dschwarz

I'm riding an 8spd Downtube Mini in a middle gear at a comfortable (for me) pace on flat ground.
I am commuting to work 12mi round-trip., and I try to do that 4x/week.

I am slow.

Guys in cycling jerseys with $2500+ carbon frame road bikes pass me.
Hipsters on fixes pass me..
Old ladies on three speeds pass me.
Crackheads pushing shopping carts of returnable bottles pass me.

So, how to get fast?

Thanks!

epcolt

Ride. The more you ride the better shape you get into and the faster you can ride.

Tom Stormcrowe

To get fast, you have to train fast.

https://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com...ltraining.html

The above link will help you get some info on what you're looking for.

bdinger

^^ +1 Ride as much as you can, as hard as you can, as often as you can.

JoelS

Ride fast.

This is similar to advice I give students that want to learn how to shoot fast (I teach pistol/rifle for competitive action shooting). If you want to learn how to shoot fast, you have to practice shooting fast.

Same goes for cycling.

Tom Stormcrowe

Another thing, look into a fixed gear. You'd be amazed as to how much time you spend coasting on a road bike. Going fixed has really sped me up on my road bike and helped both my endurance and speed. Get it set up around 68 gear inches, or a 44:17 crank and cog. Just don't forget to pedal or you risk a sudden unintentional over the bars spontaneous dismount. Also, manage your down hill speed. 24.9 MPH with this fixed gear ratio is a 120 cadence.

dbikingman

I assume you are comfortable riding to work. Ride to work comfortably. On the way home ride comfortably for a mile, then push yourself for a 1/2 mile, then ride comfortably home. Then build on this by trying to go faster longer or do a second 1/2 mile.

As has been mentioned you have to ride faster to get faster. I thought I would give you a practical plan.

10 Wheels

You are too old to be fast.
I have a 7 y/o kid in the neighborhood that gets up to 17 mph on his 16" wheel bike.
Enjoy riding. Don't be concerned about Speed.

Raven87

I guess the bigger question is, "Why do you want to be faster?"

Is it because you are embarrassed about getting passed (particularly liked the "Old ladies with 3 speeds" comment"?

Is it because you want to be in better shape?

Is it because you want to shave time off your commute?

Is it because you want to embarrass the guys on the carbon fiber bikes?

What ever you motive is and how quickly you want to become 'faster' will determine what 'training' technique you might want to use.

The bottom line is that, like in ANY training, to do more you have to DO MORE!. PUSH YOURSELF, and SWEAT - getting better at anything will not fall into your lap. You will not get faster by being leisurely, no matter the motive.

So, figure out the 'why' and then you will know the 'how'. Good luck!

dschwarz

Makes sense. Intervals. I'll try it!

rcummings1

Pay the Crackhead $5 to be your training partner.

Tom Stormcrowe

Find a German Shepherd that likes to chase bicyclists, he'd make a great sprint coach. I have one route where there is a bike chasing dog. He loves to race. I used to get worried about being attacked by him, but as it turned out, he just missed chasing "his" kid on the bike. Jr had gone off to college and the dog was merely improvising and adapting.

dscheidt

As others have said, ride. The more you ride, the stronger you'll get, and the faster you can go.

Do you have a computer? If you don't, get one. A cheap one (wal-mart and the like sell a Schwinn that's perfectly good and costs $10.) is good enough. Just seeing what your speed is on sections of road you ride all the time, can be a big driver at getting faster.

Richard_Rides

Ride it like you stole it.

Raven87

Easiest, quickest way to get faster?

1. Shift to a higher gear.
2. Spin the pedals/crank faster.

You will go faster.

ZombieButcher

Start getting up into the higher gears. If you are pedaling with little to no resistance then you aren't going to be going as fast you are able. The bigger you are up front and the smaller you are in back = speed.

vXhanz

As mentioned above, ride fast to go fast. As you get in better shape, i.e. lose more fat, you'll get faster as you don't have as much ballast to carry around.

V

Neil_B

Ballast may well include the bike. The Downtube Mini is a notoriously heavy folder. It also has 16" wheels, if I recall correctly.

vXhanz

But what is easier to lose though? The bike, or the weight? If you're stuck with a heavy bike and don't want to shell out more money then the easiest way to make the whole unit lighter is to lose weight. Sure you may buy really lightweight components and lose a few grams but shedding pounds will be a better option.

V

Rosie8

Hey, I'm the old lady on the 3 speed (actually 7)! Intervals, spinning more, being more aware of your speed, etc. are all good tips.

Meek

+1

Ride normally to work. On the way home throw in some fast intervals, mix them up i.e.:
One day throw in a few 3-5 min efforts at a gasping pace (VO2 maxish)
Another day after you are warmed up ride home at a slighty faster pace than you normally do
Another day do a few 20-30 second HARD efforts
That should get you rolling faster...

GearsForFears

I'm sort of surprised by these military-like comments. Unless a heart-rate monitor indicates he's indeed not pedaling hard enough I think the OP should get a faster bike.

I had the same experience with getting discouraged at being the slowest bike on the MUP - not that I'm a racer but part of the fun of bicycling is feeling the wind whistle past at least a little. My impulse was that I wasn't in good enough shape or pedaling hard enough. But when I read a fitness article and started monitoring my heart rate it turned out that it was too high for ideal weight loss - in fact I was going TOO fast! So I ditched my boat-anchor Mongoose hybrid for a lighter, faster singlespeed that's better suited for the gentle terrain where I live. Now I go faster with less effort, causing me to have more fun, causing me to ride more miles, causing each mile to be more efficient, causing me to be down around my target weight.

Edit/addition: I just looked up the Downtube Mini. Please. Lance Armstrong would be slow on that bike.

mkadam68

Amen, brutha.

Neil_B

I don't dispute that fact. But is a 30 pound bike with 16 " wheels going to be as fast as the bikes he describes? (I assume the comment about crack dealers pushing carts was hyperbole.)

Neil_B

Here's the bike in question:



It lists at near 25 pounds. Add a rack and whatever he's carrying.....