Originally Posted by
NABodie
I got back into biking last summer as a form of exercise after a heart attack. I picked up a mountain bike so that I could ride anywhere. I rode pretty much everyday until it started getting cold and when I could as the winter went on. The Mtn bike is a '13 Giant 29er. I have since picked up a 2000 model road bike 700c tires thinking I would want to try some rides with a local club and not wanting to get dropped on my slow mtn bike. Well running the same 11 mile course on each bike my average speed on the road bike is only slightly faster than the mtn bike. So is it me or something with the bike? Yesterday I road the 11 miles with an average speed of 12.7 mph on the mtn bike and today on the road bike my average speed was 12.8 mph. Am I doing something wrong?
After about a year of cycling - utility and just riding around trying to get stronger - I got a bike computer and was faced with the fact that my speeds were 12 or 13 mph. It gradually improved, with a hybrid it improved a bit more, but I think that absent a deliberate training program it's simply a matter of time and slow improvements. It's normal, nothing to worry about.