How do you know your speed?

As I'm reading through the forum, I see people saying they travel 20 mph or 12 mph, etc. How do you know how fast you are going? Are there bikes with odometers?

Also, how do you know how far you've ridden? Do you go home and Googlemap it, or is there a program online people use to figure out mileage?

Most of us use some form of a bike computer that measures, in the very least, speed and distance. There are lots of options on the market from the most basic to the most advanced. If you have a local bike shop, you might start their. I, personally, use a wireless computer by Sigma Sport. It can be a bit fussy at times but for the money, it works well.

We/they use some sort of bicycle computer. The simplest tell you your speed, how far you have gone for a ride and total miles for the bike/computer. The more sophisticated can tell you your cadence (pedal revolutions), heart rate (with additional sensor), elevation, average/maximum speed, average/maximum cadence, tempurature, and length of time you have been riding. The list of features can go on and on. The basic computers start around $15 (check Walmart or Target) and go on up into the hundreds of dollars and include some GPS functions. Hope this helps.

Enjoy the ride,
P2

Here's a link to a website where you can calculate your speed without a bike computer. Go to "bicycling calculator".

http://www.caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.php



This is where I map routes:

http://ridewithgps.com/

I've got the Cateye Strada Wireless. It's a great computer and in the scheme of things, not too expensive. Plus it puts up with a lot of abuse from me (I'm hard on electronic things). It measures speed (current and average), time travelled, cadence (very nice if you are learning how to spin and build up cardiovascular strength) and has three odometer settings - one I use for my current ride, one for the week's mileage and one for the total mileage on my bike. Also, it will display the current time if you like. It's pretty handy. I like having it around as a gauge of my performance - although really, the best way to know if you are getting a workout is if you feel like you are working hard. It's just fun for me to compare my numbers to my brother. We're a little competitive.

I'm too cheap for a bike computer, but I use an app called "RunKeeper" on my phone that will GPS the route and give you minute-by-minute speed estimates. There's a mount to put the iphone on your bars if you want to look at it, or the app will talk to you as frequently as you program it to. I don't know how accurate it is, but I'm not training for anything so an estimate is fine for me.

my bike computer is the best invention since sliced bread. I ride better with it! sometimes i find myself poking along and i look down and see i'm doing 10mph and i start pushing a little more. mine also measures temperature, altitude and percentage grade of climb (or descent)
and at the end of your ride, you can always check back to see your maximum speed as well.
If i couldn't afford this one, i would still want the one that just notes speed and miles. it's also a good tool for maintaining your bike (this wheel went 10,000 miles before it had issues.. for example)

I have a Cateye Strada wireless bike computer attached, so I can see my speed. It will tell me also my average and my maximum speed, distance. It also tells me throughout my ride that I'm totally awesome! (NOT) ;)

runtastic.com. It measure lots of things, and it integrates with a Polar HRM. I downloaded the app, about $5.00, and bought the 60beat adaptor for my polar at abount $30.00. It uses GPS maps and time to calc distance, grade, and uses my polar for HR and calories burned.

I can't help re speed since I generally don't pay attention to that. I use Map My Ride to calculate distance. You can use it to work out how long a route is by entering your starting location then tracing the route to the end point. It will tell you how far it is and also give you information on gradient: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/create/

You ladies are all wonderful! Thanks so much for all that info. :)

I'm definitely going to get a computer when I get my bike. It reminds me of buying a heart rate monitor for going to the gym ... not necessary, but helpful and fun and motivating!

Now I want to plug in some routes to that online map to figure out how long to go next weekend on the rental bike.

I use an app on my iphone called GPS lite. I'm not sure how accurate it is, but that's what I use because it gives me my mileage and speeds for set intervals.