Ann Silva As cyclists, we love to push our bike’s limits. And while we’re all familiar with the physics behind how fast a bicycle can go, not everyone understands just how much power it takes to overcome road and weather conditions to achieve those top speeds.
To get the most speed out of a bike you need to pedal at a constant cadence. Cadence is the number of times the cranks rotate in one minute and depends on how much energy you’re putting out. The higher the cadence the faster you’ll go, but it can also lead to knee and back problems. Typically, you want to ride at a cadence of 60-80 rpm.
Then there’s air resistance to deal with. The faster you go the more resistance you’ll encounter because wind pushes against your bicycle as it moves through it. Depending on the direction of the wind it can account for as much as 25% of your total speed loss. But don’t worry too much about it, because the force required to overcome the resistance of the air goes up as the square of your velocity. So, to go 10% faster you need to increase your power by 33%. To go 25% faster, it requires almost doubling your power output.
But don’t be discouraged it’s possible to get up to and beyond 20 mph on your bike! Just keep in mind that you’ll need a lot of systematic training to achieve those kind of speeds. And the type of bike you ride will have a huge impact on your average speed.
A road bike, which is designed to be ridden quickly over flat terrain, will typically allow you to reach and sustain a high average speed. However, it’s not the only kind of bike that can achieve these kinds of speeds. Even a mountain bike, with its wider tires and knobby traction, can be as fast or faster than some road bikes.
Then there are the super-fast bikes, like the Cervelo S5, which has been ridden to victory by top riders such as Primoz Roglic and Wout van Aert. While this bike isn’t the lightest, its frame design and integration of cockpit and seatpost make it one of the fastest bikes out there.
Of course, there are a lot of factors that can play into how fast your bike will be, including your fitness level, the terrain you’re riding on, the weather conditions, and so on. But, there’s no reason why you can’t be at least as fast as your friends on their road bikes if you put in the effort. So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and start racking up those miles! And don’t forget to stay safe out there. Happy riding!
