Fastest ride yet

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 19:51:38 -0400, David Kerber

ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

With a little help from a southwest breeze, I set a personal best for
average speed on one of my regular routes. The wind direction was such
that most of the time when I was going into it, I was going downhill,
and on the return leg I was going up the hills with the wind. That
combination helped me average 17.1 for 14.7 miles. I've done better in
races, but I've never averaged quite that fast on a routine ride.

Congrats! Now I'll _never_ catch up to you. 😉

Quoted message said:

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

On Saturday, I rode 33 miles at an average of 14 mph...pretty good
for me with so few miles under my belt this season. Through the
whole ride, I felt like I had a bad headwind, but I must have had a
pretty good tailwind for much of it; at one point, I stopped, and
observed the way the wind was blowing, and it was definitely a
headwind. Resigned to it, but still feeling good from my good ride
so far, I continued into the wind, and found I was still faster than
usual.

So, maybe there IS hope for me.
--
Rick Onanian

O

Quoted message said:

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

you suck when we get winds I get some of it going to work and coming home. since
I go two directions both ways. and I always get the wind going uphill. that
really sucks (G)

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

On Saturday, I rode 33 miles at an average of 14 mph...pretty good
for me with so few miles under my belt this season. Through the
whole ride, I felt like I had a bad headwind, but I must have had a
pretty good tailwind for much of it; at one point, I stopped, and
observed the way the wind was blowing, and it was definitely a
headwind. Resigned to it, but still feeling good from my good ride
so far, I continued into the wind, and found I was still faster than
usual.

So, maybe there IS hope for me.

Considering that you're 20 years younger than me, you'll catch me before
long; it's just a matter of your conditioning catching up with that
trainer work I did during the winter. Last year at this time I was just
about where you are now, because I didn't have the trainer. My early-
season rides averaged around 14 to 14.5, and by the end of the summer I
was at 16.5 on the same 12 to 20-mile routes.

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Steve Knight said:

Quoted message said:

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

you suck when we get winds I get some of it going to work and coming home. since
I go two directions both ways. and I always get the wind going uphill. that
really sucks (G)

Actually it sounds like it blows.

<ducks>

--
Dane Jackson - z u v e m b i @ u n i x b i g o t s . o r g
Congratulations are in order for Tom Reid.

He says he just found out he is the winner of the 2021 Psychic of the
Year award.

On Wed, 28 Apr 2004 07:49:11 -0400, David Kerber <ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net>

Quoted message said:

Considering that you're 20 years younger than me, you'll catch me before
long; it's just a matter of your conditioning catching up with that
trainer work I did during the winter. Last year at this time I was just
about where you are now, because I didn't have the trainer. My early-
season rides averaged around 14 to 14.5, and by the end of the summer I
was at 16.5 on the same 12 to 20-mile routes.

Great job, David!

-B

David Kerber said:

With a little help from a southwest breeze, I set a personal best for
average speed on one of my regular routes. The wind direction was such
that most of the time when I was going into it, I was going downhill,
and on the return leg I was going up the hills with the wind. That
combination helped me average 17.1 for 14.7 miles. I've done better in
races, but I've never averaged quite that fast on a routine ride.

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

I ride a section thru the valley pretty often; a tail wind gets me an
average of 25 mph for about 8 miles, a head wind is more like 15 mph.
It matters little, I usually take that road in both directions during
the course of the ride.

--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado
(remove ".nospam" to reply)

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

I ride a section thru the valley pretty often; a tail wind gets me an
average of 25 mph for about 8 miles, a head wind is more like 15 mph.
It matters little, I usually take that road in both directions during
the course of the ride.

If it were level, it would pretty much even out (not exactly, though).
But in my case, the way the wind was helping me up the hills seemed to
give me a boost in my overall average.

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-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

In article <[email hidden]>,

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

With a little help from a southwest breeze, I set a personal best for
average speed on one of my regular routes. The wind direction was such
that most of the time when I was going into it, I was going downhill,
and on the return leg I was going up the hills with the wind. That
combination helped me average 17.1 for 14.7 miles. I've done better in
races, but I've never averaged quite that fast on a routine ride.

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

_ One time when I was living in Boulder CO, I happened to time my
late afternoon 40 mile loop east of the city such that
I had tailwinds the entire time. I happened to catch the winds
around the very common afternoon thunderstorms just right. My avg
speed was something around 25 mph... A ride like that sticks in
your memory for a long time.

_ Booker C. Bense

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In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

In article <[email hidden]>,

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

With a little help from a southwest breeze, I set a personal best for
average speed on one of my regular routes. The wind direction was such
that most of the time when I was going into it, I was going downhill,
and on the return leg I was going up the hills with the wind. That
combination helped me average 17.1 for 14.7 miles. I've done better in
races, but I've never averaged quite that fast on a routine ride.

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

_ One time when I was living in Boulder CO, I happened to time my
late afternoon 40 mile loop east of the city such that
I had tailwinds the entire time. I happened to catch the winds
around the very common afternoon thunderstorms just right. My avg
speed was something around 25 mph... A ride like that sticks in
your memory for a long time.

It could be a depressing memory, if you never get to repeat that speed!

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
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David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

_ One time when I was living in Boulder CO, I happened to time my
late afternoon 40 mile loop east of the city such that
I had tailwinds the entire time. I happened to catch the winds
around the very common afternoon thunderstorms just right. My avg
speed was something around 25 mph... A ride like that sticks in
your memory for a long time.

It could be a depressing memory, if you never get to repeat that speed!

I once got stuck riding my tandem home in a full-on tropical storm
(Humberto - about 8 years ago IIRC). It was a ride to remember -
40+mph with the rain hitting us in the BACK. Cars gave us lots of
clearance that afternoon!

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $695 ti frame

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

_ One time when I was living in Boulder CO, I happened to time my
late afternoon 40 mile loop east of the city such that
I had tailwinds the entire time. I happened to catch the winds
around the very common afternoon thunderstorms just right. My avg
speed was something around 25 mph... A ride like that sticks in
your memory for a long time.

It could be a depressing memory, if you never get to repeat that speed!

I once got stuck riding my tandem home in a full-on tropical storm
(Humberto - about 8 years ago IIRC). It was a ride to remember -
40+mph with the rain hitting us in the BACK. Cars gave us lots of
clearance that afternoon!

Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

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David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

You almost certainly could, at least if you ride a road bike. At 40 mph
the overcoming the rolling resistance could take as little as 50 watts,
although that might be slightly optimistic on most surfaces. In general,
rolling resistance increases only linearly as you go faster, so at
higher speeds it becomes relatively insignificant.

-as

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

You almost certainly could, at least if you ride a road bike. At 40 mph
the overcoming the rolling resistance could take as little as 50 watts,
although that might be slightly optimistic on most surfaces. In general,
rolling resistance increases only linearly as you go faster, so at
higher speeds it becomes relatively insignificant.

It's just the rpm I'd have to spin my 175mm cranks at, which I would
worry about; I don't have real fast legs, and (without actually doing
the math) it would probably take 125 rpm to hit 40 mph.

--
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David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

You almost certainly could, at least if you ride a road bike. At 40 mph
the overcoming the rolling resistance could take as little as 50 watts,
although that might be slightly optimistic on most surfaces. In general,
rolling resistance increases only linearly as you go faster, so at
higher speeds it becomes relatively insignificant.

It's just the rpm I'd have to spin my 175mm cranks at, which I would
worry about; I don't have real fast legs, and (without actually doing
the math) it would probably take 125 rpm to hit 40 mph.

In our tandem's top gear of 54x13, it's only about 120rpm (a very easy
cadence actually, especially with a tropical storm doing 90% of the
work). I can hit 200rpm on a stationary bike (though doubt I'm making
much efficient power doing it).

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $695 ti frame

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber <ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net> wrote:

> Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
> to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

You almost certainly could, at least if you ride a road bike. At 40 mph
the overcoming the rolling resistance could take as little as 50 watts,
although that might be slightly optimistic on most surfaces. In general,
rolling resistance increases only linearly as you go faster, so at
higher speeds it becomes relatively insignificant.

It's just the rpm I'd have to spin my 175mm cranks at, which I would
worry about; I don't have real fast legs, and (without actually doing
the math) it would probably take 125 rpm to hit 40 mph.

In our tandem's top gear of 54x13, it's only about 120rpm (a very easy
cadence actually, especially with a tropical storm doing 90% of the
work). I can hit 200rpm on a stationary bike (though doubt I'm making
much efficient power doing it).

On my trainer, even at zero resistance, I can only hit 140 to 145 rpm.
How long are your crank arms?

I went back, and if I'm estimating the tire rolling diameter correctly,
40 mph would actually be about 111 rpm on my setup.

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
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David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

In our tandem's top gear of 54x13, it's only about 120rpm (a very easy
cadence actually, especially with a tropical storm doing 90% of the
work). I can hit 200rpm on a stationary bike (though doubt I'm making
much efficient power doing it).

On my trainer, even at zero resistance, I can only hit 140 to 145 rpm.
How long are your crank arms?

I went back, and if I'm estimating the tire rolling diameter correctly,
40 mph would actually be about 111 rpm on my setup.

On the tandem, the cranks are 170mm (though spinning my other bikes'
172.5s is pretty much the same). I've never measured the RPM I got on
a spin cycle, but I'm sure it's well over 200 (since the flywheel
keeps things going around even if your pedal stroke gets VERY choppy).
I was watching my knees blur in amazement wondering what would happen
if one of them failed somehow (this caused me to slow down
immediately).

My normal cadence is between 90 and 100rpm, so going to 120 isn't
really difficult.

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $695 ti frame

On Thu, 29 Apr 2004 07:31:07 -0400, David Kerber

ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

Quoted message said:

I once got stuck riding my tandem home in a full-on tropical storm
(Humberto - about 8 years ago IIRC). It was a ride to remember -
40+mph with the rain hitting us in the BACK. Cars gave us lots of
clearance that afternoon!

Were you coasting with the wind? I don't think I could spin my 52x11 up
to 40mph even with no wind resistance!

Time for us all to go to 56 x 8 (machine the 8 into the end of the
freehub body).
--
Rick Onanian

Quoted message said:

I've never measured the RPM I got on
a spin cycle, but I'm sure it's well over 200 (since the flywheel
keeps things going around even if your pedal stroke gets VERY choppy).
I was watching my knees blur in amazement wondering what would happen
if one of them failed somehow (this caused me to slow down
immediately).

A buddy pulled out of his Time pedal while sprinting at the track, crashed,
and ended up in the hospital for a few days.

YMMV,

Chris Neary
[email hidden]

"Science, freedom, beauty, adventure: what more could
you ask of life? Bicycling combined all the elements I
loved" - Adapted from a quotation by Charles Lindbergh

Saturday May 1st I had my best time of the year with a blazing 15.4
average over 34.1 miles!!!
Yes it was the tour-de-warwick, and the return part of the loop gave
me a nice tailwind for the last 6 miles...
Musta been something in the air that week...
D

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 23:23:42 -0400, Rick Onanian <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 19:51:38 -0400, David Kerber

ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

With a little help from a southwest breeze, I set a personal best for
average speed on one of my regular routes. The wind direction was such
that most of the time when I was going into it, I was going downhill,
and on the return leg I was going up the hills with the wind. That
combination helped me average 17.1 for 14.7 miles. I've done better in
races, but I've never averaged quite that fast on a routine ride.

Congrats! Now I'll _never_ catch up to you. 😉

Quoted message said:

As I've said before, tailwinds are a beautiful thing!

On Saturday, I rode 33 miles at an average of 14 mph...pretty good
for me with so few miles under my belt this season. Through the
whole ride, I felt like I had a bad headwind, but I must have had a
pretty good tailwind for much of it; at one point, I stopped, and
observed the way the wind was blowing, and it was definitely a
headwind. Resigned to it, but still feeling good from my good ride
so far, I continued into the wind, and found I was still faster than
usual.

So, maybe there IS hope for me.