Fassssssssssssssssssst!
Oh yeah, can you say fast?
New bike owns. Took it out for a 16.5 mile loop ( my "time trial loop" ). I usually average about 15mph on my mountain bike. Acutal speeds are a bit higher, but there are a few spots where I have to cross busy intersections, so I have to stop for a few minutes. So, typical time is just over an hour. And that's with favorable tailwinds on the long straight section of the ride.
Last night, between bouts of thunderstorms, I tooled out on the new bike for a spin to test it out. First, it was raining a lot of the day, so there were puddles and wet leaves on the course, and I had a 15-20mph headwind on the long straight section instead of a tailwind. Usual HR is around 160 bpm at this pace on the mtn bike.
The results you ask? 16.8 mph average on the new Tri bike. I pushed it up to 25mph on the flats and kept it there for a 3 mile stretch. This was first ride, so I'm still getting comfortable in the aero position and used the handling characteristics of the bike. Also, despite going nearly 2mph faster than on the mtn bike, have a pretty wicked headwind, and it being non-optimum conditions, my average HR was 151 bpm. Roughly 10 bpm lower!
So, in my last 2 races, I've average 17.8 and 18.2 mph on my mountain bike. The top 10 finishers in my age bracket have averaged around 21-23 mph on the bike. If you add 2mph to my previous times, I'm nearly there. Add in a bit more due to just being more comfortable on the bike, pushing it harder, and having better conditions, and I'll be up there with the leaders!
Two more races on tap for this season, and both should be good tests. First one on 9/11 is a pretty hilly course, but I should do better on hills with the new lighter bike. Last one this season is on 9/26 and is a very flat course, so I should smoke it. We'll know in about a month.
Now, if I could just get my running down to 7 minute miles, I'd be a real contender! :D Training this winter I should be able to get close to that by next season I think. We'll see.
New bike owns. Took it out for a 16.5 mile loop ( my "time trial loop" ). I usually average about 15mph on my mountain bike. Acutal speeds are a bit higher, but there are a few spots where I have to cross busy intersections, so I have to stop for a few minutes. So, typical time is just over an hour. And that's with favorable tailwinds on the long straight section of the ride.
Last night, between bouts of thunderstorms, I tooled out on the new bike for a spin to test it out. First, it was raining a lot of the day, so there were puddles and wet leaves on the course, and I had a 15-20mph headwind on the long straight section instead of a tailwind. Usual HR is around 160 bpm at this pace on the mtn bike.
The results you ask? 16.8 mph average on the new Tri bike. I pushed it up to 25mph on the flats and kept it there for a 3 mile stretch. This was first ride, so I'm still getting comfortable in the aero position and used the handling characteristics of the bike. Also, despite going nearly 2mph faster than on the mtn bike, have a pretty wicked headwind, and it being non-optimum conditions, my average HR was 151 bpm. Roughly 10 bpm lower!
So, in my last 2 races, I've average 17.8 and 18.2 mph on my mountain bike. The top 10 finishers in my age bracket have averaged around 21-23 mph on the bike. If you add 2mph to my previous times, I'm nearly there. Add in a bit more due to just being more comfortable on the bike, pushing it harder, and having better conditions, and I'll be up there with the leaders!
Two more races on tap for this season, and both should be good tests. First one on 9/11 is a pretty hilly course, but I should do better on hills with the new lighter bike. Last one this season is on 9/26 and is a very flat course, so I should smoke it. We'll know in about a month.
Now, if I could just get my running down to 7 minute miles, I'd be a real contender! :D Training this winter I should be able to get close to that by next season I think. We'll see.
posted by Chris Parker at
9:01 PM
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