speed cycling
Christopher
I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
Chris.
Helen Deborah Vecht
from Christopher <r...@uk.ibm.com> contains these words:
> Hi All!
> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
42mph :-ş
--
Helen D. Vecht
helen...@zetnet.co.uk
Salisbury, Wiltshire,
Great Britain
Simon Ward
: The message <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>: > I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
: > What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
: 42mph :-ş
On this trip I discovered that there may be a market for brown cycling
shorts.
Simon
A.J. Clarke
> Helen Deborah Vecht (helen...@zetnet.co.uk) wrote:
> : The message <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>
> : from Christopher <r...@uk.ibm.com> contains these words:
> : > I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
> : > What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
> : 42mph :-þ
> 63mph - Bilsdale, May 1998.
> On this trip I discovered that there may be a market for brown cycling
> shorts.
I met someone once who admitted to having been a keen cyclist in
his youth. His boast was that he'd managed 60mph downhill at the age of
14. He knew it was 60 because he could see the speedo on the dashboard of
the Mini he was slipstreaming at the time...
For the record my handlebar-computer-noted best was 34 on a level
road. Downhill I tend to have my attention further forward!
Tony Clarke
Pepe Tozzo
I don't recommend it.
John Curtin
Simon Ward wrote in message <7acarq$elg$1...@pump1.york.ac.uk>...
> 63mph - Bilsdale, May 1998.
> On this trip I discovered that there may be a market for brown cycling
>shorts.
>
I take it that you were not riding fixed then?
John
Simon Ward
: Simon Ward wrote in message <7acarq$elg$1...@pump1.york.ac.uk>...
Correct.
Speed record on the fixer is only 36mph on a 74" gear (downhill, natch) -
calculation of the cadence is left as an exercise to the reader but its
probably small potatoes compared to what some trackies can achieve. It was a
painful experience.
To be honest, 36mph downhill on a fixer was *far* more frightening than
doing 60+ on the geared bike although in the latter case the fact that the
road down Bilsdale *isn't* straight made life more interesting.
Simon
--[ Simon Ward (York CTC, Audax UK) I program, therefore I am ... ]--
--[ Computational Physics Group PHONE: (01904) 430000 x2204 ]--
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John Mallard
Simon Ward wrote in message <7acnu2$2oi$3...@pump1.york.ac.uk
> Speed record on the fixer is only 36mph on a 74" gear (downhill, natch) -
>calculation of the cadence is left as an exercise to the reader but its
>probably small potatoes compared to what some trackies can achieve. It was
a
>painful experience.
>
160?
I think you've just put me off fixers Simon <g>. If that had been me, there
would have been no way I could have bounced back out of that valley or
whatever it was on 74".
I'd would have been lying down in a field muttering "I don't f*****g believe
what I just did" etc. etc..
big...@sleeper.net.au
on my mtb. If only I'd had a bigger top chainring. On most moderately steep
roads I can usually get over 60km/h quite easily.
A guy who works at my LBS said he has hit 93km/h on a road bike in the Blue
Mountains here in Australia.
Nick
In article <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>,
r...@uk.ibm.com wrote:
> Hi All!
>
> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
>
> Chris.
>
-----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==----------
http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own
Christopher
>
> On 16 Feb 1999, Simon Ward wrote:
>
> > Helen Deborah Vecht (helen...@zetnet.co.uk) wrote:
> > : The message <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>
> > : from Christopher <r...@uk.ibm.com> contains these words:
> > : > What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
> > 63mph - Bilsdale, May 1998.
> > On this trip I discovered that there may be a market for brown cycling
> > shorts.
>
> his youth. His boast was that he'd managed 60mph downhill at the age of
> 14. He knew it was 60 because he could see the speedo on the dashboard of
> the Mini he was slipstreaming at the time...
>
> For the record my handlebar-computer-noted best was 34 on a level
> road. Downhill I tend to have my attention further forward!
>
> Tony Clarke
Thanks!
Chris.
Helen Deborah Vecht
from Christopher <r...@uk.ibm.com> contains these words:
> When you say fixed do you mean with no suspension or only one gear?
Simon rides a single gear bicycle with no freewheel.
It also has no suspension.
Simon Ward
[snip]
: 160?
Sounds about right.
: I think you've just put me off fixers Simon <g>. If that had been me, there
: would have been no way I could have bounced back out of that valley or
: whatever it was on 74".
Valley? What valley?
This particular occasion was a controlled plummet off the top of the
Yorkshire Wolds near Beverley. Fortunately, the hill (location on request :-)
had a reasonably good run-out before it reached a T-junction(!). It was hard
to see because of the smoke coming off my knees ...
I've been *up* the same hill on 68" - a lot more drawn out but just as
painful. Then there's the time I nearly ploughed into a group of walkers at
45mph[1] coming off Leavening Brow (Arthur may remember this :-) ) ...
: I'd would have been lying down in a field muttering "I don't f*****g believe
: what I just did" etc. etc..
You live and learn :-)
Simon
[1] - Not on fixed though.
Simon Ward
: Simon rides a single gear bicycle with no freewheel.
rides his suspension-free bike with *lots* of gears (and a freewheel). It's
too bleedin' windy to be mucking about with fixed gears.
: It also has no suspension.
At the moment ...
Investigations are on-going as to whether a Kalloy suspension seatpost can
be fitted with enough preload for an 18st rider, thereby minimising the
potential for back trouble when I ride the Daylight 600 ... bouncy hybrid
forks are also a possibility if I can find some with a 1" threaded steerer.
Simon (going soft in his old age)
tri...@corpex.com
miles out (always rush hour in the mornings) through central London. -
Never averaged more than 16 Mph on the way home, but I often hit 32Mph
going east past the old Mirror Building (Nr Chancery Lane) when the
lights are changing correctly..(scary enough?)
I ride an MTB FYI
On Wed, 17 Feb 1999 00:34:53 GMT, big...@sleeper.net.au wrote:
>The fastest I've managed was 74km/h (about 48mph I think) down a steep road
>on my mtb. If only I'd had a bigger top chainring. On most moderately steep
>roads I can usually get over 60km/h quite easily.
>
>A guy who works at my LBS said he has hit 93km/h on a road bike in the Blue
>Mountains here in Australia.
>
>
>Nick
>
>
>In article <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>,
> r...@uk.ibm.com wrote:
>> Hi All!
>>
>> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
>> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
>>
Christopher
used for about 5 seconds on the straight and he reached 90 mph !!!
Simon Ward
: a guy in the US attached two solid fuel rockets to his bike and they are
: used for about 5 seconds on the straight and he reached 90 mph !!!
(thwack!)
Simon
Christopher
What make and type of chain wheel do you use to get the highest gear for
downhill racing? A twin one as MTB ones are always 3's and never as big!
Chris.
Andrew Henry
A.J. Clarke <aj...@cus.cam.ac.uk> wrote:
>I met someone once who admitted to having been a keen cyclist in
>his youth. His boast was that he'd managed 60mph downhill at the age of
>14. He knew it was 60 because he could see the speedo on the dashboard of
>the Mini he was slipstreaming at the time...
I had a Mini with a speedometer that said it was doing 26mph
when it was stationary.
--
Andrew Henry
ahe...@cyberpass.net
M.W. PERKINS
Col de something....just outside Grenoble.
Mark
AJ Salmoni
: I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
Just over 50mph down the shallower side Telegraph Hill on a century ride
from Bristol to Torquay in 1994 - great fun, but needed a lot of
concentration, and cars for once gave me a wide berth! At that speed, all
I could think of was my Dad talking about 'speed wobbles' and crashing
AJS
--
Alan James Salmoni
Dept of Experimental Psychology
University of Bristol
"Job offers gratefully received"
TMC ltd
a speedo on the bicycles - but I once freewheeled 2-up on a BSA
Thunderbolt (we ran out of petrol somewhere near the Palumbo valley in the
dolomites) for 13 kilometers - and we were hitting speeds of over 60mph
down the straights - only had to push the bike about 10 yrds to a petrol
pump when we ran out of inertia - lucky or what! most remarkable thinking
about it - almost sounds Munchausen-esque - but def true! the luck of
yoof! bet if it happened now Id end up stranded...
Mike :7)
Richard Griffin
> 62 mph
> Col de something....just outside Grenoble.
If it was coming from the direction of Gap (vaguely), into Grenoble, it
might have been the Cote du Laffrey. My Dad rode down it but had to keep
stopping and waiting for the brakes to cool: they kept overheating as he
was forced to stay on the brakes all the way down to keep down to the
cars' speed (about 40 mph).
--
Richard.
http://www.ukc.ac.uk/php/rjg2/welcome.html
Richard Griffin
> 42mph
I spent more than a year of my life failling to find a suitable hill on
which to beat the Big Forty, but now it's absolutely neither here nor
there; every time I go to Sainsbury's via St. Stephens Hill (within a
stone's throw of where I'm sitting now, in the Computing Dept at
Canterbury) I break 40. I did so today at lunchtime, speedo's still in
me pocket.... 42.4 mph!
As already mentioned here (late last year) my Land Speed Record is 56.8
mph (91.4 kph), down an extremely sudden not-very-straight plummet of
B-road in Dorset, from the viewpoint (views of Chesil Beach and Portland
Bill) eastwards into Abbotsbury (near Weymouth). The crazy thing is that
you're riding along what seems like an undulating road, but after
reaching a gentle crest it tips way, way down to the right at around 1 in
6, then at the bottom it turns left again and you're tooling along a flat
road into a quiet village: it's all so sudden and severe!
I discovered this hill on a previous visit when I did 49 mph with front &
rear panniers, without trying to go particularly fast. When the
opportunity arose, I returned to Dorset: my journey was taking me
westwards (i.e. UP the hill) but no matter. I rode half way up,
struggling with the weight of my luggage, then turned off into the
entrance to a farm lane and removed panniers, barbag, waterbottle, flappy
clothing (if I'd been more thorough I should really have taken off the
rack and mudguards as well, but I also had to get to Lyme Regis on a
tight schedule!). With the above items cached in a bush, I
(comparatively) merrily honked the rest of the way up; looked down onto
the sea and along the cliffs, psyched myself up, checked front wheel
quick-release and similar things for confidence, straightened glasses,
and then ... BLAM!
Wait for a _very_ long gap in the cars heading down, then push off with
one pedal-stroke, change up to top, quick nervous brake-test; going along
what looks like a flat piece of clifftop, but the road turns right and
disappears away, every time you get to the horizon it's dropped away
further until you think you're going down a cliff! View ahead is of
road, high banks on either side of road, sun shining on the sea above
that. Rapidly accelerating, now hurtling down already at about 45,
passing an oncoming tailback of cars crawling up behind a smoke-belching
coach, full of grannies; pass the last car, brake for the blind left
curve, through OK, pedal manically for a second then crouch down..
glance at the computer which shows 50 ("still more to come, gonna break
the record"), crouch down harder, wind-noise is deafening, nothing coming
the other way, use all of the road for the easy right, judging distance
to next corner, ("never braked from this speed before, use more distance
than seems necessary"), leave it a bit longer, a bit longer, a
bi..... Brake! brake! Front tyre pulling forwards on road, a sort of
ripping noise, slow it down, four cats-eyes, three, two, getting there,
one cats-eye, the oncoming car thinks I'm about to go straight on, out of
control; down to 20mph and lean gracefully into the 90-degree left;
safely round and off the hill, heading into the village.
I laughed incredulously, almost manically as the adrenaline surge
receded, and a huge grin was plastered across my face; performed a zippy
U-turn ("easy without all that luggage") and pushed the computer-button:
AVS.., MAX 56.8 m/h .. really, Really!! ("Wow, it took ages to reach 40,
went up in teeny steps from there, and now I break 50 and 55 all in one
go!"). Blasting up the hill once again, past where I'd so recently been
braking hugely, I was carried up by the left-over adrenaline back to my
luggage. With hands still shaking, I attached all the bits and needed
plenty of time to winch the second half, up to the lookout once again. I
reached the top, where the forward view changes from sky to hilltop to
road, then a wiry Veteran came into view; he saw the grin still plastered
on my face, I nodded knowingly at him as he smiled back and tucked down
into a full crouch. A fellow adrenaline-junkie!
Still laughing, but also panting, I parked up at the view-point for the
second time that day, and successfully took a photograph without
everything blowing away in the strong wind (strangely, I don't recall any
wind on the hill itself, only at the top which is quite exposed). The
rest of the ride was quite punishing but very rewarding in the
summer-evening sunshine, leading up and down through Bridport, Chideock,
Morecombelake, over the nasty steep bit, and down into (the sea!) Lyme
Regis.
--
Richard.
http://www.ukc.ac.uk/php/rjg2/welcome.html
Richard Griffin
> a guy in the US attached two solid fuel rockets to his bike and they
> are used for about 5 seconds on the straight and he reached 90 mph !!!
I don't know about that, but I heard about something similar happening
with a car in the US. Read about the winner of the 1995 Darwin Award at
<http://www.driving.co.uk/nonadv.htm> .
--
Richard.
http://www.ukc.ac.uk/php/rjg2/welcome.html
DScott5604
guess the conditions were just right.( Just outside soulbury Beds ).
Fastest on my own 58mph Bison hill by wipsnade zoo( Beds?) . A terrific hill
both up and down if you're passing that way
Roger Hughes
wrote:
>John Mallard (john_m...@lineone.net) wrote:
>
>[snip]
>: 160?
> Sounds about right.
>
>: I think you've just put me off fixers Simon <g>. If that had been me, there
>: would have been no way I could have bounced back out of that valley or
>: whatever it was on 74".
> Valley? What valley?
> This particular occasion was a controlled plummet off the top of the
>Yorkshire Wolds near Beverley. Fortunately, the hill (location on request :-)
>had a reasonably good run-out before it reached a T-junction(!).
Hmm; High Hunsley down to North Cave or North Newbald, I'd guess. Used
to race up the first and down the other (on different courses); mostly
left my fixed bike in Hull though since the dip slope of the Wolds is
grim on fixed; then again it's grim on gears too.
>It was hard
>to see because of the smoke coming off my knees ...
I remember coming down the hill north from Goodwood racecourse towards
Midhurst after the 1982 Worlds on fixed (about 68" I expect) and going
fast enough that I was too scared to touch the brakes or stamp back
for fear of losing the little remaining stability I had (overtaking
those freewheeling down; it wasn't the emptiest of roads but at least
there wasn't any oncoming traffic ...). No speedo but it was quite
seriously exciting for a moment or two.
Cheers
Roger
Roger Hughes, Gembloux, Belgium
Fantasy Cycling League - taking entries NOW:
http://www.ultra-sports.com/Cycling/index.html
Six day schedules: http://users.skynet.be/rohughes/cycling/six.htm
Richard Griffin
> 69 mph with two other riders, a clear straight road although not very
> steep. I guess the conditions were just right.( Just outside soulbury
> Beds ).
Please could you tell me which this hill is: I am familiar with the
downhill road eastwards out of Soulbury that runs straight and crosses
the West Coast main-line railway on a hump-back bridge, would that be the
one?
--
Richard.
http://www.ukc.ac.uk/php/rjg2/welcome.html
Helen Deborah Vecht
from Richard Griffin <rj...@ukc.ac.uk> contains these words:
> Please could you tell me which this hill is: I am familiar with the
> downhill road eastwards out of Soulbury that runs straight and crosses
> the West Coast main-line railway on a hump-back bridge, would that be the
> one?
It's the B4540 from the Zoo to its T-junction with the B4506.
Nowhere near the railway.
Like all points of interest, it runs from one OS Landranger sheet to
another, with no overlap... (Sheets 165 & 166)
The traffic can be quite heavy...
Graham Springett
> Hi All!
>
> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
>
>
> Chris.
I've managed 62.5mph down Gore Hill in Bucks. Trouble is, there's a
roundabout at the bottom.
It's a straight descent with two lanes, so you can overtake cars. It's what
a 53x11 was designed for!
Graham
Mike the Janitor
Christopher wrote in message <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>...
>Hi All!
>
>I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
>What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
>
>
>Chris.
years back. Not too scary since the road is clear, straight with no
side-roads & relatively safe. Try it with a northerly wind !
DAB
Mike the Janitor wrote in message ...
Are Tandems allowed ? 68 mph coming in towards Hawes from the South.
Can't remember the name of the road, (quite minor)- but it is one mother of
a hill...
Dab
Julian Barkway
"Graham Springett" <grah...@dircon.co.uk> glanced nervously around the
room before whispering hoarsely:
->In article <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com> , Christopher <r...@uk.ibm.com>
wrote:
->
->> Hi All!
->>
->> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
->> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
->>
->>
->> Chris.
->
->I've managed 62.5mph down Gore Hill in Bucks. Trouble is, there's a
->roundabout at the bottom.
->
->It's a straight descent with two lanes, so you can overtake cars. It's
what
->a 53x11 was designed for!
->
->Graham
52mph down Alderley Edge in Cheshire - and it's a 30mph limit! It was a
great shame that the local constabulary hadn't set up the usual speed trap
that day...
============================================================================
Julian Barkway, | Boil a yak today. You know it makes sense.
Zurich, Switzerland |
---------------------------+-------------------------------+
jbarkway@\x/access.\x/ch | (Remove the '\x/' to reply) |
===========================+================================================
Rob Adams.
The Descent from Dundry to Chew Magna, just south of Bristol, is always a
good one. I can usually get 60 if the wind's OK and the roads dry.
For my money though the descent the other way- back north into Bristol is
better. There aren't too many roads with switchbacks in England, and
ceratinly none I've found quite the same in the SW. In fact getting down
any of the Somerset lanes at speed at this time of year takes some doing.
Rob A.
Simon Ward
: > This particular occasion was a controlled plummet off the top of the
: >Yorkshire Wolds near Beverley. Fortunately, the hill (location on request :-)
: >had a reasonably good run-out before it reached a T-junction(!).
: Hmm; High Hunsley down to North Cave or North Newbald, I'd guess. Used
: to race up the first and down the other (on different courses); mostly
: left my fixed bike in Hull though since the dip slope of the Wolds is
: grim on fixed; then again it's grim on gears too.
It's the 1:10 down into Brantingham - goes through a nice, foresty bit.
Done about 40 on the drop into North Newbald (on gears) - chances are you'll
still be able to see the tyre-marks I left outside the North Newbald chippy[1]
when my stomach decided it was time for some food :-)
Simon
[1] - One of the best in Yorkshire, IMO. Got a free portion of chips off the
owner after he asked me how far I'd ridden[2] :-)
[2] - 104 miles, up to that point.
Fergus Duncan
> I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
> What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
80Km/h (indicated) on an MTB with 2 full large panniers and a tent on
the top of the rack . . . very scary . . . superb fun though . . .
Descending the pass between Davos (Switzerland) and Austria's Inn valley
. . . Is that cheating ?
Fd/Stirling/Scotland
fer...@dial.pipex.com
Helen Deborah Vecht
from "Michael Klontzas" <Mich...@glocal.demon.co.uk> contains
these words:
> Please excuse the stupid question, but do this kind of speeds involve any
> pedalling at all or is it just gravity vs air resistance we are talking
> about?
Mostly the latter. Building up a fair speed before you hit the
steeper slope might enhance your Vmax by a few mph.
Helen
720 NewTons, narrow shoulders & short torso...
Tim Hall
wrote:
>
>Mike the Janitor wrote in message ...
>>
>>Christopher wrote in message <36C9A0...@uk.ibm.com>...
>>>Hi All!
>>>
>>>I did 41 mph down a hill the other day on road!
>>>What is the maximum anyone of you has ever done?
>>>
>>>
>>>Chris.
>>I used to regularly hit 54 to 56mph down Redhill just south of Bristol a
>few
>>years back. Not too scary since the road is clear, straight with no
>>side-roads & relatively safe. Try it with a northerly wind !
>
>Are Tandems allowed ? 68 mph coming in towards Hawes from the South.
>Can't remember the name of the road, (quite minor)- but it is one mother of
>a hill...
Stuff me. I'd have my eyes shut at that speed and I'm on the front of
the tandem. I don't have enough confidence in my brakes or bike
handling to go any where near that. We were going down Bury Hill,
near Amberly with the Tandem Club, doing a gentle 35 ish when there
was a loud bang. One of the others in the group had blown their rear
wheel off the rim. Cars were whizzing by and I though it was all
going to go horribly wrong. The pilot brought it all under control
after running on the flat tyre and then the rim for what seemed ages.
I paced out 40 yards of metal marks on the tarmac where their back
wheel had been ground into the shape of a 50p piece.
Tim
Roger Hughes
wrote:
>Roger Hughes (roger....@skynet.be) wrote:
>: > This particular occasion was a controlled plummet off the top of the
>: >Yorkshire Wolds near Beverley. Fortunately, the hill (location on request :-)
>: >had a reasonably good run-out before it reached a T-junction(!).
>: Hmm; High Hunsley down to North Cave or North Newbald, I'd guess. Used
>: to race up the first and down the other (on different courses); mostly
>: left my fixed bike in Hull though since the dip slope of the Wolds is
>: grim on fixed; then again it's grim on gears too.
> Nope.
> It's the 1:10 down into Brantingham - goes through a nice, foresty bit.
Brantingham Dale. Hull Thursday used to run a hill climb up it; rode
it a couple of times but as I was a skint student short of storage
space I was only running two bikes and using the geared one (cross
bike) for races of all genres. Definitely rather a pretty little road.
Cheers
Roger
Roger Hughes, Gembloux, Belgium
Fantasy Cycling League - entries close this week!
John Curtin
Tim Hall wrote in message <36d1372f...@betanews.clara.net>...
>Stuff me. I'd have my eyes shut at that speed and I'm on the front of
>the tandem. I don't have enough confidence in my brakes or bike
>handling to go any where near that. We were going down Bury Hill,
>near Amberly with the Tandem Club, doing a gentle 35 ish when there
>was a loud bang. One of the others in the group had blown their rear
>wheel off the rim. Cars were whizzing by and I though it was all
>going to go horribly wrong. The pilot brought it all under control
>after running on the flat tyre and then the rim for what seemed ages.
>I paced out 40 yards of metal marks on the tarmac where their back
>wheel had been ground into the shape of a 50p piece.
>
Speaking of Bury Hill, I went down it for the first time in the dark
last week (and only the second time ever, disgusting seeing I live
in Bognor Regis) 67kph / 42mph, 5w Vistalite 500 must get
that up to 80kph in the dark, they seem to be changing the speed
limit to 30mph, will be a laugh in the summer to go past all the cars
at 60mph plus :-)
Regards
John W Curtin
Barry Inwood
<s...@halibut.york.ac.uk> writes
> To be honest, 36mph downhill on a fixer was *far* more frightening than
>doing 60+ on the geared bike although in the latter case the fact that the
>road down Bilsdale *isn't* straight made life more interesting.
30mph on a 70in fixed is fast enough for me. Shame I could only dig in
at the bottom of the hill. Problem is keeping the pedals going round in
circles when applying power. Cadence 140rpm.
--
Barry Inwood
Graham Springett
dscot...@aol.comNOSPAM (DScott5604) wrote:
> 69 mph with two other riders, a clear straight road although not very steep. I
> guess the conditions were just right.( Just outside soulbury Beds ).
> Fastest on my own 58mph Bison hill by wipsnade zoo( Beds?) . A terrific hill
> both up and down if you're passing that way
Ooh, Bison. Nasty one that, did it on the Harp Hill 100 reliability trial a
couple of weeks ago. Up, that is.
Graham