Originally Posted by
Doge
I AM curious on other definitions.
That was Dr. Alan ****t - originally. Later it was broken by I forgot who.
To me it is time to get back to the start under own power and same average wind. Using stored/other's energy to get there is interesting, but does not count.
I can see that argument for peak speed too.
Running: 100m, 400m or marathon are different, but we generally give it to the 100m person.
But even in running there was some discussion that peak speed may be hit in the 200m. So for a brief period - the 200m runner may be faster.
In cycling it needs to be a current comparison. It is way too hard to compare Eddy to Sagan. Lotto did over 35mph in that TTT today. That was fast, but not an individual thing.
But comparing them to what USPS with Lance did is too difficult.
What you're really looking for is a continuation of the "Merckx rules" hour record, where people would run basically the same equipment Eddy used in 1972. Those rules were abandoned in 2014 in favor of modern aero bikes/wheels/skinsuits, but something along the lines of fastest human-powered effort over the course of an hour on a standard road bike is pretty close to what I'd consider the "fastest cyclist".