I’ve owned a road bike for about 2 months now and I’ve become a bit obsessed with my average speed. I can’t just go out for a chilled ride now- I need to flog myself to get a better average speed around my local loops.

I know average speed can depend on many variables such as head wind, climbing, road surface but…

…what is a good average speed for a not-too-flat, not-too-hilly route of between say 30 and 50 km.

My average seems to be consistently stuck at about 33.5 kmh at those kind of distances.

[Slow hand clap]Yes, that is a reasonable speed, well done…![/Slow hand clap]

DrP

30km? That’s not a road ride. That’s just getting to the start of a road ride.

that’s a good average, I tend to have a mental block about sitting at 30km/hr – I struggle to get past that. Usual average for a similar style ride is high 20’s (km/hr)

…what is a good average speed for a not-too-flat, not-too-hilly route of between say 30 and 50 km.

Ah, the infamous Goldilocks route.

…oh and this thread will descend into willy waving and at least 2 people moaning about you using kilometres instead of miles.

All my friends only ride MTB and I’m not a member of a club so I genuinely have no reference point for what is good / bad!

21mph wed and 17mph sun.

so about 20mph would say thats a fair pace iv had mine for the commute but its uphill slog there and home’s not much better do 15 miles in about 50 mins on a ss flat bar road bike

15-16 mph for me whether that’s 20 miles or 120 for some reason

it is a bit hilly in the Northern Dales though

@derp – as per my previous post – sometimes when growing up you need to look at the guy in the urinal next to you to get a sense of relative size

Nearly 21 mph average speed over an undulating route is way, way above average!

My last ride was 82 miles, ave 19.5, (but I ams a rodie)

c

Ok – so I could probably keep up on an average club ride then which is good to know 🙂

Average speed of all my road rides this year including group/solo/training/race/recovery = 28km/h.

also:

Rule 24:
Speeds and distances shall always be referred to and calculated in kilometers. This includes while discussing cycling in the workplace with your non-cycling coworkers, serving to further mystify our sport in the web of their Neanderthalic cognitive capabilities. As the confused expression spreads across their unibrowed faces, casually mention your shaved legs. All of cycling’s monuments are measured in the metric system and as such the English system is forbidden.

I’ve been beaten to referencing Rule 24. Now km for distance with ascent in ft is a major faux pas.

the good thing with a group of roadies is there will be faster and slower riders so it gives you something to aim for.

like uplink – 15 – 17 mph doesn’t matter what sort of terrain but then I don’t push myself too much, just like taking my time and stoping to have a look around

In the good old days average speed would be in the 23mph bracket, in modern times probably 15mph, but could go all day at that pace.

To help most of the folk reading this

…what is a good average speed for a not-too-flat, not-too-hilly route of between say 18.64m and 31.07m.

My average seems to be consistently stuck at about 20.81mph at those kind of distances.

thats slow

20mph is pretty good for a non-racer IMO.

druidh – Member
30km? That’s not a road ride. That’s just getting to the start of a road ride.

Your average speed today was 11.6mph LOL!

33km/h sounds fine to me.
I normally manage about 23km/h average, although that does include plenty of 10%+ hills.

@Steve-Austin come on then – share your average

cynic-al – Member

Your average speed today was 11.6mph LOL!Including café stops and waiting on the slower riders.

average means bugger all without duration. Anyone can mash there legs for an hour at 25mph…

Also riding in group or solo makes a big difference to av speed.

Our Wednesday training rides have circa 30riders and are often as quick or quicker than racing as there is no slowing and surges!

Anyone can mash there legs for an hour at 25mph…

Only if I had a tail wind!

On my roadie I’m quite happy with a 15mph average, and on longer rides on my Roadrat I’m quite happy at 13mph!

This is a pointless question because so many variables come into it.

I think If your out on your own and doing 60 miles then 20mph is quite a fast average

If you out on your own doing 60 miles but training then 22mph is about a decent lick
If your out on a group training ride( winter time) then 20mph over 60 miles is about right
If your out with a group over 20 miles but training ( summer time pace) then 22-24 mph is about right
If its a tues / thurs night club run then 23 – 26mph is about right
If your racing over 60 – 80 miles then its between 23 – 28 mph depending on course etc
For most people in the world then over 60 miles anything between 16 -20 mph is fairly decent

Currently recovering from a knee injury so i only really have one leg that qualifies as working atm.

My current rides are limited to no more than 20mls but even with one working leg i am managing to average 16mph + Last one was 16.4mph over 16mls in a real pita wind both ways.

So, when i have two working legs i am hoping to achieve 30mph+ 🙂

Losers!

I’ve never ridden at an average speed in all my life 🙄

A mixture of raw power, epo and near-fatal amounts of gnarr flows through my being (at far higher than average rates, might I add). I am KING of the road and all else that I survey

(err, just under 20mph this morning, I reckon 😳 )

Anyone can mash there legs for an hour at 25mph

I bloody wish, I never did a sub hour 25 on my own, only 2 up.

Youre quick anyway. My very best this year, not that I’ve checked much was 19.97MPH for a local 100km reliability trial. Did it two weeks later in better conditions and lost 1MPH off the average.
So yes youre pretty quick, I’m chuffed with my times this year anyway.
I’m actually chasing 3 or 4MPH off my average, and it’s not happening.

Ok – so I could probably keep up on an average club ride then which is good to know

If you could find a club that did 30k runs. Maybe try TT?

about 12 mph. I must be rubbish

I still can’t get mine above 15mph. I’m quite heavy (94kg) so wondering if that makes much of a difference.. my much lighter friend can accelerate quicker and hold a higher speed for much longer than me, gets quite frustrating 🙁 My speed also seems to go to pot if there’s anything resembling a headwind, dunno if its mental or what but I seem to slow down so much even if it doesnt seem that severe.

Jeez quite a few tarmac-armchair-legends on tonight.

Ive mashed my legs for one hour at over 25mph .

Ave speed for 40 miles the other week was 19.6 mph – i am unfit atm

16mph for the fat bloke.

+1 Al.
My average speed is calculated by taking the time door to door and the distance covered. It’s obviously an old fashioned way of working it out.

It’s too difficult to say as you may have gathered.

Racing, group, solo?
Weather?
Traffic?
Lights, roundabouts, junction?
A “flat route” in the Lakes is probably as hilly as a “mountainous ride” in Norfolk.

Try seeing if your own average goes up over time or just increasing the distance you ride.

People here seem to get their speedo’s/gps’s from the same place they get their hopelessly optimistic bike scales from!

If you’re trying to compare yourself against your peers, the only real way is to enter a few races.