Effect on speed when riding in a group

Velke

Hi

Considering joining a club but wanting to understand how my average speed might change from riding alone to riding within a group / peleton.

On a normal 40-50 mile training ride alone i'll average 16.5 mph, would i be able to ride with a faster group that average 18-19 mph taking into effect that riding within a group is meant to save 30% less effort?

Or am i kidding my myself?

danowat

The effort on speed when riding in a group?, in a single word, massive.

danlikesbikes

Tough to say really, in theory you should be OK as its only 2.5mph (at worse) increase & you would be in a line so getting the drag factor.

Depends on the group though I guess, my club has 2 similar groups with one sticking to the pace religiously and the other being an out and back with the return leg getting quicker so the average is slightly higher than stated.

Might be worth checking with the club if they post any of their routes on Garmin connect or Strava and then you can see the terrain, speeds they tend to do?

If it were me I'd give it a go, its only like joining a chain gang where you try and hold on for a long as you can and as long as you come back it will make you stronger.

slowbike

I don't belong to a club and don't group ride ...
However, I have been on a couple through links with others - only issue I had was getting on the front and the guy next to me pushing the pace - I could hold it for a few minutes then I just had to drop off - that did me in for the rest of the ride - fortunately we were heading home!

saprkzz

The effect when riding with a group, or even just following one wheel is huge. Not just for average speed but for tired legs and endurance. I was training at a circuit on Tuesday night which was a 0.6 mile loop, with one slight descent and one asccent either side. We completed 27 laps in total.

After doing a few warm up laps we up'ed the pace and i found myself doing quite a bit of work on the front, on the hill side i lost a wheel on front and got dropped and spent 7 laps on my own before i could get back on, (they must have slowed). I noticed on my own the effort to push up the hill (very slight) was tougher and coming down the back straight of the circuit was full on in the wind. I then spent a few laps in a group of 10ish riders and found it so effortless, and legs stopped hurting and was able to talk. (I was thinking the laps times would be slower)

Once i got home i checked out my garmin and was quite suprised by the results which has taught me a good lesson in race tactics to adopt for when i race there this year.

On my own, the laps averaged from lowest being 19.3mph to 19.9mph, when I was in the group we were averaging from the lowest being 20.5 up to 23.2mph.

My main thought??!!?? dont try and be brave and break from the peleton, i will get swallowed up within a lap! :roll:

smidsy

As long as you have the endurance for their distance at the pace then you shoud be fine.

Only issue may be hanging onto the wheel in front up hills. As soon as you lose the wheel you are done for. You then spend energy trying to get back on and fatigue then creeps in and a viscious circle ensues.

Go and give it a go. Worst thing happens, you get dropped and then you know your limits. No shame in that.

A decent group will wait at the top anyway. But then they get a rest and you do'nt :roll:

markos1963

The only thing you have to be careful with is hills. A group tends to ride harder up the hill and easier down it in my experience. I find myself getting frustrated a bit on descents as I know I can go quicker but then I thank them for it when I have enough energy to stay with them on the climbs. I reckon a 2mph difference is the norm' compared to solo/group riding over a similar distance.

saprkzz

smidsy wrote:

As long as you have the endurance for their distance at the pace then you shoud be fine.

Only issue may be hanging onto the wheel in front up hills. As soon as you lose the wheel you are done for. You then spend energy trying to get back on and fatigue then creeps in and a viscious circle ensues.

Go and give it a go. Worst thing happens, you get dropped and then you know your limits. No shame in that.

A decent group will wait at the top anyway. But then they get a rest and you do'nt :roll:

All true, and this is how you get stronger, when I joined the club, they dont wait on purpose because it forces you to get fitter, within 2-3 weeks and you are the one doing the waiting

smoggysteve

saprkzz wrote:

smidsy wrote:

As long as you have the endurance for their distance at the pace then you shoud be fine.

Only issue may be hanging onto the wheel in front up hills. As soon as you lose the wheel you are done for. You then spend energy trying to get back on and fatigue then creeps in and a viscious circle ensues.

Go and give it a go. Worst thing happens, you get dropped and then you know your limits. No shame in that.

A decent group will wait at the top anyway. But then they get a rest and you do'nt :roll:

All true, and this is how you get stronger, when I joined the club, they dont wait on purpose because it forces you to get fitter, within 2-3 weeks and you are the one doing the waiting

If anything not so much the speed element, it helps develop discipline as you need to trust each other in the group. Also you do tend to try and work for each other. If anyone is in a group that constantly drops off slower members all I can say is im glad im not with them as they obviously don't have any team disciple. Longer you can work together , better you become as a team and quicker the weaker members develop their fitness and pace.

danlikesbikes

SmoggySteve wrote:

saprkzz wrote:

smidsy wrote:

As long as you have the endurance for their distance at the pace then you shoud be fine.

Only issue may be hanging onto the wheel in front up hills. As soon as you lose the wheel you are done for. You then spend energy trying to get back on and fatigue then creeps in and a viscious circle ensues.

Go and give it a go. Worst thing happens, you get dropped and then you know your limits. No shame in that.

A decent group will wait at the top anyway. But then they get a rest and you do'nt :roll:

All true, and this is how you get stronger, when I joined the club, they dont wait on purpose because it forces you to get fitter, within 2-3 weeks and you are the one doing the waiting

If anything not so much the speed element, it helps develop discipline as you need to trust each other in the group. Also you do tend to try and work for each other. If anyone is in a group that constantly drops off slower members all I can say is im glad im not with them as they obviously don't have any team disciple. Longer you can work together , better you become as a team and quicker the weaker members develop their fitness and pace.

Tend to agree with this.

Pretty old school to say your dropped catch up & get faster, which does work.

However a good group working together teaches several things, but importantly you are working together and taking turns riding at a faster pace than you would normally on your own giving you the option to recover in shelter and expose you to a harder work out on the front. Is exactly the same as doing interval sets in a way.