Originally Posted by
exRunner
Average anything (Speed, Cadence, HR) would only be of use if you did the same thing over and over. Even with uncontrolable enviormental variable like stoplights, traffic, and wind, it you did the same thing over and over long enough in the end a properly plotted graph could yeild data.
Change the course, time of day, etc, or look at a small data set, and the information is useless.
My club does not use "average speed" to classify groups. We use distance, course difficulty, and regrouping to designate. I get asked all the time what the average speed of the A Group is, and the answer is always same - "too fast for you if you have to ask."
like i said - i do the exact same 25 mile route 4 or 5 times a week. my average speed has steadily increased since march.
it's not a bad metric...
all i have is my gps - it knows total time, moving time, and distance.
i use the moving average: distance / moving time
things like wind, traffic etc., which can all vary, average out over many rides.
i had the gps before i started riding, and i haven't gotten a bike computer yet. if i get one, maybe i'll start looking at other things.