My personal values are not at issue here. This thread was started with the presupposition that there is value in maximizing downhill velocity, using a large incline and gravity, and also some physical effort to overcome wind resistance, etc. I asked whether or not this is actually an achievement, by which I meant, "worthy of note". There are two possible answers. I make no judgement. If the question itself unsettles you, you can resolve that for yourself, or not.

I ride a lot slower than I did 20 years ago. I am 64 now and just falling down will almost kill me. I ride slow. I really do. Just fast enough to keep me on two wheels going straight. That would be between 5 and 10 mph. I want to enjoy the ride.

Howdy, Liberty. :thumb:

Hi Victor! Thanks for the help the other day! 🙏

Simple answer. As fast as I feel like it at any given time.

Speed is relative. On my heavy 'all-purpose' bike (Ti CX with 28mm road tires) I might average 15.5 mph on a solo 50 mile, 4000kft climbing day. On my race bike; same ride maybe 17-18 mph solo if motivated. In a fast group, whatever the group averages; 21+ mph, assuming I'm on form.
However, I haven't ridden with anyone in about a year (stupid pandemic), so my fitness is down and my weight is up. I've got my homework to do if ever getting back to these speeds.

I often ride too fast downhill, seldom fast enough uphill. Last time my tires came off the ground I was putting my bike in the truck. Good riding!

I’ll turn 60 in just a couple of weeks. I’ve been riding road bikes since I was in my early 20s. These days I’m lucky to average 14-15mph on my usual 20-50 mile rides. Other than a hand full of triathlons/duathlons every year over the decades, and a mass start road race, or a TT a few times over the years...I’ve never been much of a racer. But just the other day I came upon proof that I once could ride at a pretty good clip. I was looking at my ‘trophy case’ and picked up the 3rd place trophy for a mass start race I participated in while I was in the Navy and stationed in Spain circa 1993. On the bottom I’d written my stats. For the 40k (24.8 miles) race I averaged 24.3mph. The race was actually on the Navy base so there weren’t a ton of riders. Hence no real groups to ride in. As I recall, myself and a friend rode most of the race wheel-to-wheel with no others around us. Sure wish I could achieve speeds like that today.


Dan

12 mph .... average. Hills, descents and flats. On a gravel bike.

Excellent Post!!!

As a former motorcyclist it was well known to my group of riding friends that concentration was a huge factor regarding whether you had a great ride or you didn't. Growing up in Wisconsin, we had incredible hidden back roads to almost anywhere. You just had to know where to find them. How to connect some of them. It wasn't always about speed but it was always about concentration. I suppose having a large and active deer population also heightened our senses. ( had a few of my riding buddies cream deer back in the day. Very resilient animals, by the way)

Then I got into Vespas. Old and modern. Quite the trick to go "fast" on ten inch tires. Sixty plus mph on my old LX150. We all did it and thought nothing of it. I swear, scooters are far more fun than any big bike I've ever ridden. But the death wobble at a scooter's top speed next to a semi on a country four lane divided? I don't intend to have that experience again.

I wish I could say I'd ridden some of the speeds quoted in this thread but I don' have a speedometer of any kind. All I know is I ride what feels safe to me. Probably slower than most. And I'm pleased to read you folks feeling the liberty to seek out your own limits and relate those stories here. It's what it's all about.

Am not sure how fast fast is.... I like fast! I love fast! But alas fast can be painful. Meh... still chasing fast. Bought a 21 Trek Fuel EX 9.8 and it is really fast to me. Have gone down on it and it hurt but did get up and finish the ride. Fast is as fast as I can manage. I like fast on the road also but MTB is the first love. When feeling fast for the road I pull out the Cervelo S5. She is fast and handles like she is on rails.
Yes I love fast!

Parallel lives. GS and slalom ski racing, running, driving my sports cars on the track, MTB, road bikes and a personal best on a road bike at 62 MPH. I’ve got the need, the need for.... adrenaline

I guess I've ended up in the emergency room twice, from downhill speed that exceeded my ability to negotiate curves. One just a concussion, more recently a brocken neck.

These days i usually limit max speed to 40mph, and I'm more cautious with curves. Can't beat downhill twisties for fun though.

To think i did a fast twisty night descent a couple years ago, using my gps screen to see the approaching hairpins. Actually i had two gps units, one zoomed in for the next twistie and the other zoomed out. Yeah I wouldn't do that now. Or at least i think i wouldn't...

The older I get the harder the ground becomes, in my teens I was invincible and bounced, in my twenties I didn't care and chicks dig scars, in my thirties (and after two broken backs) I became a bit more cautious, in my forties I became allergic to falling off and now in my fifties the only thing I fall off is the wagon. I've maxed out on the road at 73mph towards the bottom of the Stelvio and on the MTB I bottled it at 66mph in the French Alps at Le Gets.

At the age of 60, my round trip rides (6-9 miles both ways) are consistently averaging 12-13 mph (with a relatively large hill now). On the commute with the aforementioned hill, it is up to 35 mph down, and 4 mph up. Trading the relatively flat areas of North Decatur to Clarkston, GA. for the hills of Stone Mountain/Tucker/Lilburn convergence didn't seem to make a difference for my average.

Seeing the speeds some of the folks here ride, I don’t understand all the fuss about ebikes with pedal assist up to 20, 25, or 28 mph. I have one and am regularly passed by folks on road bilkes. And that’s mostly on a MUP with pedestrians, skateboarders, children and dog walkers.

From the POV of the slow folks they’re at much greater risk from the roadies than the occasional class 1, 2 or 3 ebike.

I'm 76 and somewhat fragile. Most of my rides average 8-10 mph which includes a short stop or two. I don't pause the Garmin for the stops. Yesterday hit 29 mph on an urban downhill. Have done 24 mph on dirt roads. That's as fast as I want to go.

To me it doesn’t matter where the E folks ride but if there is one up the road from me, I will purposely throw on the steam to catch and pass it. Get used to it, count it as affirmation that you are included in the main passion of cycling...to catch and drop the rider up front.

Do you drive your car that way? I know plenty of people that always seem to be racing to the front. which is amusing to watch when in Long Island traffic.

Probably true. One year I was doing BRAT and had installed a 58T chainring especially for the ride. On the last day, I was coasting down a moderately large but not particularly steep hill and noted that my speed had topped out at 49 mph. "That's not going to do..." I thought, and spun up high gear to 51 mph. That was a lot of effort for only 2 mph... but worth it!

Were you on the Lowracer? I'd bet you could get some serious speed on that.

Yes, I was on my Baron lowracer, which is not as low or as aero as my avatar bike.

My Hemi truck?? 🤣