Descending - Tips appreciated.

[ColinJ]

Is there any theoretical basis to the "around 30mph" limit, or are you summarising your experience?

It is quite interesting to use Bike Calculator. Set the power to 0 watts and use negative numbers for the gradient. On the tops, and leaving everything else alone (11 stone rider, 20 pound bike, no wind etc.) a downhill slope of 6.5% yields a descending speed of about 30 mph.

I think that is about right. There are plenty of those hills round here and that is about the speed that I do in casual descent mode. If I get on the drops, pedal until I spin out and go aero then I get to 40+ mph.

 

[macp]

I seem to always chicken out when descending. Mostly it's because of blind corners or bends, and I'm wary of traffic, junctions, or walls. But even when I have a straight, clear descent, I find myself (rather dangerously) being overly hands on with the brakes.

Any tips for descending and to an extent, cornering at speed?

Im exactly the same and maybe worse in the wet but I seem to get a little better when the temps come up and the roads dry.