh air.

Yesterday on the way home from work I did 1x1 intervals. Took it up to 23-24mph in a 81-inch gear for 1 minute, then downshifted to a 72-inch gear and took it easy at 17-18mph for 1 minute. Repeat. Repeated it until it felt like I can't do another one, then I did one more.

I'm a believer in recovery rides so this morning I used a 69-inch gear and spun easy at 17.5 to 18 mph.

There are some days where everything just clicks and I just hum along at 20mph and it's in this tempo zone where I'm neither riding easy nor working it, everything is smooth and flowing, there's no discomfort, I feel as one with the bike; even the trees and the air going by seem to flow by quietly. Bicycling is yin and yang. To enjoy moments of exhiliration and pleasure, you must earn it first by enduring some pain and suffering.

I think I might be all yin no yang...

I can relate to this thread. On my log I always record my time to work..Distance rarely changes. 26 miles. Have some significant hills. Seems I recall my best time ever was one hour , 46 minutes..My commute traffic/traffic lights can be a factor through Temecula..Worst when dogging it, is like 2 hours 15 minutes.
I usually do not rush to work..Work is bad enough. Don't want to drain too much energy since I have to stay awake all night.
But, I do record it hoping to keep it under two hours. I do keep bananas and recovery drinks at work to keep up the energy level should the ride be too hard and try to sleep more before the commute.

[ride some more is truly foreign to me. All of you guys have got my respect. I would ride my bike to work (11 miles) but an interstate bridge is in the way. Commuters are the "Rambo's" of the biker dudes.
I used to work in Bradenton and live in Sarasota. A 11 mile commute over the interstate. that must mean you commute east of I-75?? How is the commute in Bradenton? Don't reacall many bike lanes. I know the city has changed drastically in the 15 years or so since I left.

Yes I pretty much always push hard. I don't usually have specific waypoints, but I do check at the end of my ride avg speed and elapsed time moving. I used to log it, now I just know my personal best each way. However those have been impacted by rides with good tailwinds but it's still a goal to shoot for. My ride is all hills with literally no flat road, but probably have a net zero elevation gain for the whole commute. So interval work is kind of built into the ride ;) I love how I often start out telling myself this will be an easy ride and before I know it I'm at top speed ;)

Four words: Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, Southport.

There is a perfectly legitimate reason why I call my commute "the obstacle course". It's the same reason why I definitely don't treat it as a time trial.

"Is your commute a personal time trial?"

Absolutely. I'm down to 25 minutes. I do stop for red lights though, don't want to get hit by a bus. BUT, I am getting better at beating that 7th stoplight, whereas a few months ago, I would have to stop at that one cause I was too slow.

Yea for me!

"Is your commute a personal time trial?"

Absolutely. I'm down to 25 minutes. I do stop for red lights though, don't want to get hit by a bus. BUT, I am getting better at beating that 7th stoplight, whereas a few months ago, I would have to stop at that one cause I was too slow.

Yea for me!

What route do you take for your commute?

I think I might be all yin no yang...

What do you mean by this?

From the following link, I'd derive that you are slow and fat versus fast and strong:

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Yin_Yang

baker

What do you mean by this?

From the following link, I'd derive that you are slow and fat versus fast and strong:

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Yin_Yang

baker

Hehe no, when yin and yang was referred to as pain and suffering to get to the pleasure part, I was saying, it's all pain and suffering for me, I hardly have time to slow down and smell the roses on my commute.
I'm actually underweight for my height.

What do you mean by this?

From the following link, I'd derive that you are slow and fat versus fast and strong:

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Yin_Yang

baker
Does this mean you can't be strong and fat?

Does this mean you can't be strong and fat?

Following the baker theory of yin yangism and the fact that I'm weak and skinny,
I'd say strong and fat is a distinct possibility.

baker

What would be a good average speed for commuting/road cycling? For a n00bie? So far I'm @ 15.5 with country roads mixed with urban/suburban.

Any input? Your avarage?

What would be a good average speed for commuting/road cycling? For a n00bie? So far I'm @ 15.5 with country roads mixed with urban/suburban.

Any input? Your avarage?

It all depends on you, amigo! I started out averaging about 15, but I'm up to 18 on a 10.5 mi commute. This is "Wheels spinning" time. My max is usually around 30, which I get on a railroad undercrossing.

This thread is timely.

I don't commute on weekdays as when you approach where I work the traffic is simply too insane and I've not convinced myself it's safe. But when I have to work on weekends like today I ride. I used to do it on my old Schwin steel frame bike, but after today that may never happen again... I took the Giant TCR I ride for triathlons and it was FUN++. Being annoyed on having to work on Saturday I just too my aggression out on the road. The route is mostly flat with just a few miles of little rolling hills.

On the Schwinn I usually do the commute at around 14-15 mph pace... On the TCR I averaged just a tad over 23mph (when subtracting time spent sitting at lights) which was quite challenging as there was a nasty crosswind messing with the aero forks making the bike kind of skittish for about half the route (bridge over the interstate was particularly interesting). But ignoring that, it was great fun being able to spin up the little hills, where on the Schwinn thats simply not possible (Schwinn != clipless). At one (unfortunatly short) point on the ride I got the wind at my back, and hit 37 mph on flat ground, which I don't believe I've ever done before... it was quite exhillerating. I passed a cop who was monitoring traffic and he gave me the most interesting look... (was a 35mph zone... I suppose I could have gotten a ticket in theory hehe).

I think I could have picked up another mph or two if I would have ridden on my aero bars, but I don't do that in any sort of traffic as I don't want to become one with a car (or another bike). I just rode on the drops the entire time.

The ride home was slower (had to ride into that wind that pushed me to such lovely speeds), it was around 20mph... Which I still won't complain about.

Now part of me wants to ignore my fear of the traffic and do this the rest of the week - the weathers gonna be nice... Urge to improve my time is overriding my common sense :eek:

Too much traffic to worry about, and the weather is too unpredictable. If I make it through the day without crashing or getting something thrown at me I'm happy. Safety first.

Ive been doing 8 miles at about 18mph average. I do push as hard as possible though. I dont ride the entire way to work, but home is. home is a time trial to me...next up i gotta try to do it at 21mph to beat my record run.

Hey cyclezeolet- I live north of the Manatee River but east of I-75. I can not use the Interstate bridge to cross the river. So I would have to ride all the way to town and use the US 41 Bridge and then ride back east to the place of emplyment. It has changed here tremendously in the last 10 yrs. Rt-64 is stop and go traffic from I-75 east back to Lorraine rd. (aprx 4-5 miles)

Yep, almost every ride is a personal time trial to me, commutes most definitely so because I'm ever the optimist and always leave late :)

My co-rider was dismayed to discover the TT nature when we were touring recently - I wanted to get to the next town (Orleans) before things started to shut one evening, so we burned it to average 22 mph on the flat for nearly 2 hours, 70 lbs of gear on each bike, into a light headwind. I felt good after that ride.