Average Speed-best pace amateur road race



Cpro

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Jan 27, 2012
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Sunday im gonna take place to a road race named ROAD RACE EXPERIENCE http://www.sphellas.com/index.php/COURSE/1/360,
So i need to know, because this is my first race, which is the average speed of amateurs cycling. Now, im having 20 miles or 32 km/h average for distances 60 km, is this good speed or i will be back in the group. I started road cycling from January this year and from 20 km/h increased my speed to 32 km/h average very comfortable at cadence 80 rpm. And also i would like to learn if the best pace for this race is to be in no mans land or zone 3 tempo aerobic ride? I must tell you that my bike is 9.5 kg.
 
Appears to be over 4000 feet of climb. Does the average speed you are referring to relate to this amount of climb.
 
This stage has 350 meters altitude and the average grade is between 2.2 % mines average speed indicates to a road of 1.1% grade.
 
I would have thought that 20+mph was pretty good average speed for an amateur race.

I presume you're doing the 118km (approx 70 mile) race - when asking the question in the OP?

23-25mph would be an excellent performance, I think., given the parcour in your link.
 
No im making the half distance 59 km. Think about also, that this average speed 32 km/h is to road with traffic i have to stop at least 20 times and also the fact that in the course will drive in the pack which means that average speed will be increased(i think so).
 
Yeah, average speed will tell nothing, course conditions, surges, and positioning will dictate if you stay with the field. I have been in races that have been 27+ mph avg speed and most of the field finishes intact, alternatively I have been in races with >23mph avg and only a small portion of us are in the lead group. I would say that most races with that type of elevation change will weed out the "dead wood", and should give you a good idea of where you stand.
 
24-25mph is a reasonable average speed.

And average speed is important. If some of the riders decide to play games and surge and what not, if your avarage speed matches that of the best riders, you finish with them.

Find a couple guys who are willing to work with you, and ride your own race.

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You might notice in professional races, some idiots do some sort of big effort off the front and the guys who are just riding at average speed catch them in the final 10k.

You are not a pro, the event does not seem like much of a race, but as long as you have a friendly group to work with a steady pace will do a lot more than following the surges.
 
AOG, it is obvious by your response that you have no real world racing experience and are only basing things off if what you "think" a race is like from group rides and tv. BTW the thing those "idiots" are doing is called attacking and moves like that have won many races.
 
Mathematically average speed is important. Bottom line the best average speed is the first across the line no matter what happens in between. I do not race but this information is available and can be found by checking any race results the first one across the line has the best time.
 
OP asked what the typical average speed of an armature RACE is, in an attempt to get an idea of how his ability would stack up. I am saying that information is useless. Example, last weekend our average speed for 62 miles was 25, nearly the entire field finished in a bunch sprint, Saturday the average speed for nearly the same field was just over 22 for 66 miles nearly half the field was dropped. I am the one of the best timetrialists in the group, my average speed for a 20k is around 28, I could save everything I have and unleash my tt for the final 20k in the same field, sure I may get away with it, but odds are I will end up dead last. That is racing and that us why using average speed to gauge how you will do in anything but a tt is pointless.
 
Originally Posted by Cpro .

Sunday im gonna take place to a road race named ROAD RACE EXPERIENCE http://www.sphellas.com/index.php/COURSE/1/360,
So i need to know, because this is my first race, which is the average speed of amateurs cycling. Now, im having 20 miles or 32 km/h average for distances 60 km, is this good speed or i will be back in the group. I started road cycling from January this year and from 20 km/h increased my speed to 32 km/h average very comfortable at cadence 80 rpm. And also i would like to learn if the best pace for this race is to be in no mans land or zone 3 tempo aerobic ride? I must tell you that my bike is 9.5 kg.
follow wheels watch and learn work on your spin, your cadance is waay too low
 
Another point that has to be raised is that at the back of the pack you will be able to sustain speeds up to 20% faster then you normally do simply because you will be in the slipstream. So if your speed is 32km/h when you bike alone, you will be able to sustain at least 35km/h behind a group.

Moving up the pack is another story.
 
You might notice that the "race" is long over.

You also might notice it was a bit more casual than a race.
 
Originally Posted by bgoetz .

AOG, it is obvious by your response that you have no real world racing experience and are only basing things off if what you "think" a race is like from group rides and tv. BTW the thing those "idiots" are doing is called attacking and moves like that have won many races.
I based my comments on the definition of "average."

People who "attack" do so for many reasons. In days of old "attacking" went hand in hand with "out of sight; out of mind." If you got a big enough lead, perhaps the others would forget about you. Happened in the Olympics a while back when 3 Germans got off the front. Still happens.

For the pros not so much. (Yea, the guys at the Olympics were pros but we don't share the same amateur racing history.) Sometimes the group makes a mistake in estimating the average time. Sometimes the group just does not care.

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It is all about average speed. You bring friends to help increase your averge speed. If you can ride at an average speed greater than anyone else, you win.