How much can road surface impact performance?

Gabbo

Took a different route today on the wet roads of Surrey. The road surface wasn't smooth tarmac like you'd see on normal greater London roads and it took me a little while longer when climbing long but not so steep roads. Never had this problem before. I noticed the road surface was different and it was wet. Will this impact my speed by much?

mainsy

If you feel you can't pedal as fast or put the power down then yes it will impact on your speed.

jameses

Depends how bad the surface is, but it definitely can make a difference. There's a climb not far from me that sounds similar, long but not steep, and it's mostly fairly rough tarmac except for a few 20-30 meter stretches where the road has been patched with a lovely, smooth surface. The change in effort between these sections is about the equivalent of a sprocket at the rear.

MountainMonster

It can make quite a large difference if the 2 surfaces you are comparing are different, and one is in poor condition. Imagine hitting a pothole, and losing speed because of it, but having it happen on a much smaller scale but more frequently. There was a road in Austria that was perfect condition, with black Tarmac, and my buddies were steadily holding36kmh, we got into a section that was very dilapidated and we dropped down at least 5kmh. The difference can be huge!

andy46

I've just been out and a road I go on is very rough tarmac, horrible really.

I also find if I do quite a few miles on it, I get sort of pins and needles in my hands and changing gear can quite literally be a pain! Does anyone else get this?

Kingy911

andy46 wrote:

I've just been out and a road I go on is very rough tarmac, horrible really.

I also find if I do quite a few miles on it, I get sort of pins and needles in my hands and changing gear can quite literally be a pain! Does anyone else get this?

^^yes :x

Herbsman

I prefer rough roads like this as the extra resistance helps with training.

Pickled Pig

andy46 wrote:

I've just been out and a road I go on is very rough tarmac, horrible really.

I also find if I do quite a few miles on it, I get sort of pins and needles in my hands and changing gear can quite literally be a pain! Does anyone else get this?

Definitely. I rode a section of the A548 between Mostyn and Prestatyn yesterday and at the end of it I had to look at my fingers to see if they were on the levers.

andy46

I normally stop for a bit to rub my hands together to get the feeling back.

ColinJ

There are some horrible rough road surfaces here in West Yorkshire but occasionally I come across stretches of smooth tarmac which have been laid after roadworks. I find that I can ride a 1 or 2 tooth higher gear for the same degree of effort on the smooth surface - quite a significant difference.

I certainly used to ride faster for the same effort on smoother roads in Spain. Those smooth roads were bit lethal after rain though ... :shock:

Dorset_Boy

What's smooth tarmac - don't have any of that down 'ere!

It does make a big difference - smooth tarmac has a lower resistance, but I guess it is all in the south east, and those regions favoured by the last government! :roll:

baldwin471

Dorset Boy wrote:

What's smooth tarmac - don't have any of that down 'ere!

It does make a big difference - smooth tarmac has a lower resistance, but I guess it is all in the south east, and those regions favoured by the last government! :roll:

Not in Bucks! Shite roads around here bar about two. I was on a long climb today and there was sections where new tarmac had been laid and it makes a big difference. Some of the road was atrocious, lumps and bumps for 100's of metres and it really demoralises you when climbing.

Bordersroadie

Riding 23c tyres: yes, by a significant degree.
Riding 25c tyres: yes, but by a lesser degree.

Kingy 123

Its the same story where ever you go in the uk,the roads can be that bad im surprised my wheels run true.

Mikey23

it is so nice to find a stretch of sweet tarmac. get so fed up with the ruts and the ridges and the potholes and the unevenness

declan1

Up here in the Highlands the roads aren't bad - they are terrible. Even the A roads are full of pot-holes and rough spots. I get shaken to pieces!

Yes - it really does affect performance (probably more-so on my 20mm tyres). Comparing a really rough road to a (rare) brand-new smooth tarmac section is like night and day. The smooth tarmac is so fast!

diy

I certainly notice a fairly hefty improvement after they resurfaced the zig zag on box hill for the olympics. Previously that road had loads of holes in and it slows you down rattling over it even at climbing speeds.

Sadly they have put the annoying speed bumps back in.

cougie

How do you know that it's taking you longer to climb hills that you've not ridden before ?

Road surface does make a difference. As does wind speed and direction.