Cadence Question

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

In article <[email hidden]>,

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.
THAT'S FAST!!

It's not that fast once you develop a smooth pedalling motion.
If you watch a track race, you'll see them pedalling much faster,
especially in the final sprint.

Quoted message said:

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Yes, full crank revolutions per minute.

Quoted message said:

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

90 is good for me. Note that the gearing on most road bikes is designed
for a cadence around 90rpm. If your cadence is much slower, you will
have a hard hitting speeds above 25mph.

I submit that on or about Thu, 15 Sep 2005 14:49:53 -0500, the person
known to the court as Hell and High Water <[email hidden]>
made a statement (<[email hidden]> in
Your Honour's bundle) to the following effect:

Quoted message said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.
THAT'S FAST!!

Not really. That's my normal cadence, too, and I'm just a commuter.
Increasing my cadence was a major factor in increasing both my average
speed and the distance I can ride in a day.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

85% of helmet statistics are made up, 69% of them at CHS, Puget Sound

Thu, 15 Sep 2005 21:56:36 +0100,
<[email hidden]>,

Just zis Guy said:

Quoted message said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.
THAT'S FAST!!

Not really. That's my normal cadence, too, and I'm just a commuter.
Increasing my cadence was a major factor in increasing both my average
speed and the distance I can ride in a day.

Riding the stationary bike with a cadence counter I've been able to
discern that I too usually ride in the 80-90 range. It's a comfortable
cadence for me. Adrenaline spikes it up to 120 quite easily. I also
learned that 140 is still possible as long as there's enough pedal
resistance to keep me from bouncing. I was surprised by those numbers.
--
zk

90-100 is just right for me after some practice with a cadence meter on my
cycle computer. Studies have been done showing that this is a very efficient
speed for most people once they accustom themselves to moving their legs
this fast. I can remember hitting 168 rpm on a fast descent where I was
trying to go as fast as possible, but that was a long time ago when my knees
were newer and my legs moved faster. Even today I can spin out to 140+ rpm
for very brief intervals, though.

--
mark

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

Your understanding of cadence is correct but 90 rpm isn't all that
fast. I generally ride in the 95 to 110 rpm range and if my legs are
sore I actually find it easier to maintain speed by spinning at 120 to
130 rpm instead of grinding away a lower rpm. It all depends on your
fast twitch/slow twitch muscle ratio and conditioning.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

Well, not once you get used to it.

Quoted message said:

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

You have it right.

My preferred cadence is probably around 90, though at times I do like to
spin a bit faster, like 100 or 110. Low cadences are only for climbing.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | Let's be straight here. If we find something we can't
_`\(,_ | understand we like to call it something you can't understand, or
(_)/ (_) | indeed even pronounce. -- Douglas Adams

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

Some folks will feel more comfortable, and ride
more efficiently, at low cadence, some will prefer
high cadence. Also, road racing is not the same
as tooling around town, and the two will have different
optimum techniques including cadence.

I personally feel comfortable riding any cadence
between 50 and 110 or so, with my usual preference
around 80.

Robert

quote=''Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

Some folks will feel more comfortable, and ride
more efficiently, at low cadence, some will prefer
high cadence. Also, road racing is not the same
as tooling around town, and the two will have different
optimum techniques including cadence.

I personally feel comfortable riding any cadence
between 50 and 110 or so, with my usual preference
around 80.

Robert[/QUOTE]
well there are a lot of reasons for 100 rpm as an optimum, they relate to body physiology, efficiency, and history. Cadence for cyclists relates closely to walking pace in terms of human effort. The romans marched their legions on average at 100 paces per minute, and up to 120 paces per minute for attack marches ...see this quote "The soldier’s step (gradus) was two and a half Roman feet long (the Roman foot was .9 of ours). The Romans marched about as quickly as our modern day armies: their route step has been estimated at 100/minute; their quick step has been estimated at 120/minute. The pace (passus) was two steps from right heel to right heel."

I have spoken with former European pro riders and been coached by several on cadence ...they fully support 100 rpm as a base cadence for training and racing, and a capability to surge to 120 for firm prerssure and above that for attacks....track cadence can easily exceed that and often ranges from 100 to 220 rpm.
I train in the gym on a machine with minimal resistance and spin to 190rpm for sustained bursts of 3-5 minutes, and try to keep an average spin at 125 rpm , so when on the road, 100 is a piece of cake and on the track, subject to gearing, 100-120 plus can be sustained for those hard finish laps over the last 500-750 meters.

Its all about practice and endurance, flexibility and smoothness.
But unless you have the right set up on your bike, you are more likely to be tossed off over 120rpm or bounce so much that you cant keep it up.....

just keep on spinning man !!

cheers

Roo

I submit that on or about Thu, 15 Sep 2005 15:39:23 -0700, the person
known to the court as Zoot Katz <[email hidden]> made a
statement (<[email hidden]> in Your
Honour's bundle) to the following effect:

Quoted message said:

Riding the stationary bike with a cadence counter I've been able to
discern that I too usually ride in the 80-90 range.

I don't use stationary bikes, but I do have cadence sensors on the
recumbent and the fast tourer. It was recumbent riding that prompted
me to increase my cadence, but now I naturally spin on all bikes.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

85% of helmet statistics are made up, 69% of them at CHS, Puget Sound

In article <[email hidden]>,

Bob said:

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

Your understanding of cadence is correct but 90 rpm isn't all that
fast. I generally ride in the 95 to 110 rpm range and if my legs are
sore I actually find it easier to maintain speed by spinning at 120 to
130 rpm instead of grinding away a lower rpm. It all depends on your
fast twitch/slow twitch muscle ratio and conditioning.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

130RPM!

Thats fast, Bobby, especially in a 53/11.

Last week up in Sargeantville, Maine a small group of us were surprised
by a very horny moose.

WHOA NELLIE!

I think I hit somewhere around 4 gazillion rpm in a 53/ something.
Anyone know how fast that might be?

Sheldown Browns gear calculator doesn't go that high.

HAND

I just installed a new Cateye Comp with cadence and found out I tend
to stay at 80-90 rpm. I would have never known, always thought I was a
slow spinner. I spin up to 110 - 120 to accel but settle right down to
80-90 at normal. Just your average touging type of rider. Hooked up
the Burley Trailer and passenger and cadence 80-90 continued. Cadence
really drops as I grab the granny gear on hills 45-60 rpm.

Sometimes I wish the computer had a average cadence reading say over
the course of a ride......

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

Not really. I commute at 100-110, and I'm really not at all in shape.

--
Robert Uhl <http://public.xdi.org/=ruhl>
Democracy voluptuaries think democracy makes people the most happy, but
it doesn't, because in a democracy 51% of the people can vote to pee in
the corn flakes of the other 49%. --Jonah Goldberg

Fri, 16 Sep 2005 12:40:58 +0100,
<[email hidden]>,

Just zis Guy said:

Quoted message said:

Riding the stationary bike with a cadence counter I've been able to
discern that I too usually ride in the 80-90 range.

I don't use stationary bikes, but I do have cadence sensors on the
recumbent and the fast tourer. It was recumbent riding that prompted
me to increase my cadence, but now I naturally spin on all bikes.

I only ride a stationary bike as part of the physiotherapy I'm
undergoing. I don't have cadence counters on my bikes so I was
surprised by the numbers when it felt like I was spinning.

Having counted around 20 strokes in fifteen seconds many times while
riding a real bike I figured my normal cadence was in the 80-90 range
and it is.
--
zk

H M Leary said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Bob said:

Hell and High Water said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.

THAT'S FAST!!

(Unless I'm mistaken: That's per each full revolution of the crank.
IE: Every time my left leg hits the bottom of the stroke, that's a
'count'. Am I correct? or is it each leg?)

Anyway, what's your preferred cadence?

TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

Your understanding of cadence is correct but 90 rpm isn't all that
fast. I generally ride in the 95 to 110 rpm range and if my legs are
sore I actually find it easier to maintain speed by spinning at 120 to
130 rpm instead of grinding away a lower rpm. It all depends on your
fast twitch/slow twitch muscle ratio and conditioning.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

130RPM!

Thats fast, Bobby, especially in a 53/11.

Last week up in Sargeantville, Maine a small group of us were surprised
by a very horny moose.

WHOA NELLIE!

I think I hit somewhere around 4 gazillion rpm in a 53/ something.
Anyone know how fast that might be?

Sheldown Browns gear calculator doesn't go that high.

Fast enough not to be the last one near the moose! ;-)

--
Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry [email hidden]
http://home.comcast.net/~ncherry/ (Text only)
http://hcs.sourceforge.net/ (HCS II)
http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog

you know? said:

I submit that on or about Thu, 15 Sep 2005 14:49:53 -0500, the person
known to the court as Hell and High Water <[email hidden]>
made a statement (<[email hidden]> in
Your Honour's bundle) to the following effect:

Quoted message said:

Someone here wrote that pro riders cadence is usually around 90-100.
THAT'S FAST!!

Not really. That's my normal cadence, too, and I'm just a commuter.
Increasing my cadence was a major factor in increasing both my average
speed and the distance I can ride in a day.

And better for your knees and other joints.

Get a fixed gear, set it up with ~60-70" gearing and you'll learn how to
spin quickly and smoothly in no time flat.

--

John ([email hidden])

H M Leary said:

130RPM!

Thats fast, Bobby, especially in a 53/11.

Last week up in Sargeantville, Maine a small group of us were surprised
by a very horny moose.

WHOA NELLIE!

I think I hit somewhere around 4 gazillion rpm in a 53/ something.
Anyone know how fast that might be?

Sheldown Browns gear calculator doesn't go that high.

HAND

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. When my legs are sore or
just plain tired I find I can get a breather by *downshifting* and
increasing my cadence. Is that any clearer now? BTW, 130 rpm is really
not all that fast. Many people spin much faster.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

P.S.- Only my mother and older sister ever call me Bobby.

Bob said:

H M Leary said:

130RPM!

Thats fast, Bobby, especially in a 53/11.

Last week up in Sargeantville, Maine a small group of us were surprised
by a very horny moose.

WHOA NELLIE!

I think I hit somewhere around 4 gazillion rpm in a 53/ something.
Anyone know how fast that might be?

Sheldown Browns gear calculator doesn't go that high.

HAND

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. When my legs are sore or
just plain tired I find I can get a breather by *downshifting* and
increasing my cadence. Is that any clearer now? BTW, 130 rpm is really
not all that fast. Many people spin much faster.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

So you're riding in what, the 52x26 gear at 130rpm?

jj

Quoted message said:

P.S.- Only my mother and older sister ever call me Bobby.

jj said:

Bob said:

H M Leary said:

130RPM!

Thats fast, Bobby, especially in a 53/11.

Last week up in Sargeantville, Maine a small group of us were surprised
by a very horny moose.

WHOA NELLIE!

I think I hit somewhere around 4 gazillion rpm in a 53/ something.
Anyone know how fast that might be?

Sheldown Browns gear calculator doesn't go that high.

HAND

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. When my legs are sore or
just plain tired I find I can get a breather by *downshifting* and
increasing my cadence. Is that any clearer now? BTW, 130 rpm is really
not all that fast. Many people spin much faster.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

So you're riding in what, the 52x26 gear at 130rpm?

jj

Huh? The gearing I'm in varies- a *lot*. I mean, what's the point of
having 18 gear combinations available to you and then restricting
yourself to just one? I can't recall ever *intentionally* being in a
52x26 or, on the flip side, 39x12 though. Whenever I shift that far
down or up on the rear I usually (excepting instances of brain lock)
shift my chainring first.

Regards,
Bob Hunt