Intro to Road Cycling - Am I fast?
01-08-22, 12:17 PM
#76
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
This could only be true if using race tires.
You really are a fount of disinformation.
01-08-22, 12:39 PM
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Originally Posted by Koyote
Yep. I'm as good as a 30 year old, but only on one night per week.
01-08-22, 03:31 PM
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At 15, my cycling was focused on how many times that I could ride by Mary Ellen Clark’s house in single ride without being too obvious. We went together later in high school and she told me that she watched me riding by “a few times.” What I’m saying is that there are other (better 
) things to be focused on than speed young grasshopper. Also, learn to play the guitar.
) things to be focused on than speed young grasshopper. Also, learn to play the guitar.
01-08-22, 04:54 PM
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Originally Posted by tomato coupe
Ummmmmm ... no.
You really are a fount of disinformation.
You really are a fount of disinformation.
TIL, both "font" and "fount" are used in that context, and both make sense.
01-08-22, 05:06 PM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
I tried putting a dead truck battery on the rear rack but make the bike extremely unstable.
I'm getting most annoyed with you because you just posted in a different thread about how riding in too high a gear was such a bad thing, but now you're going on about the training benefits of riding against higher levels of resistance. It's literally the same thing. That, and the fact that no one on this thread has asked for all this cockamamie advice.
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01-08-22, 05:38 PM
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A dead truck battery makes a great bike accessory. Probably serves as a night stand, coffee table or roof weight when not on bike duty.
01-08-22, 06:06 PM
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Originally Posted by shelbyfv
A dead truck battery makes a great bike accessory. Probably serves as a night stand, coffee table or roof weight when not on bike duty.
01-08-22, 08:30 PM
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Originally Posted by majmt
At 15, my cycling was focused on how many times that I could ride by Mary Ellen Clark’s house in single ride without being too obvious. We went together later in high school and she told me that she watched me riding by “a few times.” What I’m saying is that there are other (better ) things to be focused on than speed young grasshopper. Also, learn to play the guitar.
) things to be focused on than speed young grasshopper. Also, learn to play the guitar.
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01-08-22, 08:33 PM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
But when it comes to dropping heavy things on coyotes, nothing beats an anvil.
I hated dragging that ******g thing around, loading it in and out of the truck to set up. And it was a small, farrier's anvil, at like 130 pounds.
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01-08-22, 09:27 PM
#86
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
But when it comes to dropping heavy things on coyotes, nothing beats an anvil.
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01-08-22, 09:38 PM
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Originally Posted by BlazingPedals
A big rock comes close, though.
01-08-22, 09:45 PM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
I thought with my handling skills, I can tame it. But the bike frame or the rack flexed like crazy with the dead truck battery and everytime I tried to turn, the bike swayed on its own side to side. I already tried sitting forward to weigh the front wheel but the steering issue did not go away.
Weights, not good. You don't hear me anymore telling to use heavy bike or increase weight on bike for training because it affects handling.
It's better to increase aero drag with clothing (not with any kind of parachute) or wheel resistance.
Low cadence / high gear training is not good as I found out later in studies.
High cadence on high gear (spinning big gears) training on the other hand is still good, just not safe in all road conditions due to speed. This is why in such situations, you can use added mechanical and aero resistance to simulate such efforts.
Weights, not good. You don't hear me anymore telling to use heavy bike or increase weight on bike for training because it affects handling.
It's better to increase aero drag with clothing (not with any kind of parachute) or wheel resistance.
Low cadence / high gear training is not good as I found out later in studies.
High cadence on high gear (spinning big gears) training on the other hand is still good, just not safe in all road conditions due to speed. This is why in such situations, you can use added mechanical and aero resistance to simulate such efforts.
Out the battery in a trailer. Makes about as much sense as your other ideas.
Get a trainer. It's better than messing up your bike with crappy parts or wearing baggy clothing.
01-08-22, 10:11 PM
#89
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
One of the kids that I ride with finished his second year this past July and bought a road bike off of an older rider who aged out of the program. All season this kid would talk about how much faster he would be on a road bike and how much his FX1 hybrid was holding him back. It was almost an ongoing joke that if he was with a faster group and couldnt keep up, he was going to complain about how much slower he was due to the hybrid. I would temper his expectations each time I heard him talking. He will be faster next season, Im sure, but it will be a mix of him being stronger and a healthy heap of placebo.
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01-08-22, 10:33 PM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
I went only 200 meters before I decided to remove it.
01-08-22, 10:50 PM
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[QUOTE=cubewheels;22366817]Ofc, a trailer.
For what it's worth, I did it last November before I bought a new wheelset. The weight of the battery and me on the bike bent the freewheel axle even more when I hit just a tiny pothole. It forced me to buy a new wheelset a lot sooner than I should.
The battery also spilled a few drops of its contents from all the shaking, might be just water, hope it's not corrosive. I went only 200 meters before I decided to remove it.
I can also sit on the rack but not a good idea. It made the bike quite unstable and front wheel did shimmy.
That should power a nice bright motorcycle headlight with power to spare.
For what it's worth, I did it last November before I bought a new wheelset. The weight of the battery and me on the bike bent the freewheel axle even more when I hit just a tiny pothole. It forced me to buy a new wheelset a lot sooner than I should.
The battery also spilled a few drops of its contents from all the shaking, might be just water, hope it's not corrosive. I went only 200 meters before I decided to remove it.
I can also sit on the rack but not a good idea. It made the bike quite unstable and front wheel did shimmy.
That should power a nice bright motorcycle headlight with power to spare.
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01-08-22, 11:52 PM
#92
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Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Hello everybody,
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
01-08-22, 11:52 PM
#93
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Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Hello everybody,
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
01-08-22, 11:54 PM
#94
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Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Hello everybody,
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
01-09-22, 06:33 AM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
Or power a portable welding machine if you plan a very long unsupported tour of the Silk Road with an all-steel touring bike so you don't have to look for a welding shop in the middle of nowhere if you break your frame or your rims. Nope, don't do it.
It turned out to be a terrible idea. It's impossible to ride the bike straight despite my already good bike handling skills.
Perhaps doable on a cargo bike or with trailer as one our BF geniuses mentioned. Otherwise, going up a mild gradient with a heavily loaded bike on trailer might be a good idea for training.
It turned out to be a terrible idea. It's impossible to ride the bike straight despite my already good bike handling skills.
Perhaps doable on a cargo bike or with trailer as one our BF geniuses mentioned. Otherwise, going up a mild gradient with a heavily loaded bike on trailer might be a good idea for training.
That "BF genius" was me and I was joking. The whole idea of the truck battery was incredibly stupid.
01-09-22, 10:13 AM
#96
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
It might be a good idea if I have trailer. I have a "climbing loop" route nearby and the only way I can simulate it to become like a long climb is haul some weights on the bike.
01-09-22, 10:44 AM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
OMG! We have a fakking genius!!
01-09-22, 10:52 AM
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Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Thanks for the reply! I bike on the side routes and the main part of the ride is on walking/biking trail with no cars nearby
Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Thanks! I live in the Bay Area and I haven't found a club yet. I think once I get my first road bike I might be faster considering I have been using a hybrid bike with the Tourney Shimano groupset, and the bike weighs like 26+ lbs
Originally Posted by alexTREKal3
Hello everybody,
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?
Thanks!
IMO, I think you are doing great and keep it up.
I used to live in NorCal on the peninsular and have done most of the rides / climbs and races in Bay Area including riding and racing at the track at Hellyer in Santa Clara. And I supervised and taught the Saturday beginner sessions at Hellyer. Hence, I had many junior students.
I can assure you that it is impossible to tell what speed you are capable of achieving riding a bicycle over a fixed distance based upon one ride on a bike path. You just started. The hardest part of anything is getting started. You are there.
In the Bar Area, as a junior, you have many options for participation in junior development programs, rides, races and other events including riding and racing at the Hellyer Velodrome. https://hellyervelodrome.com/saturday-novice
You need a parent or guardian to go with you to Hellyer and sign a waiver and discuss riding with the Saturday supervisor. Rental bikes are available and the session is free to juniors. At the velodrome, on a track bike, you will soon see how fast you can go. Keep in mind that when juniors start, they are not that fast but progress rapidly. I mean very rapidly.
All of the posts and general noise in this thread about making cycling harder by pulling trailers and etc is a distraction and disruptive. Hopefully, you are ignoring them. You have significant assets - your youth: that can be improved by just riding your bike and maximized if you get into a junior program either on the road or track or both. And you have some of the best cycling venues in the world to ride your bike. Good luck.
Last edited by Hermes; 01-10-22 at 05:01 PM.
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01-09-22, 11:54 AM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
Or power a portable welding machine if you plan a very long unsupported tour of the Silk Road with an all-steel touring bike so you don't have to look for a welding shop in the middle of nowhere if you break your frame or your rims. Nope, don't do it.
It turned out to be a terrible idea. It's impossible to ride the bike straight despite my already good bike handling skills.
Perhaps doable on a cargo bike or with trailer as one our BF geniuses mentioned. Otherwise, going up a mild gradient with a heavily loaded bike on trailer might be a good idea for training.
It turned out to be a terrible idea. It's impossible to ride the bike straight despite my already good bike handling skills.
Perhaps doable on a cargo bike or with trailer as one our BF geniuses mentioned. Otherwise, going up a mild gradient with a heavily loaded bike on trailer might be a good idea for training.
I see parents hauling around their young kids in bicycle trailers and always think, now there’s a workout. But seldom do you seem them hill climbing. With the extra weight going down a 5%+ grade and stopping suddenly could be a little unnerving with kids, so duh. So put your battery there
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01-09-22, 12:10 PM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
The weight will make you slower at the same effort if you have low enough gears for loaded climbing making it feel like a longer climb.
Just go up a gear, same effect on a hill without putting stupid items on your bike. Trust me, you aren't going to have a lot of fun riding back down that hill with a big lead weight on a trailer.
What does any of this nonsense have to do with the thread? Just stop.
I'd let this go, but you're posting all kinds of bad advice and misinformation on a thread about a 15 year old beginner. This particular 15 y.o. seems to understand you haven't got a clue, but I'm concerned about other beginners who might stumble onto this thread later.
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