Quote Originally Posted by Eden View Post
I don't think gender makes any difference - the calculator is all about the physics of mass, drag and surface area, where your frontal bumps are located shouldn't make much of a difference

You would need to generate the same amount of power as a man your same size to be going the same speed, assuming you aren't drafting him, your tires are the same,etc. The calculator does make some assumptions when it figures out your frontal area though, so its still going to be a best estimate in any case. Plus, you can't put in a complex course - it only allows for average gradient, so a rolling course can't be figured out too well. You may be able to get some accuracy if you are using small segments.
Well if "frontal bumps" are what I think they are, then that won't be much of an issue in my case.

I plugged in some data for a hill I climb on a regular basis. It's a steady 9% grade, I know the length, my time, and my avg speed (although my speed is not steady, it slows down as I climb the hill.) I can input the weight and bike type etc so that part is pretty easy. I also tried inputting the data on a flat stretch that I ride regularly. It's interesting to see the way the power goes up when I increase my speed.

I don't know a lot about "power" per se. Is there a avg power goal one should strive to reach or does it not work that way?