Cheating with Strava segments
 

There is a segment on one of my routes to work/weekend routes where I am certain asterisks should litter the leaderboard.

You can either start this segment after a mild downhill and sharp right turn, after a two mile climb and left turn at a light, or by blowing through the same [green] light after a wicked steep descent. I have never been lucky enough to make the light. If you do, you get a 35+ mph head start. It may just be me, but the segment leaderboards motivate me to do better.

Check out Monday's commute forecast for 6:00 a.m.

Anyone else have Strava segments where questionable results can be reasonably explained?

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=243229

Does Strava accept gpx files? If you know what you're doing (it really isn't difficult at all), you can edit those in Notepad before uploading them, and make yourself as fast as you want.

Yes, GPX and TCX ain't rocket science. Aside from technical prowess, just wondering if anyone else finds a physical advantage like the example.

it might be just me, but i think timing of traffic lights and the choice of your approach into a segment is all fair game and not cheating. quite honestly, imho, as long as you ride through the segment on a bicycle, it's all fair, no matter what you do (unless you are drafting a vehicle) - having said that, there are some local segments that 8 of the first 10 places were riders on a paceline...still, don't consider it cheating, but definitely asterisk worthy!

and yes, strava segment leader boards fuel me for some helluva intervals!

The closest segment to my house is the climb up Paris Mountain which is used in the USPro road race. All the top placings are efforts from the race.

But I hold the record for the fastest descent!

There are a few segments on my routine training ride that aren't legit -- it looks like someone left their garmin turned on, while they drove home. No way anyone was doing 35mph up that 1 mile, 6% grade...

thats definitely part of the game.

I'm number 2 on a climb locally where the current leader evidently went up a 1.1km @ 10% hill at nearly 40km/h. I strongly suspect this is a false reading. The same guy has number of other 'records' that appear to have been him on a sport bike.

This one is my all time favourite though : http://app.strava.com/segments/1011729. Roughly 80,000km/h.

Those are just people from the 41.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_dyrsoAi68o...0/PB210313.JPG

given this information, hitting the base at 35mph will give you about a 0.13 mile head start over a standing start.

I've never seen a chart like the OP posted on Strava. Their charts just don't look like that.

There is one steady hill here in AZ, and the second place person is somewhere around 27mph. The first place person is 70ish mph............

Segments are cool and all...

But the real question is can those times be pulled off during a race effort, while you're entering the segment tired and already worn...

That's awesome. I came across an interesting one earlier today http://app.strava.com/segments/676478. Nearly everyone in the top 50 was going over 100mph.

That's my pet peeve with Strava. A lot of the steep climbs in my area are fed by downhills. There are some KOM's where the leader took multiple attempts at ramping up and beginning a 16% grade at 25+ mph to get the highest entering speed possible.

I suggested to Strava if you could have a KOM based on a 0 mph start of a climb to negate the benefit of a downhill. It's not going to happen since every KOM would have multiple times.

Some races happen where the climbs are preceded by downhills.

I think it's legitimate and whatever way to KOM is fair game.

I just think it's silly that there's so much commotion over a segment. I mean if you want to race, go race, otherwise just KOM as you will.

Is it really that big of a deal to get a little head start? I could see having issue with someone getting towed up to speed by a car or something but that's not the case, they're using the same steep descent that is available to anyone else right?

If you're still bothered by it create a new segment that starts halfway up the hill until you reach the top. That way any effect an initial starting speed had is gone and you have a segment that is all leg power.

What, there's no control for wind? :p

What difference does it make if people cheat? This sort of thing strikes me as even less significant than someone taking a shortcut on a recreational organized ride and claiming to have ridden the entire route.

I have a cup, not 1st, I got on a day with the biggest tail wind I've ever had. I assume all high "scores" are achieved by similar means.

one of my KOM came at the end of a 3 hour ride, so i have to believe no one is cheating on any of my segments hahaha (remember im fat and slow)