Is it just me that gets paranoid about people thinking I’m trying to race them when I’m not?

No, I’m the same! I’m really not fussed by commuter racing, I generally accelerate quickly, but then am happy to plod a bit once I get there, people always seem to see it as some sort of challenge and come sprinting past! Happy to let people ride away if it makes them feel better about themselves.

My personal best is 19.4mph over 10.4 miles. This is on a rigid mtb with 1.5 inch city slicks, riding 5 miles into nottingham city centre and through the other side in morning traffic at around 8.15-8.30 am, so lots of slowing for traffic and lights.

I like to pace myself using other cyclist, so i’ll aim to overtake them by a certain point, i find this helps me ride a lot quicker.

Added a lot of speed the last couple of weeks by dropping down a couple gears and standing on the pedals to power up the hills, this keeps my speed more or less constant.

i don’t mind people thinking you’re racing when you’re not, but the opportunist drafters **** me off no end. particularly the brompton riding **** a few weeks ago who insisted on drafting me out towards vauxhall into a massive headwind when i was far too hungover and feeble to burn him off. 😆