Is my bike slow?

markhewitt1978

Yes; I mentioned that up thread. I was/am faster on my road bike than my hybrid.

I don't understand your last comment because for the same amount of effort, I'm faster on my road bike than my hybrid, I'm not pedalling 'harder'.

slowbike

markhewitt1978 wrote:

Yes; I mentioned that up thread. I was/am faster on my road bike than my hybrid.

I don't understand your last comment because for the same amount of effort, I'm faster on my road bike than my hybrid, I'm not pedalling 'harder'.

Aerodynamics ....

I have an entry level road bike (not halfords) and a carbon version with the same geometry ... I still hold PBs on the entry level bike ...
Overall I'm faster on the carbon bike - but that's because I'm fitter now.

Bike weight a factor? I have some uphill pbs on my Ali CX commute bike - complete with rack ... weights a couple of KGs more than the carbon bike ... aero didn't come into it as it's climbing (9%+ stuff).

The entry level bikes generally come with low end kit - low end wheels & groupsets - these are absolutely fine, but they will not shift or change speed as easily as the higher end kit generally found on more expensive carbon bikes - so, if you have similar geometry & therefore similar aerodynamic properties* it's not the absolute speed that is the difference, it's the ability of the bike to react to the rider that's the difference.

*no an entry level bike won't be as aerodynamic as a top end carbon bike - but the main aerodynamic factor is the rider and not the bike.

btw - if you want to go faster on your hybrid then look at your positioning - put some tri-bars on and you'll be far more aero and get more speed out for the same effort ...

Mikey23

I can't understand it... The exact equivalent of my bike has won Paris roubaix. I must have been sold a dud...

slowbike

Mikey23 wrote:

I can't understand it... The exact equivalent of my bike has won Paris roubaix. I must have been sold a dud...

I think you'll find it's all in the drinks bottle ...

Mikey23

That and keeping my dork disc on...

bigjim

No matter how fit or fast you get there will always be someone better than you. That's how life is.
Its also one of those things on a bike when you see someone up front you tend to put a bit more effort in to catch up and pass them. I consciously have to stop myself doing it sometimes.
So they may be at the same fitness level as you but the macho thing has kicked in.
Re bike. On club rides there are a couple of 68yr olds on steel bikes with DT levers that can whip the rest of us anytime.

the playing mantis

saprkzz wrote:

nothing at all to do with the bike, my mate owns most of us on his £300 carrera TDF. Even stayed with Ian Stanndard for a few miles

Ian stanndard, Ian stannard's lesser known twice as good cousin

Mikey23

That's the same... Distance relative of bridley woggins

gubber12345

Jon_1976 wrote:

I'd definitely recommend some cycling shoes, be it mountain or road though. I used flat pedals and trainers at first and got a lot of foot pain along with cramping.

+1 on the shoes,used to cycle with just trainers and could hardly walk the first few steps off the bike after a ride with foot pain,got the shoes...no more foot pain.

PS...takes a while to get used to but well worth the effort.

GGBiker

The bike is slow, that's why Peter Sagan only managed 2nd place in the Tour of Flanders this year.

rickeverett

Ride hard wrote:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlJjbnrdjjw

ha so true.

Nick_M

Ride hard wrote:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlJjbnrdjjw

pinkteapot

If you're in the top gear your bike has, and your legs are spinning like a hamster wheel while others are cruising past you at a fraction of your cadence, then it's the bike.

Otherwise.... :P

To be fair the bike does make some degree of difference. I went from a dirt cheap Rayleigh MTB to a Whyte 700c hybrid. For what felt like about the same amount of physical effort, I was immediately 20% faster on my commute. Your bike looks like one that should be fairly speedy though... What sort of bikes are overtaking you?

pete.b

get the new bike, you are just trying to justify a good reason to buy it, the shoes and pedals would improve your power.but like most have said four miles is not enough, when i go out for a fifty miler i probably warm up over that distance.

declan1

A 1.4L diesel will be slow if you put it in a Peugeot 207 or a Ferrari 458.

A 6.0L V12 will be fast no matter what you put it in.

BrandonA

Slowbike wrote:

markhewitt1978 wrote:

Why do you say that? If you give someone a £300 Halfords bike; or a £2,000 road bike, they are going to be faster on the road bike. Now you can argue exactly how much faster and if the extra money is worth it etc etc, but the fact is that the £2k bike will be faster.

Have you ever gone from an entry level bike to a 2k bike? What difference did you notice?

The fact is that the £2k bike may make going faster easier, but to get faster it still requires the rider to pedal harder ...

My road cycling started on an Allez (£900), then moved to a Tarmac Pro (£1,800) and then onto a S-Works Venge (£ more than I'd admit). The difference between each is vast.

I agree with your last point though, it is your fitness and the effort you are willing/able/do put out that governs your overall speed on any given bike.

I don't have a power meter but I'd suspect that watts required to power each of these 3 bikes to a certain speed would not be the same.

buckles

I bet it is.