rousseau

I keep reading about how these groups of guys do long rides and average upwards of 33, 34 and 35 km/h speedwise. I always ride alone and average 30 km/h.

So how much of a benefit is drafting? How fast do these guys ride alone? Would I be able to hang with the 35 km/h groups?

I think it matters to my question to add that I ride on comparatively less hilly terrain in heavy winds, so drafting would be a major factor to be considered. I'm assuming that drafting doesn't mean much when you're climbing hills. Er...right?

Ryleeryno

Depending on the number of riders and how well "packed" they are you can gain significant speeds due to the slipstream. Today I averaged 23mph in a group w/ rolling terrain that I usually average 18mph solo.

pelotonracer

You'd be surprised. The difference between 40 km/h in a group and 40km/h solo is huge. 40 (on a standard road bike anyways) entails a pretty big effort, while 40 on the flat in a group is more like a light to moderate effort...

FlashBazbo

A couple of us recently did a big 50-mile ride. We are very evenly matched -- average almost identical speeds on solo training rides, down to the tenth of a mile an hour. About three miles into the 50, I hooked up with a very fast train. He got left behind and was pretty much on his own -- no organization back there. By the first feed zone, I had pulled out nearly 12 minutes on him. At that point, I was energized and feeling great. He was okay.

A good, experienced train can make a huge difference.

DXchulo

I've never broken 5:00 on a solo century, but that's a piece of cake when I'm drafting. It really does make a huge difference.

The pysical benefits of drafting may not be as high when you're climbing, but the mental effects more than make up for that. Riding in a group is going to help your speed in any type of terrain and/or weather.

Phantoj

"Drafting" has been proved on the TV show "Mythbusters" to be a myth. What really happens is that you get all the other riders around you and the stimulus of all the fast bikers riding hard combines with natural competitive urges and drives you to ride harder than you normally can. This is why beginners are often told that the quickest way to see improvements is to "ride with people who are faster than you are."

The perceived benefit of drafting is really just a response to this stimulus.

johnny99

If the group is very skilled and you don't have to pull too much, then you can easily do 5mph faster in a pace line than by yourself. Drafting people who don't know what they are doing, however, is very dangerous.

Dead Extra #2

incorrect.

Phantoj

Watch the show. It's a myth.

obra3

+1 Incorrect.

Edit:

"Seen on the Discovery Channel's website, the Build Team decided to test whether a cyclist would have an easier time riding if he were to draft a big rig. Tory was chosen as the cyclist and performed a control test by cycling up to 20 miles per hour unaided. To ensure accuracy, Grant kept track of Tory's heart rate and Kari measured his speed via radar. By the end of the control run, Tory was exhausted by the effort. During the actual test, however, Tory literally coasted along behind the big rig and rarely had to pedal at all. Due to the obvious difference in performance and the fact that professional cyclists draft during competitions, the myth was plausible."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBus...ting_a_Big_Rig

zippyh

Um, no.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=RjDGjQ14Sjo

maddyfish

For me, it's not that i go faster, it is that I go easier, alone I can ride 18-20 for an hour over a given terrain, but in a group I can ride 18-20 for several hours.

chrisvu05

BS...although riding with faster riders makes me ride harder when I then ride by myself because I realize i can ride harder...drafting very much has an effect on your speed and energy used...Have you even ridden a bike before? Get behind a bus and tell me drafting doesn't work

johnny99

You think this guy could ride a bike at 150mph without drafting????
https://www.canosoarus.com/08LSRbicycle/LSR%20Bike01.htm

obra3

This guy hit 172kph without drafting!

https://www.veloreview.com/obra3/2007...-172-kph.html/



(some of you may have seen this posted before)

Stevie Boy

Lol wtf is this guy smoking? There was a huge thread on this just a couple days ago.

Pugsly

Do you even have a bike?

Phantoj

A bus gives the stimulation-response effect times 50... you have all those people on the bus, you feel the natural competitive urge, then you are also driven by an innate desire to avoid the shame of being "dropped" by the bus.

It's quite logical.

In order for "drafting" of any meaningful magnitude to occur, the riders would have to be traveling through an dense and/or viscous materal - like water, or beer, or maple syrup - or the tire of the "drafting" cyclist would have to be within 0.010" of the lead cyclist. That is how large the pocket of draft air is around the lead bike. You are confusing the aerodynamics of cars and planes (large Reynolds #'s) with bikes (extremely small Reynolds #'s).

I think the proponents of so-called "drafting" have been enjoying a few too many "drafts" (PBR, probably) themselves. A logical and scientific analysis shows drafting to be a sham.



Did Landis need "drafting" to win his stunning Stage 17 victory? No, he soloed most of the way. "Drafting" is purported to be a lot of low-pressure air, but it's really a lot of HOT AIR.

kleng

Remember everybody not to just "sit-in", go to the front and do your share of the work, its not great having other riders tow you around.

FIVE ONE SIX

now THERE'S a reliable source!
on top of the fact that everyone else said you're wrong, you're wrong. in a pack, the second rider uses approximately 23% less energy than the leader, and everyone behind him uses approximately 33% less energy than the leader. next question...

no, he's on trial for what he needed to win stage 17. and while we're on the subject, it was far from stunning, it was a good ride that the group misjudged horribly...

Phantoj

And I am supposed to think you are correct because you gave a "%" figure? Here's one for you: there's a 99% probability that you just pulled those percentages out of thin air...

waterrockets 

At the 9-mile Tuesday Nighter course, solo, I can maintain around 23mph with my drop bars and normal jersey (no TT gear). The same equipment on the same course, I can ride more comfortably in the pack at a 27+mph average, and for 36 miles (4 laps). The last lap has been as high as 29mph average. That's an enormous difference from drafting.

FIVE ONE SIX

um, no. actually, aerodynamicist Chet Kyle, Ph.D of California State University in Long Beach, got those numbers as a result of tests that he conducted. i know that he's not as reliable as Myth Busters, after all he's only an expert in his field...

Phantoj

"Chet Kyle"? The name itself is dubious.

FIVE ONE SIX

then turn to page 46 of the August 2007 issue of Bicyling Magazine. Mucking Foron...