What's your average distance, pace, etc? [Archive] - Women's Cycling Discussion Forums

Jiffer

10-09-2008, 12:41 PM

I thought it would be fun to see what types of rides us TE'ers do. What distances do we typically ride, what type of terrain (flat, lot of hills, etc.) and what pace do we do it in? And how long have we been riding?

I started riding two years ago when my husband, a strong rider, talked me into getting a road tandem. 9 months later I got my own bike and have primarily ridden that.

Now that summer is over and I'm not training for a century and school has started (I homeschool), I'm typically riding 3 times a week, 20-30-ish, sometimes 50 or longer. There is almost always some sort of climbing involved in my rides because of where I live.

Until recently, my average pace was typically in the mid 14 mph range if I was riding moderate to hard. So, slower if I was taking it easy. But then last month it jumped to the high 15 range and I was so excited. And now, all of a sudden, I had a 53 mile ride on Sunday with 1750 ft of climbing that was a 16.4 pace ... and a 21 mile ride today with 721 ft of climbing that was 16.9. This thrills me beyond measure. :D It's so exciting to feel yourself getting stronger and faster.

alpinerabbit

10-09-2008, 12:47 PM

I have a couple of favorite rides.

the 1:45 evening ride has 2 hills and a nice stretch of flat, or alternatively another two hills (35K)

the 2hr scenic ride has one major hill and coffee at the top of it. (40K)

the 2:30 round of the lake is almost flat. (65K)

then I do a couple rounds of ~100 on weekends, and we've mapped out a century route.

Then there's the 90K ironman route that we do sometimes.

I've logged a surprising amout of km this year with mostly weekend rides - so most of them must have been in the 100k range.

average pace - 20kph for easy, up to 26kph for flattish.

aicabsolut

10-09-2008, 03:38 PM

Flat rides (30-70 mi) with maybe 600 feet of "climbing" (overpasses) are around 18-19mph average solo or in a small group, 21mph in a big group.

Lightly rolling rides, like my weekly 50 miler, are something in the 3000-4000 vertical feet range, averaging around 16mph for "slow," 17-17.5mph solo, and 17-18.5 in a small to mid sized group.

"Hillier" rolling rides (steeper grades and lots of little climbs with a few longish ones that take it out of me quicker than what I consider lightly rolling), may be more like 30-48 mi and closer to 3000 ft than 3500 or 4000. Average speeds for me (typically solo on those roads) are around 15.5-17.5mph.

Then there are mountain rides of 45-60 miles (in a group technically, but many of the miles are too difficult for me to keep up with the guys enough to get much drafting benefit, and I'm also slower on descents). 4500-7000 feet of climbing. Average speeds from about 15-17mph (the 17mph ride involved a good sustained stretch of a rotating paceline around 20mph).

I have definitely gotten faster on certain terrain in the 2 years I've been cycling. These are my more recent numbers.

fastdogs

10-09-2008, 03:58 PM

I usually ride 8-10 miles during my lunch break, on the road. usually average a great big 10 mph. I have ridden as much as 30 miles on flat crushed limestone trail, again average 10 mph. I ride my trek 7200 hybrid.
I prefer to ride my mountain bike, but never check my average speed on the trail. 4-14 miles depending on where I go.
vickie

Veronica

10-09-2008, 04:26 PM

My 8 200 Ks (125 miles) this year have ranged from a low of 12.4 (40 miles of brake rub will fry your legs) to 14 mph. All have had more than 6,000 feet of climbing.

For the bike leg of my triathlons I've averaged 17.5 mph on a 25 mile flat course. 22.1 mph on an 11 mile flat course and 16 mph on a hillier 56 mile (1600 feet of climbing) course. That's all after swimming of course. :p

No drafting on the tris, very little on the 200Ks.

Veronica

7rider

10-09-2008, 04:33 PM

My commutes are 15 miles round trip, on generally flat roads, and I average about 13 mph for them (that accounts for a lot of stop-and-go riding and weaving around the downtown areas).

My group rides are on "rolling" terrain, generally 30-40 miles, at anywhere from 17-18 mph average. I'll gain anywhere from 1800 to 2500 feet for those rides, usually.

I just hit a personal best on a FLAT century - 97 miles at 20.6 mph.

According to my Bike Journal account, my "average" ride (total miles / number of rides) is 23.2 miles at 15.1 mph, and I've gained a little over 1,000 feet each ride. I'd say that's a pretty fair assessment of my year. FWIW, my average HR was 142 and max HR was 189! ;)

Oh, and I've been riding, more or less, for about 15 years now.

jobob

10-09-2008, 04:40 PM

One of the most memorable TE threads :cool:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=7968

Madride

10-09-2008, 06:42 PM

Most of my rides are very hilly around 20-25 miles and I average about 14 mph on those. If I climb the pass near my house It is about 5 miles to the top and it takes me about 40 minutes to get there so I average around 10 mph on those rides. On the rides that are more flat, although it is near impossible to find any where flat where I live, I average around 16-17mph.

pardes

10-09-2008, 07:05 PM

About 6 miles a day of bus/bike commuting (6 miles on the bike, 19 miles on the bus) with a quick bike spin around at lunch.

Flat terrain (thank you God), average speed 7 miles per hour, a mix of city streets and suburbs neighborhood roads.

Trek 7.6 FX, loaded with panniers full, and a big fat smile on my face.

Aggie_Ama

10-09-2008, 08:00 PM

Well somedays it is 14 mph, somedays it is 18 mph. I did a century at 18.5 because I was in pancake flat Houston. I did 85 miles at 10.8 mph because I was in the mountains.

I like 15 mile rides, I like 60 milers (prefer the metric to an imperial century). I do both with regularity. I have other interests so some days I only want to spend 1-2 hours pedaling and somedays I want to spend all day. Most of the rides I do are ones that can be accomplished by rolling out my driveway and those will be rolling hills all day. Some steep climbs but mostly rolling with no end, not much flat but nothing to really call steep on most rides. My norm around her fluctuates 14-16 mph but honestly I like to look at the farm animals, the flowers, the houses and I don't usually rev it up to hard. I get distracted by nature so drafting is something of a lost cause on me, it takes too much attenion from the goats, llamas, chickens, cows, sunflowers, yucca, bluebonnets. You get the idea.

Some days I would rather hike 2-3 hours, some days I want to play on the dirt mountain biking 2-3 hours.

wildhawk

10-09-2008, 09:27 PM

I have been building in both miles and average speed on each of my rides since I started back to cycling the end of July. When I first started I could only do about 7 miles with avg. speed of 8.5. I can now do 20 miles 4 days a week with an average speed of 13.5 - 14.5 with faster sprints of 17 - 20 mph. DH and I try to get longer rides in on the weekends. Of course this is on the relatively flat trails near my home. I have been training on bridges for my “hills” here in Florida, but I have to slow down going up those - but at least I haven’t walked up them - I have muscled every one of those beasts! Nothing to compare to yall’s major hill climbing elsewhere in the world though. I just completed my first 50k - the trail had some pretty good grades so I had to work extra hard and faced a headwind most of the day going north on the trail. You are all an inspiration to me!!

Pardes: I train with full panniers too on my hybrid - comes in handy for packing my extra water and snacks - I got real spoiled on that SAG supported 50k! Now I am back to packing my own support stuff.

violette

10-10-2008, 04:01 AM

Our weekend rides are usually about 70km at 35kmh. We have no hills, all flat, but if we do the hills, we go about 20kmh.

indysteel

10-10-2008, 05:18 AM

I'm with Aggie Ama on this one. My average speed varies quite a bit these days depending on my mood, the terrain, the group, the weather, etc. For the past two years, I train and ride pretty hard up until the Ride Across Indiana in mid-July and then I get kind of burnt out and totally change gears, so to speak. For that reason, I'm thinking of skipping the ride next year. I just don't like what it does to my motivation.

My favorite ride is about 60 miles long regardless of the terrain, is with a group of about 8 of my favorite riding friends and averages around 17 to 18 mph for a flat ride, a bit slower if there are hills.

And I've been riding since July of 2006.

kfergos

10-10-2008, 06:35 AM

Let's see... I've been riding a couple years now. The vast majority of my rides are commutes: 13.5 to 15 miles, trending uphill on the way out takes me 52 to 55 minutes. Trending downhill on the way back takes me right around 50 minutes (those are summer speeds; in the winter it's a whole different ball game!). Generally I measure my elevation gain in hundreds, rather than thousands, of feet. A hilly ride might include 1,000 feet of elevation gain.

I did my 3 centuries at a 16-mph pace; alone I ride 14.5 or 15 mph. Not exactly a speed demon here. I'd like to get a little faster, but I never push myself commuting because I know I have to do this ride 10 times in a week. Pushing myself one day means the remaining rides will feel endless.

ETA: The hilliest ride I've done so far, the King's Tour of the Quabbin, was a century that involved 7,000 feet of elevation gain. It took me forever and my legs wanted to fall off at the end.

ETA 2: This thread got me thinking (a dangerous pastime, I know). I should just start measuring all my riding metrics in metric units. I could ride 21.7 km at a 25.7 kph pace every day. It's like improving with no work!

Aggie_Ama

10-10-2008, 06:51 AM

Indy- I have been there on the motivation peaks. Last fall I was all about the Imperial Century. I was spending all weekend doing 50-100 mile rides and had no problem. This year I completely tanked, I just couldn't do it. We did one 95 mile ride self supported this spring and that will be as close as I get to a century this year. I am happy to say my house is cleaner, my bathroom painted and in a couple weeks I will have the best landscaped yard in my neighborhood!

I log miles still but lately the adventure is what I crave. I get excited over the crane I saw, the llamas or ostrich being out, the cool house I never noticed or the sunflowers gently swaying but lately could care less if the average was 16 or 13 mph. And starting mountain biking brought a whole new level of chain love to my world. Now I get excited over finding a new trail that is easy enough for me or getting over a fear and trying something new.

arielmoon

10-10-2008, 07:04 AM

Jiffer

10-10-2008, 10:11 AM

I just started riding and logging my miles in May. My terrain is rolling hills.

I ride 20-30 miles a day on the weekdays averaging 18-19.6 mph by myself.

Group ride on Monday is 28 miles, and depending how many people come and which group I end up with, we average 20-22 mph.

I have taken some longer rides on the weekends 43 miles at 18.6 mph, 33 miles at 19.2 mph, and 55 miles at 17.5 mph.

For next weekend's century, my first, I am hoping to be in the 15-16 mph range.

Whenever I find myself hating you, I just tell myself I'm going to BE you some day and then I have to love you! ;) You're a total inspiration! You've only been riding since July?!! Surely you were pretty fit before you started cycling.

I don't think you'll have any trouble at all getting a 15-16 average on your century with the pace you are doing your shorter rides at and you may, quite possibly, do it faster. It depends, of course, on if you get into a good group, as well as the amount of climbing.

My fastest rides were when I was 100% pulled by my "super cycling man" husband. He pulled me and two friends on a 66 mile ride to the beach and back at 18 mph. I was ecstatic at my time, even being pulled. I worked SO hard and kicked my butt! A week later, he pulled the three of us on what was me and my girlfriend's first century. I ended up with a 16.3 average. Since you are already faster than me, even not being 100% pulled, I don't see any reason you wouldn't get at least a 16 average, unless there's a lot more climbing or you have weather issues or something. I had about 3,000 feet of climbing and near perfect cycling weather ... other than the major headwinds the last 10 miles.

Good luck on your century and let us know how it goes. :)

BleeckerSt_Girl

10-10-2008, 10:38 AM

wildhawk

10-10-2008, 10:47 AM

BleeckerSt: So true. Rolling hills to some could be mountains to others, and vice versa. I was told by my LBS guy that the Withlacoochee State Trail was “mostly flat”. But when we drove through Brooksville on the way there I thought that it looked very much like the terrain back home in Virginia. Some pretty good hills, but he was right. The state trail was mostly flat, but with some grades. And coupled with a headwind, I had a pretty fair workout on my 50k. And a lot depends on your ability and conditioning too. I will never complain about the “slight” grade on my home trail again - it feels like a piece of cake now!

Arielmoon: you will most definately succeed on that century - have an awesome time!!!

maillotpois

10-10-2008, 10:55 AM

One of the most memorable TE threads :cool:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=7968

Great walk down memory lane. Especially the part where Brandy writes that she's a total newbie rider and is just doing a 50 miler that weekend... :D:D:D

SouthernBelle

10-10-2008, 11:03 AM

Your average speed can be affected by what you are riding too. When I ride Ole Blue, the Bianchi Nyala, my averages are much slower. But it has little tiny rings compared to my road bike. So I can be pedalling my brains out and still be going lots slower.

arielmoon

10-10-2008, 11:18 AM

Whenever I find myself hating you, I just tell myself I'm going to BE you some day and then I have to love you! ;) You're a total inspiration! You've only been riding since July?!! Surely you were pretty fit before you started cycling.

~snip~

Good luck on your century and let us know how it goes. :)
Oh dont hate me! :eek: I was in pretty good shape before I started cycling in May. I compete in Dressage with my horse Ice:

http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc94/arielmoondance/Ice/6-9-07b-1.jpg

And like Bleeker said- every terrain is different. Most of you would probably laugh at my hills although Ocala is not like most of Florida.

And thanks for the encouragement about the century. BF is now exBF and he is going to do the 45. So I am going to hook up with the LBS group and hope for the best.

RoadRaven

10-10-2008, 12:14 PM

Always interesting to play with numbers.
I don't take note of average speeds anymore unless it is a particular course I am trying to improve on and am measuring myself against my own time or other's times.

So, I popped over to BikeJournal and worked out my stats for 2008...

So based on this year's 218 rides:

My average distance is 20.58km (a total of 4,487.87km for 2008)

My average time per ride is 59 minutes (a total of 209:15:57 hr:min:sec for 2008)

Therefore, that makes my average speed 20.93kph

However, to me that is a nonsense - interesting numbers, but not really a reflection of one of my average rides...

Usually, during training rides, I ride between 25-30kph

Hills, which slow me down will be ridden somewhere between 5kph and 16kph
Head winds will bring me back to about 25-26kph
Strong/gale force westerlies will have me moving under 20kph.

Usually, during road racing/riding in a racing bunch, I ride about between 30-45kph

My best time/speed this year was in a time trial race. That was 34.02kph over 19.3kms in March. I haven't approached that speed on my own again this year - which just shows you also that conditions as well as personal ability have a lot to do with averages. Some days everything just comes together.

So, as many have already said in this thread, although it is intriguing to play with number averages, it doesn't necessarily tell you about the type of riding a person does, the type of terrain they cover, the weather conditions on the day etc etc...

But thanks, its been an interesting thread to look through. Thanks all for giving us your stats
:)

Jiffer

10-10-2008, 12:25 PM

Oh dont hate me! :eek: I was in pretty good shape before I started cycling in May. I compete in Dressage with my horse Ice:

Hey! You're a horsey person! My daughter's do Hunter Jumper. Here's a pic of my oldest at a champ show a year ago. That same champ show is next week, but her horse is lame. :( He should be fine, but not in time for the show.

I think people underestimate the physical ability needed to ride a horse.

Yes, description of terrain can really vary from one person to another. That's why I mention feet of elevation climbed a lot and, sometimes, grade of incline. In my century, the "big climb" of Torrey Pines was about 2 miles of 7% grade. That, with other climbing resulted in 3000 feet total. There's a climb here that is maybe a quarter mile at 13%. That's stupid steep! And REALLY slows down your average pace.

I have ALSO found that when the terrain is literally "rolling", I can go a lot faster. I rode in Tahoe a couple of months ago and was able to sprint up a short rolling hill having just come down a previous one. Did this over and over again and really boosted my pace. That was almost 1400 feet of climbing. Doing that same amount of climbing here, where I might climb the entire 1400 at once or split into two climbs, yet not starting from a downhill roll ... gives me a completely different and slower pace.

arielmoon

10-10-2008, 02:41 PM

Always interesting to play with numbers.
I don't take note of average speeds anymore unless it is a particular course I am trying to improve on and am measuring myself against my own time or other's times.

~snip~
So, as many have already said in this thread, although it is intriguing to play with number averages, it doesn't necessarily tell you about the type of riding a person does, the type of terrain they cover, the weather conditions on the day etc etc...

But thanks, its been an interesting thread to look through. Thanks all for giving us your stats
:)
I agree completely! I compare myself only to myself and previous rides and also take into account different routes. On my farm route I am much slower due to having to turn around when I get the end of a lane!

Today for instance I added an extra loop that will be part of the century next weekend and it added almost 3 more miles to the scenic route I take a few times a week. I also recorded a personal best mph. So, I may not be able to compare with anyone else here but I know that I am getting stronger all the time.

That is what makes me happy!

Hey! You're a horsey person! My daughter's do Hunter Jumper. Here's a pic of my oldest at a champ show a year ago. That same champ show is next week, but her horse is lame. :( He should be fine, but not in time for the show.

I think people underestimate the physical ability needed to ride a horse.

Yes, description of terrain can really vary from one person to another. That's why I mention feet of elevation climbed a lot and, sometimes, grade of incline. In my century, the "big climb" of Torrey Pines was about 2 miles of 7% grade. That, with other climbing resulted in 3000 feet total. There's a climb here that is maybe a quarter mile at 13%. That's stupid steep! And REALLY slows down your average pace.

I have ALSO found that when the terrain is literally "rolling", I can go a lot faster. I rode in Tahoe a couple of months ago and was able to sprint up a short rolling hill having just come down a previous one. Did this over and over again and really boosted my pace. That was almost 1400 feet of climbing. Doing that same amount of climbing here, where I might climb the entire 1400 at once or split into two climbs, yet not starting from a downhill roll ... gives me a completely different and slower pace.

Sorry to hear your daughters horse is lame! They are a lovely pair! I agree there is much athleticism in riding HOWEVER not much cardio! And I will say this, I trained professionally for about 15 years and was never in the kind of shape I am now. And my riding? I can not believe how much stronger I am riding my horse. Not brute strength- horses are about finesse, but I have noticed the difference in my riding. My horse is so much more balanced!

Again I agree about comparing terrain. No one here in Ocala talks about feet of climbing or altitude.

You do what you can with what you have and keep working hard!!!

Veronica

10-10-2008, 03:19 PM

Again I agree about comparing terrain. No one here in Ocala talks about feet of climbing or altitude.

Google Earth makes Ocala look pretty flat. :)

Veronica

redrhodie

10-10-2008, 05:25 PM

One of the most memorable TE threads :cool:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=7968

That is the "Gone with the Wind" of threads! Thanks for posting it. I hadn't seen it before.

Aggie_Ama

10-10-2008, 08:21 PM

We need to remember that everyone's definition of 'hills' is different. :)
We all bike over vastly differing terrain depending on where we live.

I went to Cape Cod this summer and someone who rides there during the summers described a route as being 'very hilly'....well there were a couple of teeny bumps on the path, but certainly not worth leaving my middle ring for. I kept waiting for the hilly part to start, but it never did. :cool: To my delight, I was magically transformed into a much faster rider as well. :-D

I think of my area as 'rolling hills' no matter what direction i go in from home, but when I went to New Hampshire last weekend I think their definition of 'rolling hills' was significantly steeper than my definition! :rolleyes:

YUP. I consider my area rolling hills, gentle ones. Sometimes they are long but nothing extended. Some people come here and hear where I live and comment on how hilly it is. Then you go out to the Hill Country and some people call it rolling. I don't think a hill that is up to 3 miles long and 15% grade in short sections is rolling (Trisk if you read this I am talking about the road outside Leakey, you might know it). Some people call the famous Austin Dam Loop rolling, I think it is a little more intense than "rolling" but not full out climbing. It is just darn hilly that is for sure.

So my area is rolling but I don't go climbing around here! Of course I don't have anything to tell me my climbing stats and I don't normally care. I would like a Garmin but really I don't want to know my legs are screaming but I really didn't climb that much. :)

Crankin

10-11-2008, 04:46 AM

This thread just confirms my depressing riding situation. My average is getting worse. Two years ago most of my rides, on rolling terrain averaged just under 16. Sure, I ride with people who average 13 quite a bit, but when I rode with my husband, I could crank it up. Then, when I got sick last year, I lost a lot of strength, despite the fact I never totally stopped exercising. I didn't ride much last fall, though, but I did walk, do yoga, etc. Over the winter I slowly built up my endurance with x country skiing, hiking, snow shoeing. I've tried to get back into weight training, but it's sporadic. I felt good in the beginning of the season, but since May I've had a lot of ups and downs. After my tour across MA, which involved 4 days of really challenging climbs, I should have rested, but I didn't. Then I went for my orientation course on the Cape and I took my bike. I wasn't sleeping well and I felt like I was getting sick, with allergies, swollen glands, etc. Getting up at 5 AM to ride made me look tough to the younger people, but it did me in. It took 4 weeks to get over the thing I had and now my fibro. symptoms are acting up. I swore I wouldn't miss another fall of riding, since the weather is gorgeous.
After a particularly bad week of symptoms, I started feeling better; I rode Tuesday and my average was 14.2 on my regular loop of 15.7 miles, that ends in a 10-15% climb. Yesterday I felt better while riding, but my average was 13.6 :eek:. Granted, I did go on a route that involved a little slowing due to traffic situations.... I am trying to look at this as like the time I had the flu really bad and I had to stop teaching aerobics for 5 weeks afterwards. I swam instead to build up my strength. I don't want to stop riding, but I am just telling myself to go slow and maybe I'll end up going fast. Another month of this, and I will concentrate on weight training, hiking, and spin class. I usually ride outside through December, but once November comes, it's sporadic. It's just so depressing. I know that I still do more than most people, and I'm not competing against anyone but myself. My "regular" friends think I'm nuts for worrying about this, but I find myself enjoying riding my Jamis around town and for errands more than riding my road bike...

redrhodie

10-11-2008, 05:32 AM

Crankin, have you read "Bicycling Bliss" by Portia Masterson? There's a lot of good stuff in there about riding for health. She teaches about breathing, form, and techniques to keep you riding without injury.

I'm concerned about you feeling depressed by how fast you ride. I think you're awesome, and I know from reading your posts what you went through last year. You've gone through a lot physically, and you're still riding. I want you to keep going. A lot of people think going faster is "improving" when really, they're damaging themselves, and shortening their riding longevity. In the long run, you want to be able to ride your bike for many years to come, and be healthier from it. That's the point, not to compromise your health for speed.

Crankin

10-11-2008, 06:09 AM

I will pick up a copy of that book; I've never heard of it. I am not really *depressed,* but it is true that most of my life revolves around riding or some type of physical activity. I don't want that to stop. And yes, you are right, my goal is to keep riding until I die. I just feel it's a bit unfair when I read about some of the accomplishments of others here; I have the discipline to train, but I guess my body won't let me. There are people with physical issues much more involved than mine who do things that I only think about. I am trying to concentrate on building strength, because that is going to help me all around. One thing is for sure; riding has made it almost impossible for me to spend time in the gym, unless it's below 40 out. I'll go a couple of weeks to do weights or yoga and then the outdoors beckons me on those days... when it's just too nice out. I do have a mini gym at home, and am more apt to do that.
And riding/walking/hiking outside has been a good balance from my studies. Yesterday, I went out after spending 3 hours at the library, working on a paper. I couldn't spend one more minute there! So even though I was upset about my pitiful speed, I felt rejuvenated mentally and came home and finished my paper.

redrhodie

10-11-2008, 06:23 AM

The book is about riding for your mind as well as your body. She approaches riding as a meditation. I tried yesterday to think about using breath the way she discusses, and realized, even with my strong yoga background, I still don't fully breathe when I ride. It was an eye opener, and I have a lot of work to do.

I am a recovering bike computer junkie. Step 1, admit you have a problem. I took my computer off my bike. I still check the stats (I have my ways) when I get home, but that lapse in time (from looking at my average speed while still on the ride) keeps me from feeling badly about myself.

Mr. Bloom

10-11-2008, 08:32 AM

Using MotionBased, Here's what I figured out for 2008:

Total 2008 Miles: 3,582 in 147 rides
Longest Ride: 160.2 miles@20mph (RAIn Ride)

Average Ride: 24.3 miles
Average Speed: 16.7 mph
Fastest Speed: 60.7mph (uphill I think;)) 2nd fastest: 48mph
Total Climbing: 229,532 feet (nearly to the MOON!:cool:)

Time Riding: 18 months, trying to keep up with the athletically superior Silver:cool:

RoadRaven

10-11-2008, 10:30 AM

After a particularly bad week of symptoms, I started feeling better; I rode Tuesday and my average was 14.2 on my regular loop of 15.7 miles, that ends in a 10-15% climb. Yesterday I felt better while riding, but my average was 13.6 :eek:.

<snip>

It's just so depressing. I know that I still do more than most people, and I'm not competing against anyone but myself. My "regular" friends think I'm nuts for worrying about this, but I find myself enjoying riding my Jamis around town and for errands more than riding my road bike...

Enjoyment is what it is all about, and try to hold onto that.
It is so hard when you know you have been faster/quicker etc... but you know why you are not in the same place 2 years ago. Being really unwell can take months to get over, and then months and maybe more months to start to get back what you had.
Be patient. Know it will return

And keep that goal - its an excellent goal - so many people have only tight, specific goals. But you need a goal like this too - it helps keep life in balance. I tell my students about a woman in France who lived til 103yrs. She was still delivering mail for their postal services, on her bike, until the year she died.
Great, eh?

And Red, I'm going to check out that book too. It sounds really interesting...

kelownagirl

10-11-2008, 10:41 AM

Bikejournal says:

78 rides this year.
Avg speed 24.5 kmh (15.2 mph)
Not very accurate because of the variety of rides types.

However, here are my rough stats according to type:

Hilly rides: avg speed about 25-26 kmh (15-16 mph)
Flat rides: avg speed about 29-30 kmh (18-18.5 mph)

Best time:
Triathlon:
20k in 38:18
31.5 kph (19.6 mph) (had 900' climbing including two 9% hills.)

Eden

10-11-2008, 10:50 AM

Crankin - If you don't have one already, I would encourage you to get a hr monitor and really watch for signs of over training. Especially as you are recovering from an illness and have some health issues, it may be very easy for you to do too much (much less than you were used to can now be too much!) and once you get into that trend it can be hard to get out. Many people as they see their numbers drop feel that they should train harder, which exacerbates their over training, makes them slower, so they try to train more - its a downward spiral... when what they really need is some rest and recovery.

Signs of over training: (yeah - unfortunately they can all be symptoms of other things too... I think elevated resting HR is one of the better indicators)

elevated resting HR
Washed-out feeling, tired, drained, lack of energy
Mild leg soreness, general aches and pains
Pain in muscles and joints
Sudden drop in performance
Insomnia
Headaches
Decreased immunity (increased number of colds, and sore throats)
Decrease in training capacity / intensity
Moodiness and irritability
Depression
Loss of enthusiasm for the sport
Decreased appetite
Increased incidence of injuries.
A compulsive need to exercise

Crankin

10-11-2008, 11:27 AM

I know all about over training...
My problem is that I never know how and when my symptoms will appear. I sort of can tell if I am on the edge of a regular illness or allergy thing that I need to back off and at times, I don't, which is bad. Most of the fibro. symptoms start during an illness, when my body is under stress. I went through years of continual illnesses (nothing life threatening) in my thirties when I was teaching aerobics. Now that was over training; I gave myself heart palpitations from getting up and teaching at 5 AM and living on coffee all day at work. Plus the fact that I weighed 92 pounds didn't help, either. Well, I am over that!
I have a HR monitor that I haven't used in a couple of years. I was too obsessed with it. I learned that my HR is always higher than it *should* be, even when I am riding flats and feel really good. I always start out at a high HR, and then it settles down. My resting HR first thing in the morning is between 55 and 62 and I check it every morning. That is a good indication of my health.
I just came back from a really good ride. It's probably the flattest ride I can do around here, except for the climb to my house. I actually felt good the whole time and my average was 15. I am forgetting about speed for awhile!

Aggie_Ama

10-11-2008, 11:32 AM

Signs of over training: (yeah - unfortunately they can all be symptoms of other things too... I think elevated resting HR is one of the better indicators)

elevated resting HR
Washed-out feeling, tired, drained, lack of energy
Mild leg soreness, general aches and pains
Pain in muscles and joints
Sudden drop in performance
Insomnia
Headaches
Decreased immunity (increased number of colds, and sore throats)
Decrease in training capacity / intensity
Moodiness and irritability
Depression
Loss of enthusiasm for the sport
Decreased appetite
Increased incidence of injuries.
A compulsive need to exercise

Thanks for posting this! I realized when I used to run all the time I ended up with almost all of these. Since I never led an active life before 2004 I am a little out of touch with my body. Good to keep in mind.

Eden

10-11-2008, 11:50 AM

I don't think its too unusual for hr to start high and then settle in - its what I expect doing a TT, even with a good warm up there's an initial spike then things settle in. It's good you do your resting hr - it is one of the first indicators and its quantitative.

Good for you for letting go of speed. My training is all by time and effort (can't afford power.... so its hr for now). I don't pay much attention to speed or distance until its race time. I certainly do compare my TT times on the same course from year to year too see if I've improved- and I generally look at other peoples as well to take into account course conditions too - even if you are slower, if everyone else was slower too and by a greater percentage, you can still have had a good year.

IMHO average speed on a training ride is pretty useless... unless you are on a closed course doing a TT there's just too many variables to make it a useful measurement. Someone on a straight flat 10 mile road with no stop signs or stop lights can "average" the exact same speed as someone who is on a hilly, twisty 10 mile road with 5 lights and a 2 stop signs. The person who had to slow down and stop a whole bunch of times had to have gone considerably faster (and on a harder route) in between all the stops to make up that same average. Of course, I do live in a city so access to routes without a lot of stop-go on them are rare. Some people might be near roads like this more than I am and might find it a measure that they can use - but still only to compare them self to them self...

Even most clubs when they classify their rides specify that the average speeds they list are for flat roads in optimal conditions - so they aren't (or at least should not be) talking about average at the end of the ride, but average level cruising...

BleeckerSt_Girl

10-11-2008, 12:00 PM

I just got back from a lovely 34 mile ride with my husband. Sunny day in the 60's, rolling countryside....just beautiful!
We goofed off a lot, taking pictures, stopping to chat with people....but even with all that I am really tired now, but in a good way. My legs especially feel like they got a good workout, there were a few good little hills in there.

So here's for all you jackrabbits that whine about your 'slow' speeds ;) .... our speed on this 34 miler today?- average 8.9mph. :eek: :eek: :eek: (ok I'm usually more like a "blazing" 10mph)
Do I care?- not really, because I got several hours of great healthy exercise and got to enjoy a gorgeous day out in the country doing what I love. :p

kelownagirl

10-11-2008, 12:06 PM

I just got back from a lovely 30 mile ride with my husband. Sunny day in the 60's, rolling countryside....just beautiful!
We goofed off a lot, taking pictures, stopping to chat with people....but even with all that I am really tired now, but in a good way. My legs especially feel like they got a good workout, there were a few good little hills in there.

So here's for all you jackrabbits that whine about your 'slow' speeds ;) .... our speed on this 30 miler today?- average 8.9mph. :eek: :eek: :eek: (ok I'm usually more like a "blazing" 10mph)
Do I care?- not really, because I got several hours of great healthy exercise and got to enjoy a gorgeous day out in the country doing what I love. :p

I LOVE those kinds of rides. Erik and I have been riding downtown and along the boardwalk every Sunday for the past few weeks. Avg speed about 18-20kmh. (11 mph)

Geonz

10-11-2008, 02:55 PM

Fredwina

10-11-2008, 03:27 PM

Remember, not everyone is riding for speed or for a personal best every time we click in. Some of us like to look and see where we're going (and then take photos;) )

indigoiis

10-11-2008, 03:29 PM

I don't have a computer on the bike that I ride the most. And it's good that I don't. Some days I jam right along, some days I don't. But I know I am faster than last year, I am on my bike more this year than last year, and I'm being taken seriously as a "cyclist" by people at work and my own family.

I think sometimes the bike just doesn't want to go.
It's psychological.
Today I rode in to work, 25 miles, and because it was a Saturday, there was no traffic, no people, just me and the bike. And it took me ten minutes longer than it usually does.

I don't know why.

Think about this, though. Every ride is different. Sometimes, we tank up on water and maybe good food, and the combination of a good night's sleep and a tuned bike leads to a nice clip on the road. And sometimes, we wake up and we can't find our favorite shorts, and the dog won't come when called, and it's a little colder than yesterday, and our watch might be three minutes fast, and we might eat oatmeal instead of cheerios, and we might be a little dehydrated, and we might have ridden "too much" the day before, and man, it's just a drag getting on that hard little saddle and GAWD, didn't I JUST ride up that hill LAST NIGHT??? And the commute is not speedy nor is it particularly enjoyable. But it's still freakin' better than being in a car. I don't care what anyone says.

Stop thinking in terms of training.

Remember why you started doing this.
If you are like me, cycling saved your life.
So don't worry too much. Just love your bike. It's all you can do.

TxDoc

10-11-2008, 04:44 PM

Usually flat rides (no hills around here :D), about 40miles, 18-20mph average.
When I go back to L.A. I usually ride around the North Hollywood hills and the speed suddenly drops - except downhill ;)

shootingstar

10-11-2008, 05:07 PM

I was a bike computer junkie for first 5-6 years after returning to cycling. Kept a cycling journal plus mileage.

Let's see at that time average speed was 19-22 kms./hr. And I was cycling annually 4,000-6,000 kms. annually.

Now it's probably slower and each ride during the week, is half the distance I used to do due to impossibly convoluted and lengthy work commute that doesn't allow me to cycle the entire trip.. while weekends each ride is approx. 42-55 kms. each day. On self-loaded touring trips it increases to 45 - 80 kms. each day.

Stuation as somewhat temporary due to awkward location of my job and commuting distance. I won't be at this job forever...it ends soon.

I know the distance I ride nowadays by asking my partner who tracks his mileage religiously on Excel..with graphs. If he wasn't around, I might seriously consider using the bike computer more often. But I haven't used a bike computer for many years now. I gauge my level of bike fitness by how I climb certain hills each season, amount of weight I can cycle up and down on various routes and distances.

It isn't my cycling fitness that interests me so much these days compared to why am I munching so much more food throughout the day nowadays.. ::( Latter I consider something I must be more vigilant.

I care less about my fitness but feeling strong / enthusiastic enough to go out when the weather becomes lousier, colder and wetter. I seem to be losing my cold acclimatization this year which bothers me...since it affects how far I'm motivated to cycle.

Mr. Bloom

10-11-2008, 05:19 PM

Stop thinking in terms of training.

Hmmm...you're making it sound bad:confused:

For the Silvers, a big part of the enjoyment comes from pushing ourselves to new limits...if it's not fun, we slow down.;)

On a more positive note, my year to date miles = >210,000 calories burned which equals > 70 pounds consumed. So, since I haven't lost 70 pounds, I guess it would be said that I ride so I can eat:D;)

7rider

10-12-2008, 03:42 AM

Hmmm...you're making it sound bad:confused:

For the Silvers, a big part of the enjoyment comes from pushing ourselves to new limits...if it's not fun, we slow down.;)

On a more positive note, my year to date miles = >210,000 calories burned which equals > 70 pounds consumed. So, since I haven't lost 70 pounds, I guess it would be said that I ride so I can eat:D;)

That's pretty much how DH and I view it, too. Challenges. Goals. Oh..and ride to eat!:p

SouthernBelle

10-12-2008, 03:47 AM

Unless you ride cyclocross, I can't imagine what you are training for this time of year!

crazycanuck

10-12-2008, 04:00 AM

Hey, don't forget that us folks down here in the Southern Hemisphere are in training mode!

Crankin

10-12-2008, 04:04 AM

I often say I ride to eat, also...
But the deal about challenges is that while everyone is challenging themselves I seem to get to a certain point and then I get sick. But, like I said earlier, I'm done thinking about it. When I started riding, about 8 years ago, I had let myself get out of shape a bit after many years of intense exercise at the gym. I started slowly, but it didn't take long for me to see improvement. The thing is, is that I never consciously set out to improve my speed. It just happened. Some of it was endurance and some was the fact that i kept getting a lighter bike. So, I never "trained," like some of you do. I just rode, increasing my distance as I went. The fact that I live in an area that is not flat probably helped me a lot. I don't climb mountains, but I do climb short, steep hills on a regular basis. I didn't realize this until I started going on group rides with people who live closer to Boston; as soon as we'd get to a climb, I'd be up front! In fact, this is what got me through the only century I've done. It was flat, but with a vicious headwind by the coast; I hadn't done any rides longer than 65 miles that year, but I was able to do the century in 6.5 hours. So, while inside, I'd like to be competitive with myself, I know if I go overboard, I'll end up doing nothing.

kfergos

10-12-2008, 04:10 AM

Hmmm...you're making it sound bad:confused:

I think it can be bad or good depending on your mindset. If getting faster, stronger, etc. becomes an obsession, training is no longer a positive thing. If you can keep it as an enjoyable activity, a way to challenge yourself without it becoming a compulsion, that's wonderful. But I know personally that if I start trying to push myself, I will inevitably push too hard, become totally focused on the numbers, and ultimately stop enjoying the activity. So I try not to worry too much about my speed, but instead focus on enjoying myself. I have had a very hard time letting go of the expectation to go a certain speed, and now that I have let go (mostly), it's a matter of constantly remembering what the goal is: To have fun. We all are here to have a good time on two (or three) wheels, and whatever that means for each of us -- no matter how different -- is great.

Veronica

10-12-2008, 04:24 AM

Unless you ride cyclocross, I can't imagine what you are training for this time of year!

In California we ride all year long. I have a duathlon Nov. 1 and I need to do 4 more 200Ks to get my R-12. So, yeah, I'm still training.

Veronica

Mr. Bloom

10-12-2008, 06:10 AM

Unless you ride cyclocross, I can't imagine what you are training for this time of year!

Ahem, the HILLY HUNDRED is next weekend...and why aren't you coming up to join us???

Then, it appears that we're going to do another ride across Indiana AND BACK in November. New Harmony to New Albany...want to come join us SB?

BleeckerSt_Girl

10-12-2008, 08:57 AM

Hey Mr. Silver, I like your new avatar. :)

Fredwina

10-12-2008, 01:42 PM

one of the thing I think we forget is that we have different aims for getting on the bike.
An example: RUSA or my local rando club had a discussion on the e-mail list about posting elapsed time for brevet. The faster folks wanted to (i did 200k in under 5 hours! am I a He-man or what?") and the slower folk had more of the traditional "it's not a race, and the last person to finish in the allotted get as much credit as the first". in the end - the website (http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pHuTOgUAjzVW5gRP1Dkcvfw) shows finishing times.
another time I showed up at the woman's ride after I gone by the library and checked out some books. judging from the reaction, you would have thought a homeless bum was trying to join the peloton on a huffy! "OMG, those heavy books! (i Think had two James Thom paperbacks:eek:) and I've similar reaction with showing up on Saturday with the bike rigged for errands (" you ride for fun and do errands? that's unpossible!")
I would say more, but I may have start a flame war (Been meaning to comment some threads here, but I've been holding back lesy my good intentions be mistaken:))

Jiffer

10-12-2008, 01:50 PM

I don't think there's a right or wrong when it comes to keeping track of computer stats. It's different for everyone. If you are competitively training to race, you certainly need to keep track more than the average cyclist. If you don't race, then it's more of a fun tool to use to see how you're improving, For me, getting faster and seeing the numbers on the computer is what MAKES it fun. When I go faster, I can keep up with certain people and do certain rides that I couldn't do in the past. When I see that I'm at a 16.4 average near the end of a ride, like last week, and it encourages me to push as hard as I can to the end to try to get to 17, this is a GOOD thing for me. I need any motivation I can get to make myself work harder, because I can be a wimp sometimes! ;) (By the way, I got to 16.9 that day ... my fastest non-group ride ever.)

If keeping track of stats becomes an obsession and your only means of feeling good about your rides is based on what the computer says, then it makes total sense to leave the computer at home and go out and simply enjoy yourself. Right now I'm sort of in the honeymoon phase, where I'm new enough at this, that I am improving faster than someone who has been riding a long time and has maybe plateaued at a certain level, or over trained or gotten sick and weakened their fitness level. For me, the average pace number on my computer is consistently getting higher and this is hugely motivating for me to keep getting on the bike.

SouthernBelle

10-12-2008, 02:56 PM

Ahem, the HILLY HUNDRED is next weekend...and why aren't you coming up to join us???

Then, it appears that we're going to do another ride across Indiana AND BACK in November. New Harmony to New Albany...want to come join us SB?

I haven't trained for distance at all this year. Can I take a rain check for next? You are hereby appointed to scout out a place for me to park my little travel trailer. All I need is an electric outlet.

Aggie_Ama

10-12-2008, 03:15 PM

For me, getting faster and seeing the numbers on the computer is what MAKES it fun. When I go faster, I can keep up with certain people and do certain rides that I couldn't do in the past. When I see that I'm at a 16.4 average near the end of a ride, like last week, and it encourages me to push as hard as I can to the end to try to get to 17, this is a GOOD thing for me.

Right now I'm sort of in the honeymoon phase, where I'm new enough at this, that I am improving faster than someone who has been riding a long time and has maybe plateaued at a certain level, or over trained or gotten sick and weakened their fitness level. For me, the average pace number on my computer is consistently getting higher and this is hugely motivating for me to keep getting on the bike.

Hit the nail on the head. Everyone has their goals and achievements. Some of us (ME) have been riding 4 years and this year felt the tracking miles/pace/distance got oppressive. I still put them in but it is more for maintenance tracking not to see if I can put up a 200 mile week or notch yet another century like this time last year. I don't care that it has been over a week since I rode (I have been running, landscaping, cheerleading my racer husband).

There have been past threads where the daydreamers, photographers and sight seeing riders (my current place) have been completely flamed for being slow. Right now when I do ride it is slow for where I was last year, if I were actually concerned I would be depressed but I know I am mentally in a different place. I am in better shape than last year overall just not on the bike. And you know what? I don't give a darn. I am happy, slow, playing in the dirt and puttering along taking photos Happy. ;)

I still like hearing someone is overjoyed to make a hill, do a century, have a large mileage month but this year I am not that person in 2008. Oh but the photos I have taken this year, the sites I have pedaled by, the critters and the discovery of mountain biking have made this a totally successful year. Some years our success cannot be quantified in number of miles or average speed. :D And if yours can that is good, you are happy and that is how everyone should feel when they hope on the bike.

Mr. Bloom

10-12-2008, 06:10 PM

I haven't trained for distance at all this year. Can I take a rain check for next? You are hereby appointed to scout out a place for me to park my little travel trailer. All I need is an electric outlet.

Done! No excuses;)

Here you go - about 5 miles from the start
http://www.mccormickscreekstatepark.com/

jobob

10-12-2008, 09:41 PM

There have been past threads where the daydreamers, photographers and sight seeing riders (my current place) have been completely flamed for being slow.

Wait a second ... apart from the thread that I had posted, in what other thread have people been "completely flamed" for being slow?

And in that thread I posted, there was only one person doing the flaming, and she's no longer here (oh darn :rolleyes: :D)

Seriously, anyone who criticizes another for how slow one is has really screwed up priorities and is a bit pathetic.

But I find threads which are based on bragging about one's own speed in comparison to others a bit distasteful anyhow ... so, ciao. :cool:

RolliePollie

10-12-2008, 10:12 PM

I had to stop looking at my average speeds on my computer because I was obsessing over it. I have to turn that function off while I'm riding or I'll look at it constantly and obsess over increasing it. I do use my "real time" speed on my computer for hills. There are certain hills where I've set a goal to stay above 5 mph or whatever, depending on the hill. I also keep a training log spreadsheet just to kind of keep myself on track with training goals.

Like everyone is saying, comparing speeds and such is really pretty pointless, especially when you don't know the terrain where another person is riding. If I say my average speeds are usually around 13 mph, lots of people would probably think I'm slow. But I ride hills...every time I ride, hills. And more hills. Did I mention the hills? :rolleyes: (I actually like hills now...call me crazy...but when you get to the top of a hill, many times you get to ride back down the other side!)

Comparing myself to faster riders always just makes me feel worse about myself. I know my average speeds as well as my stamina improve as the season progresses and that's good enough for me.

arielmoon

10-13-2008, 04:58 AM

One of the things that drew me to this forum is that there seemed to be something for everyone...Whether you sight see or compete on your bike, we are here because we have a common passion.

I have only been here a few months but I have not see a single instance of even mild flaming but I have seen tons of encouragement and pats on the back.

If by mentioning personal achievements that I am proud of, I am bragging and making anyone feel bad about theirs, I apologize.

Unless we all ride the same route under the same weather conditions there is no way to compare one rider's speed to another.

I have the utmost respect for anyone that is getting out there and getting on a bike when so many people are unmotivated to exercise.

It's all good!

Aggie_Ama

10-13-2008, 05:11 AM

And in that thread I posted, there was only one person doing the flaming, and she's no longer here (oh darn :rolleyes: :D)

Seriously, anyone who criticizes another for how slow one is has really screwed up priorities and is a bit pathetic.

But I find threads which are based on bragging about one's own speed in comparison to others a bit distasteful anyhow ... so, ciao. :cool:

Oh no that is the one I mainly meant. In fact I never posted in that one because the whole thing made me sick! I should have said there has been an instance in the past. :) Since that is the only ugly example I can think of and yes Ariel I think 99.99% of the time we are a supportive loving bunch!

Heck I feel fast on paper but when I am riding with area riders including clubs not known for attacting the racing crowd I get dropped almost every time. And when I have rode in the mountains I am lucky to get a double digit average further cementing the idea that it is all relative. ;)