Originally Posted by
DeathCurse7
By the way I'm just 17 and I don't want to dope/get an ebike. I was just curious about how much more effort I was Putting in compared to everyone else in group rides and if its fair to compare myself to people with really good equipment. Hopefully in the future if I get some more money so I can make a couple of upgrades.
Everyone's answering the question as if the OP were doing ITT's. And it's all well and good to get both stronger and slipperier, but riding in a pack is more about skill than strength, and the aerodynamic concerns are more about good drafting than a few watts saved with shoe covers or what have you.
My advice to the OP is to keep going to the group rides. Look for the guys who've been on the ride forever, maybe a little silver in the hair. Who may not always be at the front, but they never get dropped. Watch what they do, watch how they pedal, how they stay out of the wind, how they stay off the brakes, etc.
Just like there are a lot of watts to be saved with more aero equipment, there are lots of watts to be saved by good pack skills.