leftnotracks

There's also...

5. Taller gear ratios and larger diameter tires.

Look at the number of teeth in big-front/small-rear gears on road bikes and on mountain bikes. On my crappy road bike it's 52:13 on a rim with r=34.5 cm (including rubber). A friend's MTB has 48:13 on r=33. A little math, and one rotation in highest gear moves me 8.67 m to his 7.65 m. That's a bonus of 13%.

Frank B

Gearing doesn't seem to be so much about maxing out with me(although that is fun!) but where I am strongest as far as pedal rotations. I am mostly strong but not too far too often, so I generally sit in the highest gears. The speed I get doing 100-120 rpm in top gear is much greater on my hybrid- almost road bike, as opposed to my mountain bike, and since I bike in top gears.... The speed difference is over 15mph.

Oh and I find that the position that I sit on the bike makes a great difference as far as wind resistance. Maybe that's just me though.

Brillig

There's a 15 mph difference in speed between when you ride on your mountain bike and your road bike?!?

RichardW

This is where it's at. Your gear ratios are higher on a road bike, whereas hybrids tend to go for MTB style ranges because they're aimed at people new to cycling who don't want to find it hard spinning the gears up their first hill. And since even your granny gears will be higher (a 40 inch gear on my roadie, a 20 inch gear on my MTB) then when you're hiding amongst the granny gears you're still faster on a road racer because every turn of the pedals you travel further. If you're both at a cadence of 90rpm the roadie will tend to be faster if you're in the same places in your sprockets.

As has also been said, stick with your hybrid til you know what it is you want, but locking out any suspension gear and some tyre upgrades to HP slicks will help.

Brillig

Not really, unless you're past the max of your gears.

Unless you're on the really low gears on the mountain bike that are below anything the road bike can do or on the really high gears of a road bike that are higher than what the mountain bike can do (which for most people will never happen on the flats) than there is always a comparable gear between the two.

Frank B

Pretty close. My current one is also a clunker and inbetween bike that I got after my old bike was stolen and before I could afford my current one(the road-ish bike).

The bike that was stolen was a giant Boulder SE mountain bike. There was maybe 10mph difference between that and my road-ish bike. Maybe it's the way I bike though.... I use two gears. 27 for most everything and 18 for the steep hills.

Portis

1.This makes a difference but not as big as you might think.

Frame geometry/seating position. -- The geometry of the frame forces you to ride more bent over, reducing wind resistance? Frame technology that is designed to reduce wind resistance in and of itself? (Or is that just Lance's and super high end bikes?)

2. Overall weight. -- Lighter frame, thinner rim/tire, lighter components?
Weight is overrated.

3. This makes a BIG difference.

Thinner rim/tire. -- Less rolling resistance lets you get more distance per pedal?

4. You are slow because you are new but just about anyone can make a bike go fast for a short distance. Average speed is the way to measure a commute or anything else.

Or is that all a myth, and I'm just slow because I'm new to bike commuting and not in shape yet?

Based on your post, i can tell you that you are giving far too much credit to the bike and maybe too much to the rider. Obviously a road bike will be faster than a MTB and an MTB with thinner tires will be somewhat faster than a MTB with knobbies. Obviously a rider in great shape will smoke anyone that is in poor shape.

But who really cares? What is it you want? Speed? If you want speed on a bike, go for a good road bike. If you want a good work out, go for a Mountain Bike with knobbies. That is what i ride. I have logged nearly 6000 miles on mainly gravel roads since Thanksgiving of last year. I don't have a road bike but i think i could make the wheels spin on one while riding on pavement.

The thing that never gets mentioned in threads like these is the #1 most important factor. MOTHER NATURE. Just when you think you are fast, she will cut you down at the knees. I already know the biggest factors that i face on my daily rides. None of them have to do with the bike.

On a MTB on earth roads in Kansas, your biggest obstacles to speed will always be soft roads and Mother Nature. BTW, mother nature causes the soft roads.

Portis

I don't know about this. I can average close to 20 MPH on my MTB on the highway. This is with knobby tires and of course varies with conditions. People can average 35 mph on the road??

tacomee

Riders who like to go fast buy road bikes. Really, it's that easy. There's a whole culture of spandex wearing geeks who ride $1000+++ road bikes and wear sunglasses that cost as much as my bike. They like to race. They like to ride fast. They'll blow by you anytime they can.

Road cycling is the coolest and stupidest thing I know. I'd highly recommend to anybody who likes to ride fast. It's more than the bike or the rider... it's an attiude.

scarecrow

I used to commute every day in Portland on a hybrid. The main thing that contributed to speed, besides my own fitness, was that the frame was big enough. Eventually I had to upgrade the big ring to 52-teeth for flat out hauling. Yes, it is possible to go 40 mph, but only down big hills. The tires allowed me to go on easy trails as well. It pays to buy the lightest bike if hills are involved, so it doesn't feel like you are dragging a big rock behind you. After adding fenders, racks and other goodies the weight adds up.
Yes, speed is a need. As much as I would like having a road bike to ride, the commuter had fenders. If you have a short commute you can just wear waterproof jacket and pants over your work clothes. It's six of this and a half dozen of the other. With treaded tires I had fewer flats but could never go as fast as a road bike. There's a lot of broken glass on the streets and it chews right through slick road tires.
Recently I sold a commuter bike because the frame was too small. It was one inch smaller than my previous commuter but it made me work too hard for the same mileage.

Juha

Regarding lighter equipment: I could go and spend my life savings on a new bike that is stripped down to bare nothings, has all the latest carbon components, hollow crank axel and whatnot. I could get rid of panniers and say hello to Mr. Backpack, I could pump helium in tyres. My ride would be like what? maybe 7 kgs lighter than my current hybrid?

OR I could drink less beer and drop a good 8 kgs off my waistline. I guarantee I still would not look undernourished.

Methinks I will start with the waistline. But nice equipment may be bought for other reasons .

--J

iamdoingthat

Interesting. I want to go fast, but I wear jeans and t-shirt when I ride. I don't want to go fast for the sake of racing, just for the sake of getting there faster. Not sure I have the right attitude for a road bike.

Yeah, it's definitely speed. I want to keep up with traffic, I want to wake up later and get to work in a shorter time, and get off work and get home faster. I'll admit I'm somewhat of an adrenaline junkie too, so it makes the ride that much more "fun."

Road bikes just make me nervous because of all the glass on the city roads, so I was hoping to find some ways to simulate the road bike's traits on my hybrid. Suppose I should try one out....

Brillig

I would try the other way around. Get a road bike and put some trusty tires on it.

Performance Carbons are pretty good but you'll still flat every once in a while.

You could also try some Specialized Armadillos if you really want to go bulletproof.

slvoid

I used to wear shorts and a t-shirt and noticed I gained over 1mph by wearing tight shorts and my jersey. Sure I look ridiculous on my MTB with fat 2" slicks but I get there. I can hit about 30 going down broadway behind cars and hold it for a while. Ironically, I feel more comfortable on my mtb plus I can bomb through cracks and potholes.

slvoid

35mph? Yeah, lance armstrong.

leftnotracks

Hey, that kid in Breaking Away made over 60 when he passed that Cinzano truck, and who the hell was he?

MichaelW

The main thing that determines my urban journey time is not my max speed, but the amount of time I spend at min speed. By riding smarter, you can maintain a higher average speed on any bike. Experiment with different routes, learn the road surface of your regular route, learn to time your approach to lights, and remember all the danger zones. Those couriers speeding past you are a classic example of Dawinian natural selection. The dumb ones have been removed fro the gene pool, or soon will be.

For a std hybrid bike, you can speed things up by fitting mid-size slick tyres (28-32mm) and maintain the pressure with a track pump. If you have platform pedals, fit some toe clips (but keep those straps lose for safety) and learn to spin at a higher cadence/lower gear. Clipless systems will speed an athletic rider even more.
Lower the bars for a more efficient riding position, and play around with the horizontal layback of the saddle to find your sweet spot.

tacomee

slvoid,

Do you really think the ultra tight cycling kit makes you ride 1 mph faster, physically? Or is it your attitude when you're wearing it. A great deal of sport performance is mental.... I think having a lightweight road bike and all the gear that comes with it helps a lot of riders faster in their own minds... and this translates to real speed-- more than any physical gains made with aerodynamic or weight gains

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imdoingthat,

I don't have a road bike and don't race or club ride either... I only ride fast enough to be in traffic. On back streets I find myself putzin' along at maybe 10-12 mph... of course I'm saving energy to ride hard in traffic when I have to go fast.

And if you have even a small interest in road bikes, club riding or racing, check it out. It's a great sport and very friendly! Roadies love to bring newbies to the fold.

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MichaelW,

As you know hybrid bikes cover a huge range of bikes... from MTBs with smooth tires to road bikes with flat bars. My trouble is that bike shops tend to sell more of the slower granny style bikes than the faster models, wich are much, much better in traffic and every day riding. It's true that any hybrid can be tweaked for way better performance, the ones with narrower tires, no suspention and Sora or other road bike drivetrains are easier to set up for urban riding

slvoid

I don't know, but I'm sure as hell not mentally focused enough to have my attitude make me 1 mph faster. On the streets, I actually go the same speed on my mtb and my road bike so I don't think my tight cycling kit helps either other. It does feel better though.
Considering I had the legs of my shorts ballooning out and my large t-shirt flapping in the wind, I can tell you I definitely feel less drag going over the bridge on the roadway with a 20mph steady headwind in my face. Next time you're in a headwind, try unzipping your jersey fully and then sitting up and having it balloon out, I guarantee you'll lose some speed.

genec

tires/wheels are bigger then folks here are giving credit to... that rotating force vector thing really effects how "big" a gear you can drive... that's one reason racers use sewups... super low resistance due to high pressure and lower centrifigal forces due to lower spinning mass.