Originally Posted by
BikeArkansas
Once again, being the OP, I am somewhat surprised by the subject that came out of this thread. I was looking for standards, I got a discussion on having goals. I actually find this odd. Most of the people that disdain goals actually have described their goals on this thread. Is there something that worries people about admitting their goals. Are they afraid of failing? Who knows? Ceratinly I do not know. I do know that I cannot imagine living without goals. I cannot imagine not being able to admit my goals, for whatever reason. I say that you would not go through the pain of pedaling up a hill if you did not have a goal.
You want a standard...here you go.
http://www.westernwheelers.org/main/.../ride_info.htm
These guys do a great job of establishing standards so that riders can select rides to their ability. Note the familiar rating system of A through F. I assume we can all agree that C is mediocre or average, but maybe not. Also, note the inversion of the rating (F is the best). So for you to be C or an average rider with this group, you would need to climb Old La Honda, the benchmark climb, of 3.9 miles with an average grade of 7.3% in approximately 30 to 40 minutes to go on a hilly ride.