we're talking about what's good for beginners..., anyone asking about average speed is likely to be just starting out at any kind of "serious" road biking.

so, they're not likely to be wondering: "gee, should i do the A or the B ride?"

easier rides require less in the way of cooperative riding, so it's not likely to be a problem.

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.

I've noticed that by setting the auto-pause speed at 17mph, it helped my average some. Of course it takes me all day to ride 2 or 3 miles, but Speed is a demanding mistress, yes?

To the others who think I'm taking this average speed thing to seriously, don't worry. I know I'm not fast enough to keep up with the big boys. Tried a few months ago and got dropped like a hot potato. A pretty female rider even warned me that'll happen before the ride started, which was especially sad because how the hell did she know I wasn't good enough? Not like I asked her how important average speed is.

Guess it's time for me to stop frequenting this forum, if this is the standard. Then again, I'd love to see you maintain that pace on some of my "climbing" rides. Living in the foothills of the Cascades and spending time in the Sierra's changed my opinion about average speed (greatly varying depending on terrain and that days goals).

It was a joke....

To the OP, yes, it affects your average speed, sometimes significantly.

I like to look at my average speed on my 20 mile commute before I head into the city. Once I hit the city, I can easily lose 1-2 mph (over the last 4 miles) due to stopping/slowing for lights. It's a helpful stat, but not that important, even if it's fun to look at.

Yes, just blow through those red lights.

Actually I was just getting ready to say the opposite. If I'm planning a group ride, I need to know the overall average, which includes time stopped.

example: We did a slow no-drop ride on Sunday. Our typical riding speed was about 17. After the ride, my computer said the average speed was only 14. At first I assumed that included rest stops, and I started to use that pace to plan next week's ride. But then I realized my computer is only computing while moving. I'm surprised that our "average while moving" was only 14, I guess we spent a lot of time slowing down for traffic lights every 1/2 mile or so.

Anyway, for planning purposes, since my computer doesn't report "total time" or "overall average speed", I need to remember to keep track of our average moving speed, the distance, AND the amount of time at regroups and rest stops.

Why do you think you need to know the overall average including the regroups? If you need to know how long the ride takes, just look at the clock, it doesn't matter what the "speed is".

My point was that if we rode 20mph for an hour then had to wait for 10 min for the slower riders at a regroup (say the top of a climb), then continued to ride another 20 miles in the next hour, 20mph would be more representative of the average pace of MY ride than 18.4mph.

This.




Unless you live in absolutely pancake-flat terrain with no traffic lights or stop signs anywhere on your route, "average speed" is only useful for....er, well, nothing really. Absolutely nothing.

That was the whole point of this thread wasn't it, to ask what the effect is of stops on the average speed? Not everyone is lucky enough to live in absolutely pancake-flat terrain with no traffic lights or stop signs anywhere. For people in the real world, like me, being able to somehow compensate for stops and know the effect on average speed would be handy. Further, as explained several times already, average speed in less than ideal circumstances can be useful as indicators of improvement when used with the exact same course in similar conditions.

My big question is, WHY is average speed such a horrible metric to use? If I shouldn't be monitoring my speed, what IS a good metric to monitor?

I understand that average speed will change depending on route/terrain/etc., but I figure it's a good enough way to tell if I'm getting better. For example, before my first triathlon this past weekend, I rode the tri bike route a couple times a week. When I started, my average speed was 15-16mph, and at the race my speed was 17.2. Probably a good indicator that I am getting better, right?
My computer doesn't include time stopped in average speed, but I really only care about my speed when I'm moving. I can just look at a clock if I'm curious about how long the ride actually took (as opposed to the ride time my computer shows me, which stops timing when I'm stopped).

Sit in a chair. Look down. Do you see ripped diesel legs?

No

Of course. But on Sunday, I forgot to note the time when we finished. An extra manual timer would be nice to have, but my computer doesn't have one.

My old bike has a mid-1980's Vetta computer, and you have to manually turn the timer on/off if you want to know average speed. Which I would usually forget to turn on. Or turn off. It's always something.

depends if your cycle computer goes to "stop" mode when the wheels stop moving. My Cyclo Sport does but my old Avocet did not.