road cyclist's guide to wind direction
 

i have recently conducted a scientific study and come up with the following results.

probability of each wind direction on an average day if you are not currently on a bicycle:
http://i1098.photobucket.com/albums/...ber7/wind1.jpg

probability of each wind direction on an average day if you are currently on a bicycle:
http://i1098.photobucket.com/albums/...ber7/wind2.jpg

can anyone confirm these results?

It looks accurate to me.

Very insightful, but I don't think I've ever experienced the .01 tailwind the second pie chart depicts..

I hoist a sail from my bike, and it is an angled sail that allows me to tic tac into a headwind.

But in short, I don't really care.

:) Yeah, that about sums it up for me.

Do you get paid by someone or some company/entity to "conduct" this "scientific study"?:innocent:

I have. It was awesome. I was coasting at 45 mph for about two miles.

Then I turned back into the wind, and I was struggling to go 8 mph. West Texas wind can be brutal.

This is consistent with my data.

Me too, and we all know the plural of "anecdote" is "data".

My favorite rides are the out-and-backs where you battle a headwind all the way out and then the wind dies for the back leg.

I have. It looked like this:
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=199654

excellent use of visual aids to construct your post. gold star sir.

Edited to more accurately reflect my experiences.

I have. It was legendary, the kind of thing you remember for the rest of your life. I was climbing a hill, and it was easier than normal thanks to a helpful gust from behind. Truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

@Whyfi

That is exactly what happened to me today.
The worst thing about it is that the wind died down when ever I was climbing hills or during the short time I was riding with a tailwind. I think it was taunting me...:notamused:

Works the same with sailing.

How fast do you avarage on the bike. That is obviously your apparent headwind in a no wind state. the only time you will be free of the apparent wind velocity is when the wind is dead on your ass at the exact speed you are going so ya, you will have an apparent head wind of one degree or another almost always.

hey chinarider is that '74 Stella blue? :D

I've had the singular pleasure of riding for 2.5 hours one way into the wind in Bhutan and needing to pedal to maintain 16mph on a 5% downhill. And NOTHING on the way back. I think the second graph over-states the frequency of tailwinds.

Sundays ride 14 mph into a 20 mph headwind sor 15 miles, just realishing the return ride. Started back- total 180 degree shift in the wind now facing a 5-10 mph headwind. Sucked.

I have had the same problem with the wind. I do believe it hates cyclists.

Couldn't agree more with that edit.

agreed

Why is it that whenever I head out into a headwind, if I turn around and come back the same way, the wind has made the same 180 turn?

Because you're moving? Wind doesn't generally blow in a straight line (or at least not in the same direction as the road you're riding), so even a tailwind becomes a crosswind or headwind as you ride around bends. Also, a mile of tailwind ridden at 30mph lasts 2 minutes. A mile of headwind ridden at 10mph takes 6 minutes. So even if you get that elusive tailwind, once you turn around, you'll spend most of your time battling a headwind and that's what you remember.