Originally Posted by
spelger
i've seen this question come up from time to time and the same two answers generally are given:
- estimated power is not all that bad but...
- estimated power is crap because...
regardless of the answer my question is how do you know? i have my own doubts about their estimated power which, ironically, is mostly due to the reasons that both camps give. the only way i can see to get an honest answer is to upload a ride without power data and compare with the same ride containing power data. has anyone done that? it falls on someone with a power meter to do this. if i had one i'd give it a whirl just to see.
While I haven't done exactly this, I did use Strava prior to getting a power meter in October. While I have gotten stronger over the past few months, I saw an immediate difference in my actual vs. estimated power on the same routes. My estimated was 30-50 lower than measured in the weeks after I got the pm. Not scientific by any means, it makes sense given how much wind I ride in and the relatively short hills in my area. I can't give an exact number or percentage, but estimated for me is lower.