richmond park, lap times

greeny67

ive just discovered richmond park and have been round a few times. can anyone tell me what a decent lap time is. I dont have try-bars so im never going to be super fast but would be good to have a gage. Also is it best to go clockwise or anti clockwise? Thanks

jibberjim

greeny67 wrote:

ive just discovered richmond park and have been round a few times. can anyone tell me what a decent lap time is. I dont have try-bars so im never going to be super fast but would be good to have a gage. Also is it best to go clockwise or anti clockwise? Thanks

See the 3 lap challenge thread http://www.bikeradar.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=16344765

Showing that a great time for 3 laps is around 48 minutes... By very good road racers, eyepea0, Andy Betts, but me, Petromyzon and TarmacExpert have all done sub 51 on straight road set ups (the others in the top 10 are all on TT bikes I believe)

For 1 lap, I'm likely at most 30 or so seconds better than I can do for 3, not much more.

But times are very, very sensitive to the weather, traffic, etc.

Anti-Clockwise is almost certainly faster.

greeny67

Thanks for that useful link. It will probably show how slow i actually am compared to all the other cyclists but a good incentive to go faster i suppose..

jibberjim

greeny67 wrote:

Thanks for that useful link. It will probably show how slow i actually am compared to all the other cyclists but a good incentive to go faster i suppose..

Remember there's lots of people who don't post times there who are even slower And it's really all about chasing your own fitness, being slow at the start just makes it easier to see improvements, rather than wondering how you managed to go so fast in the past, but now not.

Toks

I'm pretty much in agreement with what JibberJim has said. I'm not sure of your fitness levels so a respectable time in the 3 lap challenge would would be 60mins or under for a non competitive cyclist. As a test see if you can ride a lap in around 20mins and take things from there. Please be safe, don't take big risks over taking cars, remember the speed limit paritcularly when descending, watch out for deer and dosey folk crossing the roads.The best times to ride are early mornings and late evenings. On Saturday mornings expect lots and lots of other cyclists. We look forward to hearing how ya get on

Joe McGuire

First post

I am a little shocked by the times being posted here and on the link above.

I have been cycling for 2 months pretty obsessively since I got my road bike. I did a PB at Richmond park yesterday of 21:40 for a lap anti-clockwise which absolutely killed me!

To be able to do three in less than an hour seems crazy but I will make it my goal to get there.

Does anyone know what the record time is for a single lap?

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Joe McGuire

Thanks Kingston Wheeler, great response.

Those times are insane! Im heading out there this afternoon after work to do my first 3 laps without stopping. Ill post my time on here.

cheers,

bigmat

KingstonWheeler wrote:

Joe that's a decent time for your first go and visit the three lap thread when you've done three laps. It is harder to ride for three laps but once you get the hang of it, it's not so bad. Because you're riding steadier it can be more satisfying.

Anti-clockwise is easier and what really helps is a light easterly breeze to make the stretch from Roehampton to Richmond easier.

As for a record lap, I remember former Milk Race winner Chris Lillywhite talking about lapping in around 14.30. My best is 15.22, I was struggling to get near 16 minutes, then suddenly hit a run of several laps around the 16 minute mark, and then once lopped almost 40 seconds in one go which only shows how random it can be, a change in weather can make a big difference. Like my time on the 3-lap thread, it was on a normal road bike.

As JibberJim and Toks say, enjoy the riding, it's a good circuit to test the legs but keep it safe, there's no trophy and you don't want to take risks for the sake of a few seconds when a decent breeze or improved fitness will help.

Would love to think Chris Lillywhite holds the lap record, he sat on my wheel for the best part of a lap earlier this year! He has a few years on me though and I got the feeling he had another couple of gears...

FWIW I find it difficult to increase my pace above 3 lap pace, fastest lap I've done is around 16:40 and I can more or less hold that pace for 3 laps, when I've ridden the RP time trials my average speed hasn't actually been significantly faster even though its around half the distance.

TarmacExpert

MatHammond wrote:

FWIW I find it difficult to increase my pace above 3 lap pace, fastest lap I've done is around 16:40 and I can more or less hold that pace for 3 laps, when I've ridden the RP time trials my average speed hasn't actually been significantly faster even though its around half the distance.

I'm the same, my fastest ever lap is what I've done during a 3 lap effort. I think it's partly psychological, in that if I do a fast lap, then I immediately think I'm on for a 3 lap PB, so I do whatever it takes to keep going at the same speed.

I found out that the guy who went past me on a TT bike when I did my 50:24 was Nick Hutchings, and his lap times were 15:08, 15:55, 15:35. So 14:30 is certainly seriously quick if it's on a road bike, as Nick is a decent time triallist, he came 36th in the national 10 this year.

FWIW, prior to 2009 my fastest ever lap was 21:11, but that was without doing any training as such, I just very occasionally went out to ride a lap or two. Then in 2009 I started riding more and did 3 laps in 56:37, and in 2010, I've got that down to 50:24.

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jibberjim

TarmacExpert wrote:

FWIW, prior to 2009 my fastest ever lap was 21:11, but that was without doing any training as such, I just very occasionally went out to ride a lap or two. Then in 2009 I started riding more and did 3 laps in 56:37, and in 2010, I've got that down to 50:24.

Similar progression from me (probably within the margin of luck in getting conditions)

In 2008 I did one 3LC, and it also included my fastest 1 lap of the year which was 20:20 and overall for the 3 laps it was 63:08.

In 2009 my best was 56:44 and my best single lap I think was 17:45 which was not done on a 3LC.

In 2010 my best is 50:05 and my best single lap was the 2nd lap of that challenge at 16:30

Anonymous

If it makes you feel any better, my one lap record is about 24 mins, but that is on MTB with knobbly tyres. I'm hoping to get a road bike in the spring, interesting to see what the difference is.

london-red

I think it's worth saying that a three lap time of sub-60 minutes is better then respectable for a non-racer. I say that because it took me bloody ages to break that time and while I'm no Cancelara I like to think that I'm reasonably fit.

I'd say sub 65 is respectable, sub-60 is a good speed and anything in the lower 50s and downwards bonkers.

Believe me, getting a 20mph average around RP ain't easy and is an achievement in itself...

airbusboy

I really can't fathom how people can do at 16min lap: I was there the other day and one particular straight( towards richmond gate) with the standard headwind component destroyed me, i averaged 16-17mph and hit my HRmax on the slight incline near the gate!!Any tips?

jibberjim

airbusboy wrote:

I really can't fathom how people can do at 16min lap: I was there the other day and one particular straight( towards richmond gate) with the standard headwind component destroyed me, i averaged 16-17mph and hit my HRmax on the slight incline near the gate!!Any tips?

Richmond Gate is at the highest point in the park, both routes to the gate are on uphills, so I'm not surprised you weren't hitting high speeds, it's also why east winds are faster because you're not battling the hill and the headwind at the same time.

Work on your fitness - keep doing 3LC

Think about your aerodynamics - use the drops etc.

airbusboy

ITS UPHILL.... it looks fairly flat, apart from the last bit. I won't feel so lazy now!!

Cheers

Toby th tyrant

I'm twelve and wigh 45ish kg and managed around 23 minutes when there was little traffic without drafting and on a boardman hybrid.

markshaw77

David Millar did a 13:35 last summer in full TT setup which was reported as an "unofficial record" (and caused a bit of a stir) - that is pretty insane pace but makes you realise how good the pros are!!

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/528550/millar-sets-richmond-park-time-trial-record.html

cborrman

markshaw77 wrote:

David Millar did a 13:35 last summer in full TT setup which was reported as an "unofficial record" (and caused a bit of a stir) - that is pretty insane pace but makes you realise how good the pros are!!

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/528550/millar-sets-richmond-park-time-trial-record.html

Wow... I will add that to Cav's 78km/h sprints and file under holy ...

Anybody wish to share the speeds they do at certain points to get sub 60 mins 3lc? To get a single sub 20 min lap Anti-Clockwise it takes me a 30 km/h up approach to sawyers hill, 20km/h up steep part, 25-30 the rest until past pembroke house, up to 50+ settle down to 40 before thedip, 30km/h to robin hood, 20 up the hill, 30 again, sprint up the approach to only fast corner, 60 down the fast bit, 30-35km/h long stretch back to start depending on wind? I get the feeling i am expending too much effort in some parts and not enough in others as i cannot keep this up 3 laps??? Or is it just balls out and get fit enough to keep up 3 laps?

Finally, are these consistant speeds, or are these good days with no wind? I get the feeling the wind is against me some days, but it could just be too much pie...

jibberjim

cborrman wrote:

I get the feeling i am expending too much effort in some parts and not enough in others as i cannot keep this up 3 laps??? Or is it just balls out and get fit enough to keep up 3 laps?

Your speed on the flat is too low, I never hit 60kph on my 3LC, but 30-35kph on the flat sections is too low. You need to be able to go harder or get more aerodynamic.

cborrman

Thanks Jibberjim... That makes sense as there is a lot of flat! At the moment i try and take speed where I can get it, hence descending like a looney!

max1234

How much difference does being aerodynamic make? I'm not quite managing 60 3LC mins and mostly ride on the hoods - would using the drops more really save noticable time - it's hard to judge the difference when on the bike.

jibberjim

max1234 wrote:

How much difference does being aerodynamic make? I'm not quite managing 60 3LC mins and mostly ride on the hoods - would using the drops more really save noticable time - it's hard to judge the difference when on the bike.

The faster you go the bigger difference it makes (because increasing power 50% increases speed more at 10kph than at 20kph) But yes, it makes huge differences. I have my "climbing bike" a cervelo RS with the position and gears set up for me to climb well, and my "regular bike" a cervelo R3 positioned for riding fast. The bikes are near identical in themselves, but my position is different, I'm well over a minute a lap faster on the R3.

max1234

Thanks Jibberjim - followed your advice, rode much more on the drops, and beat my 60 mins target (59.28) for the first time!

greygoose1

Jiberjim and others,

I realise this is quite an old thread but I'm keen to improve my time on the 3LC. I'm really impressed by some of the improvements on here (c59mins to c50 in just 2-3 years). What kind of training does it take to progress that quickly? I'm keen to get my time to sub 55 (from 57:30)over the next year - any suggestions how to approach it. I live 5 minutes from the park so I can usually get down there before the traffic starts to build up.

Cheers,
Greygoose