I was wondering whether others have experienced the effect I have.

Some days I "feel fast" (and am faster) on my commute, and other days, under almost the same conditions, I feel like a turtle dragging the Titanic's anchor.

For example, yesterday, I easily averaged about 16.5 MPH on my commute. Riding in this morning, I was having a hard time averaging 14.6. Headwinds both days.

I'd be suprised if anyone didn't.

I've had days where I was so slow i hopped off the bike several times to see if my wheels were rubbing on something or if I was way low on air. They weren't.

Definitely slow-feeling today. No idea why.

I'm always slow.

Yea I have down days the day after a Red Wings game!

Yes, but

... averaging 14.6 moving leeward isn't slow!

that's a big difference. same bike and computer?

I definitely have fast or strong days and others ... not so much. but that's what makes training on crummy days so amazing - you got out and you did the routine. there is a cumulative effect over time which should encourage everyone to train even on foul weathered days and days where you are not firing on all cylinders. compliance trumps negativity.

The Wings are smokin' since the Olympics. You have nothin' to be down about.

For me it just depends on the wind conditions. I have a 12.4 mile commute one way that my personal best was a little over 41 minutes and the longest was about 50 minutes, lately i've been pretty consistent around the 43.5 - 44 minute range, but then I don't ride if the weather is crap.

That best time was last summer and I caught up with a pack of about 5 riders from a local club at a light. I drafted behind their paceline rolling along at ~24-25 mph for about 4 miles or so. I finally dropped off 'cause I couldn't take it anymore.

Yep. My "fast" days average about 13 mph. Slow days are more like 11. Really slow days usually mean I rode a whole lot the day before, and are more like 9 mph.

I am always fairly slow ~10mph unless I get into the e assist.

Definitely. I range from "no chain" days to "is my brake rubbing?" days all the time.

I can ramp it up pretty well when I want to, but most days the commute is just that, making the wheels turn, listening to a good book, or just the birds singing, and enjoying what's around me. I leave so that even if I'm turtling along at 10mph, I will still make it to work 15 min early, and if I have a flat, then I have to make up a little time, and that makes it fun too. I usually save the speed tests for the ride home, my best average on a ride home was 19.5 last year, I've been dreaming of a 20mph average ride home, but the red lights and stop signs seem to be at odds with said plan (The averages are moving averages, but every slowdown and then speedup kills that average on an ~8 mile ride).

Joe

Your slow day would be a very high average for me.

We all have slow days. It's the price you pay for using a motor as weak/variable/sensitive as your body to power your transportation. I feel slow after weekend's worth of skiing, or after back to back days of long-distance running. I get slow if I stay up too late too many nights in a row, drink too much beer or smoke too much herb the night before, or partake in the occasional 3 A.M. mutual insomnia inspired love-making session (oddly enough, early morning loving has the opposite effect).

And sometimes I tired and weak and have no idea why. But a slow bike ride is still superior to driving.

wow

Every day takes the exact same number of light cycles as every other day. (Winter excepted. Winter takes longer) At most, I might make an intermediate light that I usually miss, but that just gets me through my final light at the beginning of the cycle instead of the end.

This week I've had two rides where I felt like I was just dragging but when I checked my computer at the end of the ride I had beaten my previous record.

But yeah, definitely have fast days and slow days. My commute has one seriously massive hill on it. Some days I destroy it, some days it destroys me.

I have slow days and REALLY slow days. The wind is the biggest factor, but sometimes my legs are just tired.

For identical weather conditions on the same bike; fast days mean I'm keeping 19 - 20mph on the flat sections and I can tackle the hill to my office at 11 - 12mph because I'll stand up and hammer. Slow days I'll feel like I'm pushing hard and take a look at the computer: 16mph. That final hill to the office means I'm gearing down into my 34/32 combo and spinning up it at 7 - 8mph.

I still can't determine a cause. It would make sense if the slow day was the Monday after I did a 300k on the weekend, or if I was coming down with a cold, or hauling 25 extra pounds of stuff... But that's not the case.

for me, speed correlates inversely with temperature. hot days really slow me down

Funny, cold days slow me down. Anytime the mercury drops below 10*F, it feels like I'm pedaling through molasses.

I've found the same thing. For every 10 degrees the temp drops, my average speed goes down about 1 mph. The times this winter it was below zero my commute time nearly doubled, from around 25 minutes to nearly 45 minutes.

In an average week, I'll have three FAST rides, where I feel like I'll snap the chain; another three will feel like the chain is attached to an anchor. The rest are just rides. BUT...

... a bad day riding is still better than not riding that day.

Every day.