speed

radiation man

last weekend i reached 52 mph down jubilee tower, but now feel its madness going that fast, if you have an accident i dread to think of the state id be in, im 50 and dont race so i guess i should leave that as my top speed and slow down now.

carl_p

I'm a similar age to you, not that has much to do with it, except after a period of reflection following a ride I sometimes have misgivings over the speed I'd hit on a descent. I can't get anywhere near 50 mph around these parts, but I still go quick enough to think, crikey what if I had hit a rut in the road, or a pothole, a tyre blow out? Seems a good idea at the time doesn't it, but it's all pretty pointless when you think about it. I'll be taking it easy now, especially this time of year when fallen leaves might be covering danger beneath.

sloppyschleckonds

Try peddling Faster

teulk

42mph is my fastest to date, on my normal rides my max is about 33mph downhill and i often think coming off at that speed wouldn't be too nice.

okgo

Enjoy the Richmond of at 30 down a hill is gunna feck you up just as much as 45!

I fell off at about 10 mph and still had a patch of road rash tw size of an a5 bit of paper

redvee

okgo wrote:

I fell off at about 10 mph and still had a patch of road rash tw size of an a5 bit of paper

Lesser speed but A4 total area of mis-coloured skin on my calf now. I have clocked up 47.5 mph without much peddaling effort, was thinking 50 can't be too hard to acheive but the extra 2.5mph needs 10mph effort putting in.

inseine

I hit 57 in the alps in august but only because you don't often get a crack at that sort of speed. It was a bit mental and I don't mind admitting that I backed off a bit.

Pigtail

One of my targets is to get over 50. I made 49.9 last time I tried it - but ran out of room before having to brake for a corner.

mattward1979

Need bigger descents in kent!!

Coming down the steep side of Shooters hill, I set off the "Slow Down" signs which are set to 35 ( I think..)
Would LOVE to try a long sweeping Alpine descent.. without the crushing ascent before hand though! Not that fit yet

oldwelshman

This is the state I was in after 48mph crash:

gmacz

I get kmph and mph mixed up as well. :roll:

napoleond

I came off at 44 a couple of years ago. Luckily I only broke my leg in 3 places and got road rash all down my right hand side.
Came off at just over 30 in a race, broke my back and shattered my collarbone.

Came off at 6mph on ice, banged head on kerb, got a nasty concussion.

Crashes at all speeds hurt.

Monty Dog

I have every confidence in my bike handling skills at high speed, unfortunately it is often the fact that you are having to share the road space with others that is the problem. A local road is about 12% for about a km which has a long straight run-up and run-out - unfortunately despite the 50mph limit, motorists regularly pull out the junction at 20mph at the bottom of the hill. Having been forced onto the other side of the road into oncoming traffic at 50mph I no longer consider it appropriate to descend at those speeds.

Kamzter

The most I do nowadays is about 25 - 30 mph, slow to some I know but I have been over 2 car bonnets and in a ditch as car pulled out in front of me, I have kids, too much to risk with maniac drivers about !!

fossyant

Depends upon the hill. Regularly top 40 on a hill near me, but no side roads. Woodhead is very good for 50-55mph, Chunal another good 50 mph one.

Top has been 60mph in North Wales, but 50-55 in the Pennines.

Teece

This is one of the biggest problems I've encountered with road cycling [besides numb nuts].

Bombing downhill at 35mph feels great and I feel confident that I can handle the machine at that speed. But what I can't control are the obstacles in the road, lazy/reckless drivers, sudden punctures, diesel on the corners etc etc.
As soon as I let these things wander through my mind then I'm onto the brakes and looking down at the computer until I'm at 20mph.

I hate the feeling, it feels like I'm being a coward, but what can I do? Descending quickly but waiting for disaster isn't much fun at all...

Pigtail

It's self-preservation, and I probably don't have enough of it.

I'm a bit of an adrenaline junkie and have always been too fond of speed. I've only been cycling for just over a year now, and part of it may be due to the fact I've never crashed. I've had a few clipless moments, but haven't come off at speed.

PostieJohn

Teece wrote:

I hate the feeling, it feels like I'm being a coward, but what can I do? Descending quickly but waiting for disaster isn't much fun at all...

Know thy descent, and trust your judgement.
I have a climb the highest point of which is a roundabout with 4 turn offs.
They are all 40+ mph descents.

I sit up for one, cos I hate it.
I tuck for the bottom 1/4 of another.
I bomb down the third.
The last one, I could do blindfold over 40mph, because that's my route home, and I know it so well.

Grow your confidence on whqat you know, that will help you relax, on your bike.
That is key to picking up the speed.
If you turn it into a literal 'white knuckle' ride your bike will respond differently, and not in a good way.

briantrumpet

Teece wrote:

I hate the feeling, it feels like I'm being a coward, but what can I do? Descending quickly but waiting for disaster isn't much fun at all...

I've only got a few roads that I know well that I'll really let go on. Any roads that have side turnings, blind corners, dodgy surfaces - forget it. I frequently have to do risk assessments for work, and you do the multiplier of likelihood of accident x severity of risk; given the probability of a driver being a twonk and the probably catastrophic outcome of me decelerating from 40+mph to zero with only a layer of lycra to cushion the blow, I'll be the coward any day.

MountainMonster

I've hit over 70kmh before on a descent, and I will never be doing that again. I have no problems doing stupid speeds on motorbikes or in cars, but on bikes, I just feel so vulnerable. It's a bit different on the MTB due to bigger tires, but still not amazing. I'd much more prefer flying down MTB trails dodging trees at a decent speed than flying downhill on a road bike balls out.

Saying that, I do regularly hit over 50kmh, but hold myself a bit back, especially after watching my father in law wipe out in front of me because of gravel and end up in the hospital for 2 weeks with a swollen brain. Better not too risk too much IMO.

kev77

Today i was hit by a woman in a renault clio in warrington cheshire, the only damage was luckily tyre rash to my right shoe, i was around 16 - 17 mph and she pulled across in front of me. I did not come off luckily and i some how saved a massive crash.

I absolute papped my pants, she just drove off without a care in the world after i gave her a load of verbal about opening her eye's etc.

I think this was my wake up call to make even more of awareness on the road,

Over the past 18 months i have hit some big speeds around various hills and valleys etc but a moment of madness today through a town center has made me think more.

Anyway my misses has banned me from winter afternoon cycling!

Diogenes

Some years I ago hurtled downhill into Hutton le hole at 45mph+ which seemed like great fun. Then I noticed the sheep with lambs on the roadside and wondered what the effect would be of broadsiding a sheep on a bike at approaching 50mph. I applied the brakes .

D