How Much Do Hills Affect Average Speed...
10-28-10, 08:24 PM
#227
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I only read a tiny bit of these 9 pages of drivel. All I know is I can ride ~20mph average all week long in flat West Texas (200 miles, 1000 total feet climbing, 9.5 hours ride time). Absolutely balls-to-the-wall riding my 30 miles loop, 2500 feet climbing, here I can barely break 18mph. A more casual pace is 17mph. Thus, climbing slows your average speed down by 20%.
10-28-10, 08:34 PM
#229
Has coddling tendencies.
It's an instinctual maneuver anyone riding on two wheels does to initiate a turn. I didn't need a long over-drawn debate about it. Same with ducking to avoid a ball tossed toward one's head. It took me awhile to not think about CS it when out on a ride becacuse I have an aversion to wasting precious brain time. Some things aren't worth thinking about. Counter steering being one of those things.
10-28-10, 09:30 PM
#230
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Don't bother trying. You'll only want to pound your head on a table.
10-28-10, 10:03 PM
#231
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the OP wanted to know if there is a greater or lesser discrepancy between average speeds for rides of varying terrain, depending on rider experience. His hypothesis was that a more experienced rider would show a lesser discrepancy. My data backed it up, but I still felt the premise was flawed because it failed to take into account the cubic nature of drag vs velocity.
I'm an enthusiastic novice. I'm fortunate to be able to ride a lot, over 3,200 miles since I started in June. My Tuesday's ride lap results surprised me - it was the first time they reflected such a clear disparity in ascending and its effect on my speed. Could climbing make such a huge difference for experienced cyclists? So I launched what seemed like a reasonable question.
It's quite amazing to see the way a thread can take on a life of its own. I am adding this response despite my concern about making the thread even longer because the subject of the thread actually returned somewhat to my original topic and I actually do appreciate the responses.
Last edited by hobkirk; 10-28-10 at 10:25 PM.
10-28-10, 10:12 PM
#232
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As the OP's experience grows he may (but not necessarily) go faster on the flat so that his up speed becomes a lower percentage of his "normal" flat speed. His down speed will be more limited by wind as he tries to go faster. So for him the hill effect may grow! But a different rider may not typically ride that fast on the flat but be quite able to spin uphill with a good aerobic capacity to back it up. So that rider's up/flat/down speeds may not differ as much from each other. There are too many ways it can go in practice. The only way to make a calculation-based prediction is to define your baseline, and that's not so easy!
10-29-10, 12:23 AM
#233
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This is the addiction thread for "intellectual" men. We need Mathlab or math fonts so they can have their fill. One of the few posts that actually reference post numbers instead of quoting.
10-29-10, 01:16 AM
#234
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You guys are all wrong. You can get all the time back on the down hill simply by riding faster than the speed of light (which I can do when I'm on form).
Don't try this in a race though, you end up finishing the race before you start it!
Don't try this in a race though, you end up finishing the race before you start it!
10-29-10, 03:43 AM
#235
Peloton Shelter Dog
We could make a movie about this thread starring G. Clooney and M. Wahlberg called 'The Perfect Moron'.
10-29-10, 04:00 AM
#236
Still can't climb
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massively. on flats i go at about mid 20s. I've noticed that on flattish routes my av speed is is in the twenties and certainly on flat stretches i would normally go along mid 20s. Throw in hills and my av speed heads down to the 16, 15 region. pathetic.
on downhills i am lightning fast.
on downhills i am lightning fast.
There. I've said it. I feel better already. Some of you should come to BF confession too.
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coasting, few quotes are worthy of him, and of those, even fewer printable in a family forum......quote 3alarmer
No @coasting, you should stay 100% as you are right now, don't change a thing....quote Heathpack
10-29-10, 05:52 AM
#238
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I've been having trouble sleeping the last few nights and i think it is a guilty conscience about this thread. I have to come clean for the sake of my sanity. My average speed on flattish routes is about 20, not mid twenties.
There. I've said it. I feel better already. Some of you should come to BF confession too.
There. I've said it. I feel better already. Some of you should come to BF confession too.
10-29-10, 06:33 AM
#239
Je pose, donc je suis.
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With apologies to the OP for contributing to the derailment of his thread. Anyone can PM me or start a new thread if they can't let this one die.
/Pedaleur
10-29-10, 06:40 AM
#240
Still can't climb
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i think the genuinely useful stuff has already been posted like the grumpy stats. dreailments are go!
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coasting, few quotes are worthy of him, and of those, even fewer printable in a family forum......quote 3alarmer
No @coasting, you should stay 100% as you are right now, don't change a thing....quote Heathpack
coasting, few quotes are worthy of him, and of those, even fewer printable in a family forum......quote 3alarmer
No @coasting, you should stay 100% as you are right now, don't change a thing....quote Heathpack
10-29-10, 08:55 AM
#242
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10-29-10, 05:14 PM
#243
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I've been having trouble sleeping the last few nights and i think it is a guilty conscience about this thread. I have to come clean for the sake of my sanity. My average speed on flattish routes is about 20, not mid twenties.
There. I've said it. I feel better already. Some of you should come to BF confession too.
There. I've said it. I feel better already. Some of you should come to BF confession too.
10-29-10, 06:18 PM
#244
Raising the Abyss
This thread reminds me the that only good part about working around engineer-types is my salary.
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"...in Las Vegas where -the electric bills are staggering -the decor hog wild -and the entertainment saccharine -what a golden age -what a time of right and reason -the consumer's king -and unhappiness is treason..."
11-04-10, 02:02 PM
#245
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I missed this debate while I was benched. I don't really have anything to add except pedantry, so...
I must say, this is the only time I have ever seen "begs the question" used correctly on bikeforums. 
Unfortunately this is not used correctly.
But for the proof to be complete, we must postulate that the average speed on flat ground would be the arithmetic mean in the first place -- a claim that is easily disproved. Thus begging the question, "Why do we care if the average speed is not the arithmetic mean of v_up and v_down?"
11-04-10, 03:37 PM
#249
Je pose, donc je suis.
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It should say, "which begs the question," not "thus begging the question", because it avoids the question, not raises it.
You missed a good pointless pedantic physics argument, though -- it must have been hard on you!
I'm sensing a revival...