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From: NFN Smith <worldoff9908@gmail.com>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: Average speed
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2024 12:04:18 -0700
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Tom Kunich wrote:
> So a question is - how are you people that think that a 12 mph
> average in a city is slow measuring your own average speed? I use a
> Garmin 830 and the latest Garmin software.

A lot of variables there, especially in how frequent the stops are.  If 
you're in an urban core, you may see multiple signal lights over the 
course of a mile, and every stop and start is going to cost you on 
average speed.

In my own riding, if I'm in adequate condition, I come in from rides 
where my averages are typically in the low 15's. I ride mostly flat 
roads, but where the grid of streets has a major cross-road every mile 
(and sometimes another cross-road on the half miles).  At the moment, 
I'm doing low 14's, because I'm still working off weight accumulated 
over the winter.

If I'm seeing an average of something around 15.5, I'm typically riding 
at a speed around 18 (give or take an MPH), and the difference between 
the two is mostly imposed by the relative frequent stops for signal lights.

I'm getting my data off a bike-mounted Bontrager 3 unit, where I'm 
getting all of my data directly from the bike, either the rear wheel, or 
in the case of the cadence meter, from the crank.  I don't have any felt 
need for anything software-based, whether GPS or data that can be 
transferred to phone or computer, and I'm inclined to believe that data 
transferred over a few cm on the bike is going to be better than what 
bounces off a satellite.  It may be that the difference isn't enough to 
be significant, but that's my preference.

One related thing is that with the cadence meter, I've found that I ride 
best (at least on the flats), where I keep the cadence at around 92 or 
93.  I grew up in hilly country, and my natural physiology is with 
slow-twitch muscles, and unless I'm paying attention, I tend to push 
with a slower cadence.  Thus, if I'm focusing on cadence, combined with 
frequent signal lights, I'm constantly having to restart from either a 
full stop (or near stop slowdown) that in order to keep the cadence I 
want, I do a lot of shifting.  Over the course of a ride, even if I'm on 
flats, I may make use of 4 or even 5 gears on the cassette.  That's 
definitely different than riding a road with fewer cross-streets.  I 
think it was Catryke that commented that he rarely shifts at all, but I 
got the impression that he rides stuff that's truly flat, and I suppose, 
minimal cross-traffic to account for.

Smith