Professional Average Speeds?

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A

aserota

Über Member
Hi All,

Im starting to get into cycling far more during the weekends along with my 150 mile cycle commute each week.

I picked up a bike from Eastbourne, Essex yesterday and cycled it home 75 mile with a 7kg rucksack and using clips and straps (for the first time) in 4h 30mins (relates to around 18.2mph iirc).

Im planning on joining a local club as of next saturday as id love to enter TT's and a few road races next season.

My questions is how fast do professional cyclist go (avg spd) on relatively flat 100 miles rides?
 
gavintc

gavintc

Guru
Location
Southsea
Average speed is a strange measure. You can easily run along at nearly 30 mph on the flat in a group. Turn into wind or hit a small hill and the average will plummet. On yesterday's club run, we did not drop below 25 mph for about 20 miles, hit some hills, some wind on the home leg and the average dropped overall to 21mph for a 45 mile ride.
 
J

jimboalee

New Member
Location
Solihull
Pros don't worry about the speed they can ride the bike on the road. As Gavintc says, weather and hills are so variable.

A pro cyclist's primary objective is to increase Watts/kg power output on an Ergonometer, turbo or rolling road.
They will perform intervals on a known stretch of road, riding at as high intensity ( RPE ) as possible without going anaerobic lactic; and after a rest day, test improvement on the ergonometer.
In doing this, they are sympathetically training CV and strength.

The magic number is 7.
 
J

jimboalee

New Member
Location
Solihull
Auntie Helen said:
Eastbourne has moved! Last time I was there it was in East Sussex. Should I beware of it coming to knock on my door up here in NE Essex?
Click to expand...

Coastal errosion eh???

Regards from Solihull-by-the-Sea.
 
Y

yenrod

Guest
aserota said:
Hi All,

Im starting to get into cycling far more during the weekends along with my 150 mile cycle commute each week.

I picked up a bike from Eastbourne, Essex yesterday and cycled it home 75 mile with a 7kg rucksack and using clips and straps (for the first time) in 4h 30mins (relates to around 18.2mph iirc).

Im planning on joining a local club as of next saturday as id love to enter TT's and a few road races next season.

My questions is how fast do professional cyclist go (avg spd) on relatively flat 100 miles rides?
Click to expand...

Its just the endurance that'll 'get you' not the figures !
 
palinurus

palinurus

Velo, boulot, dodo
Location
Watford
The average speed of a road race depends upon weather, terrain and on who attacks and when.

The current 100 mile TT record stands at an average speed of 29.6 mph. I've just looked that up in the handbook, much faster than I would've expected it to be.
 
J

jimboalee

New Member
Location
Solihull
I did this very thing when I was younger. Compare myself with the performance of the pros.

I found ON AVERAGE, I was two thirds the speed of the pro riders.

There are factors that need to be taken into consideration.
1/ races are on closed roads, I wasn't.
2/ racers share the wind resistance, I took it full on for the whole ride.
3/ racers get passed drinks and food while they are riding, I stopped for quick stops.
4/ my bike was 1.5lb heavier than what the racers were riding.

In those days, the pros would be averaging around 25 mph for a 160km flat stage.
I was riding 100 miles at about 16.5 mph average.
 
OP
OP
A

aserota

Über Member
Im taking part in my first club cycle this weekend, which should be good fun. Chatting to the guy who heads the group, its going to be a challenge, but i cant wait!

I suppose if i feel i have some potential, i may start looking at my power on the Turbo and consider a SRM, but not quite yet.
 
AndyJB

AndyJB

sooooo
Location
S66 1WW
The other aspect that plays a major bearing is that this is their full time job, they have theb best available and it is professionally maintained equipment. They have a team of dieticians, sports psychologoists and this wouldn't be available supported if they couldn't achieve or maintain harsh minimum standards. Every aspect of their lives, physical and mental is and has to be focused on their goals and objectives to the exclusion of outside influences.
 
G

Greenbank

Über Member
And whilst true that a group of organised riders taking it in turns on the front of a peloton can go faster than an individual rider as they can share the time spent taking the wind at the front, individual Pro Tour riders still manage to go on long breaks off the front and still keep up nearly 30mph average. In some stages you often see the same rider at the front for prolonged periods too.

That 100 mile TT record is a good example as that's entirely individual (albeit with TT bike and silly shaped aero helmet).
 
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