Today I did my first 20 mile (33km) ride on my hardtail XC bike. I learned how to ride a bike about 1.5 months ago, but I’ve been riding pretty consistently since I learned. I ride exclusively in the city, it’s a very walkable city, but the paths aren’t always the best. I did 33km in 2 hours 53 minutes, not including breaks for water or to eat.
I see people saying that 10MP/H (16KM/H) average is a good average to shoot for, but i can’t even get my average above 7.1MPH (11.5KM/H), even on shorter rides. What am I doing wrong here? How are people going so freaking fast on bikes in cities?
I doubt the 50 average See this record here https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hour_record
These attempts are in pretty specific circumstances (equipment, track and air residence, training and what not) and were about 50 just ten years ago (they are about 57 right now, but the development has been crazy)
So please excuse me if I slap a bit fat X for doubt on the 50 average.