60 Mph on tour

It has nothing to do with your bike or the material, but it does have everything to do with the length of the downhill. They are going downhill--at a -6% grade or greater for sometimes up to 20k at once--imagine the amount of momentum built up in that distance. Its not hard at all to reach those speeds when the downhills are that long--it is harder to control the bike though!!! 😄

and scary as hell too.

mdbrown said:

and scary as hell too.

I hit about 58 or so before on my way down some of the mountains on the Three Gap ride up in Dahlonega, GA (I weigh about 230, so its not all that hard). I was enjoying it so much that I was chasing the motorcycles down the last descent. Now that I look back at that, I'm glad to be alive, and probably won't be sprinting downhill again too soon (although that could change when I get the adrenaline rush of going that fast)!! 😄

The access road at Killington Vermont! I've done 53mph on a Cdale road bike someone let me ride and somewhere in the low 40's on my mountain bike. It's all about finding the right road!

vchu7105 said:

I saw the guys in the Tour De France riding 60 MPH down hills. I have a trek 1000, Yr 2005 and I've never hit more then low 30's mph down hills. Are the hills that steep and/or is my bike holding me back that much?? Whats the fastest in MPH people have gone on an Al Frame??

I Live in SouthEastern Mass, Dartmouth area, can anyone recommend a somewhat car free hill, So I can try some speeds?

vchu7105 said:

I Live in SouthEastern Mass, Dartmouth area, can anyone recommend a somewhat car free hill, So I can try some speeds?

55 mph here, down a local hill with a tailwind. Normal speeds are about 45 mph on this hill, which (according to Topo map software) has a straight 11% section for about 1/2 mile.

As previous poster said, really has very little to do with your bike. The key to speed is "sufficient" bodyweight, and a good aero tuck position. If you coast downhill with another rider of similar weight, the benefits of good aero position will be obvious.

I hit 52mph on an old ('96 vintage) Cannondale R900 w/Spinergy Wheels and aerobars during a triathlon on a rather long decent. I agree with the other posts that it has alot to do with position on the bike, weight(maybe), and balls (some folks get a bit scared and hold back)

35mph is my max on a hill between Belmont and Lincoln MA. It wasn't a very
long hill, but I think I could have done over 40mph. At 35 I feathered the brakes becuase that's about fast enough for me given the unevenness of the surface.

vchu7105 said:

I saw the guys in the Tour De France riding 60 MPH down hills. I have a trek 1000, Yr 2005 and I've never hit more then low 30's mph down hills. Are the hills that steep and/or is my bike holding me back that much?? Whats the fastest in MPH people have gone on an Al Frame??

vchu7105 said:

I saw the guys in the Tour De France riding 60 MPH down hills. I have a trek 1000, Yr 2005 and I've never hit more then low 30's mph down hills. Are the hills that steep and/or is my bike holding me back that much?? Whats the fastest in MPH people have gone on an Al Frame??

Radar gun recorded a 62 mph speed on stage 15.

There was a 15 mile 6% downhill the other day and everybody was doing 60's. That decent followed a grueling climb, so they all started it tired with dead legs, but that sort of decent takes a tremendous amount of strenghth, supporting your body weight the whole time is tough on legs and arms, plus bike has incredible amount of momentum at that speed, really takes a pro to ride like that. These guys are all just the best riders in the world and lance makes them all look like amateurs.

53 mph on a short (3/4 mile), steep downhill w/o much pedaling.

50mph said:

There was a 15 mile 6% downhill the other day and everybody was doing 60's. That decent followed a grueling climb, so they all started it tired with dead legs, but that sort of decent takes a tremendous amount of strenghth, supporting your body weight the whole time is tough on legs and arms, plus bike has incredible amount of momentum at that speed, really takes a pro to ride like that. These guys are all just the best riders in the world and lance makes them all look like amateurs.

Hey, it's a lot easier than climbing up the hills! In fact, I don't find a straight descent to be work at all; just pure enjoyment and relaxation. Twisties on a long descent which require heads-up braking and cornering lines are another issue....my hands and forearms get tired from repeated braking after a few dozen corners.

I'm not saying that it's more tiring, but there's a HELL OF A LOT MORE AT STAKE. And the mountain roads they're on are twisty as hell!!

I have hit 41.1MPH on this bike, on my way to work here in Trenton NJ...just this past week. That is my personal best so far on this bike ('04 LeMond Tourmalet). I had to make a sweeping left turn at the bottom and that was very scary. My fastest ever was 47MPH on ym old 1978 Viscount Grand Touring when I was in HS back in 1978. It was a long downhill that made a nice right turn onto a longer (approx 2 mile) downhill...and I passed a VW Bug and his speedometer read 45MPH and I passed him slowly enough to read it...If I had any sense I wouldn't have done it with all of the potholes in that road.....

Ahhhhh youth and stupidity!!

But it was fun...I still remember it like it was yesterday

50mph said:

I'm not saying that it's more tiring, but there's a HELL OF A LOT MORE AT STAKE. And the mountain roads they're on are twisty as hell!!

Agree the twisty, winding descents can get tiring on a long mountain ride. Braking pumps up the forearms, and constantly having to pick out the lines and look ahead for gravel, motos, other bikes and cars does take a lot of concentration. It's fun for a while, then turns into work to maintain concentration and focus needed.

And as as you say, one mistake could be costly. Overcooking a corner, seeing gravel or mud at the last minute, locking up a wheel or having a car pull out in front of you all raise the risks and add to the stress factor.

I hit the upper thirties, and mid forties on my bike all the time, but I also live in a hilly area. The tour runs through the mountains, I'm sure they hit greater speeds than that downhill.

Robbie

RWillieK said:

I hit the upper thirties, and mid forties on my bike all the time, but I also live in a hilly area. The tour runs through the mountains, I'm sure they hit greater speeds than that downhill.

Robbie

Same here. I hit 38-40 mph in less than a minute after rolling out of my driveway every day. Guess those of us who live in the hills get a bit jaded to the speeds.

martin_j001 said:

I hit about 58 or so before on my way down some of the mountains on the Three Gap ride up in Dahlonega, GA (I weigh about 230, so its not all that hard). I was enjoying it so much that I was chasing the motorcycles down the last descent. Now that I look back at that, I'm glad to be alive, and probably won't be sprinting downhill again too soon (although that could change when I get the adrenaline rush of going that fast)!! 😄

Wow, real cool fatty.

thats insane.. i topped my bike out at around 45 and think i wet myself. this is after 10 years of riding motorcycles capable of 190mph. and doing close to that myself.:eek: