Avg cycling speed I should be shooting for

[jobob]

I think that's a really hard question because we're all riding in different places, on different bikes, at different ages, and so on and on.

What she said.

I tend to tune out the reports that harp about average speeds (especially out to the first or second decimal place ).

It's a useful number for the individual to keep track of how fast she (or he) goes over a certain course in order for that person to help gauge her (or his) improvement, but, for the rest of us, who don't happen to know the terrain, the amount of climbing, the difficulty of the descent, the condition of the road, the amount of slowing down & stopping and speeding up on account of stop signs and traffic signals and other obstacles, and the wind direction and the weather on that particular day, it's a meaningless number. IMHO.

[Grog]

It's a useful number for the individual to keep track of how fast she (or he) goes over a certain course in order for that person to help gauge her (or his) improvement, but, for the rest of us, who don't happen to know the terrain, the amount of climbing, the difficulty of the descent, the condition of the road, the amount of slowing down & stopping and speeding up on account of stop signs and traffic signals and other obstacles, and the wind direction and the weather on that particular day, it's a meaningless number. IMHO.

+1 Absolutely true.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I average somewhere between 2.5 mph going up a steep hill and 40 mph going down a long safe hill. Everything in between depends on where I'm riding that day, the hills, the wind, my energy level...
To me it's more important that I'm riding- it's more about distance and/or how many hours I rode.

[jobob]

I average somewhere between 2.5 mph going up a steep hill and 40 mph going down a long safe hill.

That's about it for me too. I like how we manage to keep from tipping over at those low speeds. Talent.

[ny biker]

You should aim for the speed at which you're happy.

Some people like to go as fast as they can, and are competitive, either against themselves or others, even if it means ignoring lots of pain along the way. Some people just like to cruise along and enjoy the outdoors and don't care who's passing them. Most are probably somewhere in between.

I think what matters most in terms of average speed as well as ride distance is enjoying yourself and having fun, whatever your definition of fun is.

[irrealised]

I agree that "average" depends on all sorts of things, and it is mostly useful to use to compare your own rides, but as a new(ish) rider I do like to have a sense of what others call average. It's not so important when I'm riding by myself, but it's nice to know what the averages are of typical group rides (even the slower ones are faster than I tend to go on my MTB). Not that I don't already know this since I'm rarely the one passing other bikes on the bike paths

[jobob]

Fair enough! Just don't get too wrapped up in the numbers.

[OakLeaf]

it's nice to know what the averages are of typical group rides

Club rides are normally "keyed" A,B,C and sometimes D. The club website or newsletter should explain the speed range for each group. That can vary from club to club, and it can also vary whether it means "this is how fast we sustain as a paceline on flat road without stop signs" or "this is our average speed over the whole ride."

If a club ride is so small and congenial that it isn't keyed, then IME it's usually mutually agreed on at the time of the ride by whoever shows up (which would include you if you showed up), and they might split into smaller groups or all agree to ride at more or less the slowest riders' pace.