Originally Posted by
climbin5414
First thing I noticed.. Normann Staddler's time at Kona last year, it was a record for that race, it was also done with climbs and some of the worst wind you will ever experience in a race. He averaged over 26mph for 112 miles and did that without drafting.
Actually, the wind at Kona last year wasn't that bad, which is the reason why Stadler set the record. He's still blazingly fast, but the wind wasn't as much of an issue as it usually is.
Originally Posted by
climbin5414
Another thing I think should be addressed... not sure how fast your groups go but the roadie group I ride with I can blow out of the water if needed... short or long distance. Maybe thats what happens when you learn to ride on your own. I don't mean I can ride ahead of them for a few mintues, I mean when I get tired of their 20mph pace, I'll kick it up a few notches for those last 20 miles and never see them again.
20 mph isn't fast. I usually train alone because I do triathlons, but when I ride with a group, it's not uncommon to average 26 mph with long stretches over 30. If I (or lots of other people...mostly roadies) rode with your group, they would "blow them out of the water", too. And I know that there are lots of people who are much faster than I am (mostly roadies).
Originally Posted by
climbin5414
Or maybe just read about what happens just past the finish line at an Ironman.. where the adrennaline in finishing wears off and you collapse under your own weight... if you didn't already do that forcing you to Crawl across the finish.
Actually, you're not allowed to do that anymore.
I've done road racing and triathlons (and didn't suck) and saying that one is harder than the other is stupid. They're different sports that require different training to meet different goals. Interestingly enough, it seems that most of the roadies on the forum are saying the same, while the triathletes are saying that road racing is easy. They're both hard if you make them hard (which you have to do if you want to not suck).