My MTB Is Too Slow

"Just Me" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Crusing speed" to me means a speed at which you can comfortably

travel for

Quoted message said:

a reasonable distance, say 10km (to pluck a figure from the sky). My

riding

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is done around the city, so I have no idea what my cruising speed

would be

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if I was on a long-distance ride (e.g. 100km). No doubt it would be

lower

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than what I average on short hops around town.

How often can you sustain 40kph around the city though?
Do you stop at lights, dodge cars, dodge peds, stop for
trams, etc? My commute is in traffic but the roads are
straight and there are a few hills, but my avg. speed never
got anywhere near 40kph. Maybe if I took the fastest
10k section I could get to a 40kph average speed, but
that's almost half the ride so it's unlikely.

Quoted message said:

You do realise that the "average" speed for the TdF includes a whole

load of

Quoted message said:

hill climbing? If you want a better comparison of a pro rider's

cruising

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speed, then consider that David Millar's average speed in winning the

Stage

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19 TT in last year's TdF was approx 54.4km/h over a route that was
essentially flat.

Best riders in the world on totally aero TT bikes, with
all manner of coaching, training, natural ability and chemical
enhancements behind them. That's a little bit different from
your average aus.bicycle poster (I'm guessing) who is riding
around the city on an mtb.
I don't claim to be super fast, but I seem to pass an awful
lot of people when I ride and you are putting my speeds to
shame! ;-)

hippy

Quoted message said:

From: "hippy" <[email hidden]>
Subject: Re: My MTB Is Too Slow

"Just Me" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Crusing speed" to me means a speed at which you can comfortably

travel for

Quoted message said:

a reasonable distance, say 10km (to pluck a figure from the sky). My

riding

Quoted message said:

is done around the city, so I have no idea what my cruising speed

would be

Quoted message said:

if I was on a long-distance ride (e.g. 100km). No doubt it would be

lower

Quoted message said:

than what I average on short hops around town.

How often can you sustain 40kph around the city though?
Do you stop at lights, dodge cars, dodge peds, stop for
trams, etc? My commute is in traffic but the roads are
straight and there are a few hills, but my avg. speed never
got anywhere near 40kph. Maybe if I took the fastest
10k section I could get to a 40kph average speed, but
that's almost half the ride so it's unlikely.

You're confusing average speed with cruising speed, when they are totally
different things 🙂

Average speed = Distance/Time.
Cruising speed = a rider's sustainable top speed.

BTW, if you read my post again, you'll see that I never claimed to cruise at
40km/h all the time... the instance quoted with a 40km/h speed was with a
tail wind, which I happily confessed in my post. In the same post I said
that normally I cruise at about 35km/h. I recently callibrated my computer
over a known distance of 5km, and it was only a hundred metres off (i.e. 2%
margin of error).

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

You do realise that the "average" speed for the TdF includes a whole

load of

Quoted message said:

hill climbing? If you want a better comparison of a pro rider's

cruising

Quoted message said:

speed, then consider that David Millar's average speed in winning the

Stage

Quoted message said:

19 TT in last year's TdF was approx 54.4km/h over a route that was
essentially flat.

Best riders in the world on totally aero TT bikes, with
all manner of coaching, training, natural ability and chemical
enhancements behind them. That's a little bit different from
your average aus.bicycle poster (I'm guessing) who is riding
around the city on an mtb.

My cruising speed of 35km/h vs David Millar's at 54km/h seems like a pretty
big differential to me. To give another perspective, there was the time
before Xmas last year when I was passed by Robbie McEwen who was on a
training ride in inner Melbourne (he was wearing his Aust champion/Lotto
Domo jersey, which is how I knew it was him). I kept up with him for less
than 1km (with my speedo reading... yes... 35km/h), before he obviously
decided that he was going to get serious. When he put the foot down he blew
me off so quickly that it was laughable. In the space of 15 seconds or so he
put about 100m distance between us. It just shows how much better those guys
(& their equipment) are than mere mortals like us.

Quoted message said:

I don't claim to be super fast, but I seem to pass an awful
lot of people when I ride and you are putting my speeds to
shame! ;-)

hippy

Maybe I should take up racing then 😉

"Just Me" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

You're confusing average speed with cruising speed, when they are

totally

Quoted message said:

different things 🙂

Ahh not this again... I did the same thing to amirm! :-)

Quoted message said:

Average speed = Distance/Time.
Cruising speed = a rider's sustainable top speed.

Okay, even though I picture "cruising" as someone idling along,
looking at the scenery.. nothing near max :-)
It's still a vague definition - "sustainable over what distance?" makes
it quite variable.. i.e. your 100k reference

Quoted message said:

BTW, if you read my post again, you'll see that I never claimed to

cruise at

Quoted message said:

40km/h all the time... the instance quoted with a 40km/h speed was

with a

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tail wind, which I happily confessed in my post. In the same post I

said

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that normally I cruise at about 35km/h. I recently callibrated my

computer

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over a known distance of 5km, and it was only a hundred metres off

(i.e. 2%

Quoted message said:

margin of error).

I just don't see many oppurtunities for doing 40kph for more
than a block in the city. I've got to get back to work on the
"Make Traffic Lights Go Green Now" machine for my commutes
and see what times I can get ;-)

Quoted message said:

before Xmas last year when I was passed by Robbie McEwen who was on a
training ride in inner Melbourne (he was wearing his Aust

champion/Lotto

Quoted message said:

Domo jersey, which is how I knew it was him). I kept up with him for

less

Quoted message said:

than 1km (with my speedo reading... yes... 35km/h), before he

obviously

Quoted message said:

decided that he was going to get serious. When he put the foot down he

blew

Quoted message said:

me off so quickly that it was laughable. In the space of 15 seconds or

so he

Quoted message said:

put about 100m distance between us. It just shows how much better

those guys

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(& their equipment) are than mere mortals like us.

That's cool! I'd love to race Robbie! Even if it was for only 15secs!
:-)

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I don't claim to be super fast, but I seem to pass an awful
lot of people when I ride and you are putting my speeds to
shame! ;-)

Maybe I should take up racing then 😉

I think you should! :-)
Glenvale 9am Sundays, METEC 6pm Thurs, Sandown ?pm Tues,
Yarra Boulevarde ?pm Wed and Fri?

hippy

Hey, don't let them get to you. There's help at hand for speed addicts, such as yourself. Buy a fully fared recumbent. :

-

G'day

that's it MTB 'ers cruising at 40kph!....now i know what I've been doin
wrong all these years...wasting my money on lightweight high end roa
components!!!!....thankfully you blokes have helped me see the error o
my ways before I 'blew' anymore cash in the pursuit of speed. I'm goin
home & put the 'roadie' out for the hard rubish collection tomorrow....
getting me an MTB!......BTW, I've emailed this thread t
Lance....looking forward to seeing his MTB rig at this years TDF

cheers

Hitch

-

On Mon, 23 Feb 2004 04:18:38 GMT, "hippy"
<[email hidden]> wrote:

<snip>

Quoted message said:

That's cool! I'd love to race Robbie! Even if it was for only 15secs!
:-)

Don't bother trying to draught behind him. He's not exactly a big guy
:-)

BTW, there are guys racing at Glenvale who have beaten him.

--
Regards.
Richard.

Quoted message said:

I'm going
home & put the 'roadie' out for the hard rubish collection tomorrow

About time you saw the light. Dont let that slow old roadie stay in your
house another day. Tell you what, l'll come and pick it up, just so you
arent tempted to ride it again.
😉
nice aren't I?
stu

Andrew Swan said:

NickZX6R said:

hippy <[email hidden]> wrote:
<SNIP>

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On another note Mark.. where is it flat with no wind? :-P
Take me to this paradise, I beg of you!

Quoted message said:

hippy

Flat with no wind = paradise???

What would be the point? 😉

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Downhill + tailwind = paradise!

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&roo

But what a hollow unfulfilling exercise. Enjoying the spoils
of descending without the pain of climbing?

You're a very strange man.

😉

--
Nick

Hey,

Why not try plastic surgery. Leg transplants do wonders ya know. Longer legs
= faster revolutions!!

If that doesn't work just buy a rocket pack!

By now!!

"Mark_Pringle" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My MTB is too slow, on flat ground with no wind, in high gear, I can pedal
like a madman, and all I can get is around 42 kmh.

I know a road bike is the way to go if you want speed, however I love a

MTB

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for its many uses, and seating position.
Is there anyway I can go faster without taking roids.

Can I get a bigger crank, or should I just be happy with cruising at

around

Quoted message said:

35 kph ?

hippy <[email hidden]> wrote in message
[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

"John Retchford" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This sort of thread usually produces the "there I was cruising past
Lance Armstrong, Stuart O'Grady et al" response. The winner of the
Tour de France usually averages about 41 km/h and these people are
physiological freaks. Just what is this "cruising"?

hehe dudes cracking 70kph on hybrids (must be big hills) and
"cruising" at 40kph... I wish it felt so easy when I ride at 40kph!

Check out this [censored] over at aus.cars (my comments first, then his
response):

Quoted message said:

Road bikes are faster, and a fit rider could hit 50kph on the flat
but only the very best could hope to stay at that level for any
length of time. Look at the average speeds for most regular roadf
bike training runs down Beach Rd (35-40kph), one of the flattest
and most popular training roads in the country.

Get real. I was unfit at the time and managed 40 to 50 on the flat
with a 12-speed Malvern Star made from heavy steel, running [censored]
tyres, and carrying 20kg or books and paraphenalia. Hardly breaking
a sweat.

( Bernd Felsche <[email hidden]> wrote in message
[email hidden] )

--

"The central problem with the concept of the 'Axis of Evil' is that it
involves an assumption that the US is the 'fulcrum of virtue'."
Bob Hawke

Drs said:

Get real. I was unfit at the time and managed 40 to 50 on the flat with
a 12-speed Malvern Star made from heavy steel, running ****ty tyres, and
carrying 20kg or books and paraphenalia. Hardly breaking a sweat.

I am very real and this does not always sit well on forums like this
where some contributors are prone to exaggeration

The major retarding force on a bicyclist is due to aerodynamic drag
Aerodynamic drag increases as the square of the speed and hence th
power requirement increases as the cube of speed, because power is th
rate of doing work. So there is a big difference in power required t
reach 50 km/h compared with 40 km/h

I estimate that 400 watts is required in your case to reach 40 km/h an
700 for 50. Many good triathletes can produce 400 watts for a reasonabl
period of time, but they are fit, near to their limit, have good tyres
don't carry books (time trial instruction manuals perhaps?) an
certainly sweat a lot. They are not "cruising". None of these people ca
produce 700 watts for more than a very short time

Please buy some new tyres, leave your books at home and cruise som
more. Let this group and the AIS know how you get on

John Retchfor

-

"Hitchy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

that's it MTB 'ers cruising at 40kph!....now i know what I've been

doing

Quoted message said:

wrong all these years...wasting my money on lightweight high end road
components!!!!....thankfully you blokes have helped me see the error

of

Quoted message said:

my ways before I 'blew' anymore cash in the pursuit of speed. I'm

going

Quoted message said:

home & put the 'roadie' out for the hard rubish collection

tomorrow....&

Quoted message said:

getting me an MTB!......BTW, I've emailed this thread to
Lance....looking forward to seeing his MTB rig at this years TDF,

Where's you rubbish collection happening.. I want to
help out the garbo's - lighten their load a little bit ;-)

hippy

"DRS" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Check out this [censored] over at aus.cars (my comments first, then his
response):

Quoted message said:

Road bikes are faster, and a fit rider could hit 50kph on the flat
but only the very best could hope to stay at that level for any
length of time. Look at the average speeds for most regular roadf
bike training runs down Beach Rd (35-40kph), one of the flattest
and most popular training roads in the country.

Get real. I was unfit at the time and managed 40 to 50 on the flat
with a 12-speed Malvern Star made from heavy steel, running [censored]
tyres, and carrying 20kg or books and paraphenalia. Hardly breaking
a sweat.

He must be talking 40-50 metres an hour?
How did this get to aus.cars anyway!?

hippy

"Richard Sherratt" <[email hidden]> wrote
in message

Quoted message said:

Don't bother trying to draught behind him. He's not exactly a big guy

Yeah, I got nice and close with my camera after the final
Bay Series crit this year. :-)

Quoted message said:

BTW, there are guys racing at Glenvale who have beaten him.

A-graders though, right? I'm only in C. Many conditions could
work against him - he's not a jack-of-all-trades. I could beat
him too, perhaps, if he'd just finished a 250k late-stage of the
tour, with a sprint and I was fresh.. maybe.. ;-)

hippy

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

hehe dudes cracking 70kph on hybrids (must be big hills) and
"cruising" at 40kph... I wish it felt so easy when I ride at 40kph!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Check out this [censored] over at aus.cars (my comments first, then his
response

Quoted message said:

He must be talking 40-50 metres an hour?
How did this get to aus.cars anyway!?

I dont think this thread did. Maybe he is talking about the thread "Re: It
was bound to happen" starting on 9/02/2004, but be warned its longgggggg.
I havent got down to DRS's posts yet and I cant find a post by you, john
retchford or Mark_Pringle
So I am not sure which "[censored]" he is talking about 😉 lol
stu
p.s. maybe if you got some more gears you could go faster hippy lol

hippy said:

"Richard Sherratt" <[email hidden]> wrote
in message

Quoted message said:

Don't bother trying to draught behind him. He's not exactly a big guy

Yeah, I got nice and close with my camera after the final
Bay Series crit this year. :-)

I didn't go this year. Injured and unable to stand up for extended
periods. I went to Buninyong for the mens' RR though. Well worth it. A
great day out.

When you watch them on TV you don't really appreciate how skinny they
are.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

BTW, there are guys racing at Glenvale who have beaten him.

A-graders though, right?

Yeah. Hilton Clarke and Robert Tighello for two.

Quoted message said:

I'm only in C. Many conditions could
work against him - he's not a jack-of-all-trades.

Hilton Clarke beat him (and all the other pros who were there) in a
race he really wanted to win (big prize money). The Launceston Crit in
2002. Will Walker beat him in one of the Bay Series crits last year.
It depends who's the best on the day (and a lot of other things).

Quoted message said:

I could beat
him too, perhaps, if he'd just finished a 250k late-stage of the
tour, with a sprint and I was fresh.. maybe.. ;-)

Make sure it's a downhill finish. Gravity works :-)

--
Regards.
Richard.

John Retchford <[email hidden]> wrote in message
[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

Drs said:

Get real. I was unfit at the time and managed 40 to 50 on the

flat with > a 12-speed Malvern Star made from heavy steel, running
****ty tyres, and > carrying 20kg or books and paraphenalia. Hardly
breaking a sweat.

I am very real and this does not always sit well on forums like this,
where some contributors are prone to exaggeration.

The major retarding force on a bicyclist is due to aerodynamic drag.
Aerodynamic drag increases as the square of the speed and hence the
power requirement increases as the cube of speed, because power is the
rate of doing work. So there is a big difference in power required to
reach 50 km/h compared with 40 km/h.

I estimate that 400 watts is required in your case to reach 40 km/h
and 700 for 50. Many good triathletes can produce 400 watts for a
reasonable period of time, but they are fit, near to their limit,
have good tyres, don't carry books (time trial instruction manuals
perhaps?) and
certainly sweat a lot. They are not "cruising". None of these people
can produce 700 watts for more than a very short time.

Please buy some new tyres, leave your books at home and cruise some
more. Let this group and the AIS know how you get on.

First, how about you getting the attributions correct. I never made any
such claim, I was quoting someone else's response to what I wrote and you've
removed the context I provided. He's the [censored] in need of a reality check,
not me, and as far as I know he's not even reading this group. And there's
no need for you to edit "[censored]".

--

"The central problem with the concept of the 'Axis of Evil' is that it
involves an assumption that the US is the 'fulcrum of virtue'."
Bob Hawke

stu <[email hidden]> wrote in message
[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

> hehe dudes cracking 70kph on hybrids (must be big hills) and
> "cruising" at 40kph... I wish it felt so easy when I ride at 40kph!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Check out this [censored] over at aus.cars (my comments first, then his
response

Quoted message said:

He must be talking 40-50 metres an hour?
How did this get to aus.cars anyway!?

The "It was bound to happen" thread actually started in aus.cars and part of
it got cross-posted here but that sub-thread died a natural death. It's
still going strong in aus.cars, even though I've conclusively proved that
there is no direct link between rego and road funding, that road funding
comes from consolidated revenue and that therefore cyclists do contribute to
roads by virtue of paying the same taxes as everybody else. A couple of
diehard [censored], including the idiot I quoted to show you lot what a joke he
is, are now trying to claim the cyclists are freeloaders because twelve year
olds aren't made to get licences to ride their unregistered bikes on the
road.

Quoted message said:

I dont think this thread did. Maybe he is talking about the thread
"Re: It was bound to happen" starting on 9/02/2004, but be warned its
longgggggg. I havent got down to DRS's posts yet and I cant find a
post by you, john retchford or Mark_Pringle
So I am not sure which "[censored]" he is talking about 😉 lol

I gave his nic and the message-id. What else do you need? Here it is
again:

( Bernd Felsche <[email hidden]> wrote in message
[email hidden] )

--

"The central problem with the concept of the 'Axis of Evil' is that it
involves an assumption that the US is the 'fulcrum of virtue'."
Bob Hawke

ohhhhhhhhhh I see now. Some more >>>>> would have made it clear what you
were saying and what you were quoting.
Hands up who else got it ass about and backwards??? lol
Still its sorted now, I will go back to reading "It was bound to happen".
Makes for "interesting" reading.
stu

Drs said:

First, how about you getting the attributions correct. I never made any
such claim, I was quoting someone else's response to what I wrote and
you've removed the context I provided. He's the [censored] in need of a
reality check, not me, and as far as I know he's not even reading this
group. And there's no need for you to edit "****ty".

1. If you did not write the quoted material, I apologise. My new
reader attributes it to you. Perhaps your quoting of others was to
subtle for me

2. I did not edit your good Saxon word. That was done by Cycling Forums
through which I posted. When I look at your post with Google Group
your word is intact, but not when I look with Cycling Forums, wh
must feel that such basic functions are not fit for my eyes and m
unedited reply not fit for yours. You will probably find it altere
again in this reply

I gather now that we were both mocking the same original exaggerator

Cheers

John Retchfor

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