Originally Posted by
Bikexln
Why did you reply if you're not going to contribute?
It matters because I like to set goals for myself and would like to know where my peers stand it motivates me to achieve greater things.
excellent reply.
I assumed you want to improve and needed a benchmark. but as I explained above, and others have as well, it's hard to compare speeds because traffic, wind, hills and other things are hugely impactful. comparing against yourself when you repeat the same route is possible, though, and I highly encourage it.
Originally Posted by
EdgewaterDude
I'm surprised nobody here has mentioned frame geometry/body position while on the bike. Hybrids give a more upright position, which will not be good for high speed due to wind resistance. I've got a Trek 7.3 (hybrid) and Jamis Ventura (road). While each has its own positive and negative points, I can achieve and sustain a much higher average speed on my road bike due to being able to get aero on the hoods and drops. You encounter a lot of wind resistance relative to power output much, much faster on a hybrid.
totally agree, in theory. in reality there are a number of riders who actually do ride their road bikes in the same body position as their hybrids. there are other road bikers who cannot or do not use the drops at all.
for a road bike to be significanly more aerodynamic than a hybrid, you need to be in a proper position. you don't need to have a horizontal torso (0 degrees) like a pro, but you can't be sitting up in the hoods in the 50-80 degree range and expect any advantages in the wind.