How fast is fast?

This is more of a genral bikeing question rather than fixed specific. One that you guys who ride with clubs will be best able to answer I would guess.

Being someone who until about two years ago was mainly into mbt and BMX I have little idea about speed. Having 1st bought an old roade bike then building my fixed gear up a year ago I am curious. I know I am slow but just speed curious.

How fast is fast? I don't mean if entered in a race but on a ride / traing ride, not through town traffic which will effect your speed but more out of town riding. I hear David saying "I am going to do 80 miles fast for traing ..." How long would you expect that to take? Would you do 50 miles at the same speed, 100 miles at the same speed? How would you expect riding at night to effect you speed (like in the Dynwich dyanmo or rolling to the stones?) When you guys do club traing rides rides do you take brakes? How often?

Put any other info that i have not thought of please.

Ta very much.

-- How fast is fast?

Piece of string? Lance can sit on 60kph for a 40k TT. I can't.
25-30kph used to be a nice average speed for me for 100k+ flattish rides. I would get a sore butt and sore back before my legs gave out.
Usually 40kph for an hour long crit, but these are very stop/start. Pro crits are up around 50kph, depends on circuit.

-- Would you do 50 miles at the same speed, 100 miles at the same speed?
Depends on your training and body. Some people might ride the same speed for all those distances but that would generally make them slower riders.
Generally you are quicker over shorter distances but that's kinda obvious. Check out some TT times for high speeds on over certain distances.

-- How would you expect riding at night to effect you speed (like in the Dynwich dyanmo or rolling to the stones?)

It will slow most people down. Some people will ride at almost the same speed at night as during the day. They will have good lights to do this.
Restrict your light and you have to go slower because you can't see far enough ahead to speed up or you have no fear in which case you will just crash and take longer sitting on the ground or fixing your bike :)

-- When you guys do club traing rides rides do you take brakes? How often?
You can do club runs on fixed but no club in their right mind (unless it's on a 'drome) would have you bunch riding brakeless!
Oh, I just worked out you probably meant "breaks"!! :P Um, the Willesden slow/long club run stops for 30-60min for coffee half way but this is more social than necessary. The roadie bunches will keep going with no breaks at high speed. Google "Hell Ride" for the fast, Melbourne training rides.. ouch..

Why do you ask? Are you trying to work out pace for an event or work out if you are fast/slow/avg compared to other riders?

In my context fast is simply compared to my average plodding speed. Average plodding speed is around 20mph given my cadence and gear, on my geared bike the average is a few miles per hour faster.

The club ride will push around 25mph for nearly all of the distance, with the only real drop being on the climbs over Leith, Ranmore, and Box Hill and even then those drops in speed are offset by the long descents.

When I did the L2B last year in 3hrs 7mins that was with other club riders. Not full club ride pace, we just took it easy. Still managed a pretty good time though. A fellow club rider did go at a race training pace and finished some 20 minutes ahead of us at only 2hrs 45mins.

So for me, London Dynamo club rides are fast because when you ride them you certainly aren't taking time to look around and breathe in the scenery. You're kept working close to 80% of your limit the whole time and it does tire you even if you're used to doing them. That's the point of training rides though, to push you.

I want both the distance and the effort levels so that when the Etape and Dunwich Dynamo roll around they can be taken at a relatively gentler pace for a longer time and should be less severe.

My general view is that if you can do 3/4 of an event distance at a decent pace in small numbers, then the occasion of the event will make the full distance at a gentler pace seem pretty easy.

Dynamo rides are definitely faster than Willesden rides then! Most of the riders are TT and Audax riders though and some trackies looking for a change of pace.
There is a faster bunch but I tend to avoid it coz I'm a scaredyb1tch and don't want to be dropped out in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps not so severe here as in Oz though!

Cheerse guys. Pritty much the ifo I was wanting. Stuff like 3/4 of the distance at a decent pace ... training ideas.

20 mph plodding David! geez I knew I was slow but that seems lightning fast to me!

hippy -- How fast is fast?

......Was refering to your club rides (so geared)

hippy
Why do you ask? Are you trying to work out pace for an event or work out if you are fast/slow/avg compared to other riders?

.... Yeah I have been thinking about having ago at rides I see but don't want to slow people down or if I can keep up be pushuing myself too much, want to imporve my fittness and stammina abit. (9% of my riding is commuting, to work, to the pub, to the shops e.t.c so the most I ever do in a day is 40 - 50 miles but broken up into small batches mostly on my own so I take it easy when I want and speed when I want. Most days I really only do about 26 - 30 miles if I am just going to and from work depending on my route. So I need to find the time to stretch my self abit. Anyway I will shut up.

i did stratford to st james in 23 mins average 21 mph through london traffic @ 7.30 am out on the open road i am sure averages can get quite high if you get in a nice ryhthmtym

Mate you make me feel even slower on a rough estimate the fastest I have done my commute is an average of 19 mph (including foot tunnel but that is only 1000 od feet of slow cycling)

my usual into mayfair was around 19 mph i think the 21 was a tail wind and some beans for breakfast

TheBrick: Riding in a bunch is much more aero than doing so alone so you will easily be able to average a few kph faster and ride for longer. Find a bunch that will either wait for you OR find a fast bunch, perhaps get dropped and then know how to make your own way home.
It's all about trying harder stuff which in turn forces you to improve. (I can talk.. I keep taking the slow bunch on Sundays..)

My fastest commute average speed is 'only' around 28kph, but this 'includes' stopping for red lights (there's a light every 200m on my commute!).

fast is when it hurts to the point you think you cant push it more, then pushing it more.

velocity boy Average plodding speed is around 20mph given my cadence and gear, on my geared bike the average is a few miles per hour faster.

you plod fast!

fast is when you follow Jos