alexTREKal3

Hello everybody,

This is my first time on here. I have my first road bike coming, the Trek Domane AL 3 Disc towards the end of this month. I have started road biking with my hybrid bike (2018 Trek FX 2) for like the past 4-5 months on the weekends. I am 15 years old and according to my Garmin Edge 530, I did 11.7 mile ride with an avg. moving time speed of 16.5 mph taking me a total of 42 minutes and 29 seconds. The route was pretty much flat the whole way. Am I fast or average?

Thanks!

rumrunn6

faster than average, but about right for your age

https://bikingultimate.com/average-c...-speed-by-age/

Koyote

"Fast" relative to what?

shelbyfv

Welcome to BF! Your mileage is much too short to make any predictions but your age is definitely a plus. See what you can do on a 30-40 mile ride and you'll have a better idea. Hope you find cycling enjoyable, fast or slow.

Koyote

No offense, but that article is drivel. It provides precisely NO information about how those "average speeds" were derived -- e.g., we have no idea where (or from whom) those numbers came from.

shelbyfv

I didn't see any mention of distance in the article. We could all be as fast as 30 year olds if the ride was short enough.

Koyote

Yep. I'm as good as a 30 year old, but only on one night per week.

tempocyclist

Hard to say. Could be fast, could be average, could be slow.

Average speed is so variable and is affected by road surface, wind speed/direction, bike choice, rider position, air pressure, number of corners, slow/stop points, etc...

It could have been anywhere from an all-out effort to a recovery trundle.

But welcome to BF! 😀


...and yeah, fast is relative!

shelbyfv

OP, unfortunately not everyone who posts here knows what they are talking about. It will be obvious who to ignore.

CAT7RDR

This was a blog post for a university student that spelled "college" - collage.
I rest my case.

Koyote

Actually, it states that he's a "student in collage." So, I imagined a young person with a pair of scissors and some magazines, cutting out bits and pasting them together in clever patterns.

LarrySellerz

lol did you really link a speed by age calculator? Where did you even find that?

OP you gotta get faster, train more.

Russ Roth

Best comparative I can give you, one of the nearby time trials, 10 miles, totally flat, had a 15-16 year old catagory, the winner averaged 25mph while second was 21mph. Unfortunately I can't say if they were 15 or 16 which can have a significant difference in ability, nor the direction of the wind and just how advanced their road bikes are.

When going for fast; the bike, distance, and wind will all play large roles in how fast your average is. 16.5 avg for 11.7 miles might be 17.5 for 10 miles especially if you know you are competing and you know you don't have to go as far or if your average was dropping towards the end. That same 10mi with a road bike, might move you closer to 19-19.5mph once you're comfortable on the bike. So maybe not far off competitive. But mileage will matter. Look for a local club to ride with or better an actual youth team, in NYC there's several including Star Track which is starting up a road team to go with their velodrome team. I can tell you that the 11-12yo kids are averaging 14-15mph for 20-22mi on semi-flat and usually slightly windy, my own kid rides with them. The older kids ride faster but they push each other and encourage each other and it helps them all to go fast, it'll help a lot.

alexTREKal3

Thanks for the reply! I bike on the side routes and the main part of the ride is on walking/biking trail with no cars nearby

alexTREKal3

Thanks! I live in the Bay Area and I haven't found a club yet. I think once I get my first road bike I might be faster considering I have been using a hybrid bike with the Tourney Shimano groupset, and the bike weighs like 26+ lbs

LarrySellerz

What city? Lots of rides out here

rsbob 

If you want to race, talk to local bike shop about juniors racing programs in the area. They can teach you skills, endurance and power. Going out and riding is fun but if you really want to be FAST you will need to join a juniors program which is coached. They will bring the best out of you and compared to others in your age you will know how fast you really are.

RChung

Welcome to BikeForums !

I have three kids, the youngest of whom is also 15. When my kids were little and asked, "am I fast?" or "do I hit the ball well?" or "was that good?" my return question was always, "did you have fun?" You seem like you're enjoying riding and looking forward to a new bike. This is wonderful. As you ride more, you'll end up riding with others and soon you'll figure out where you fit on the speed scale -- but no matter where you end up, the important question to ask yourself is, "am I having fun?" As long as your answer is "yes," that's a win. Right now, I'm faster than some, slower than others, and still having fun on a bike.

Best of luck.

wolfchild

Here we go again, more training misinformation....

rumrunn6

lol, I know right?

PeteHski

That's a pretty low bar for anyone who actually cycles regularly!

shelbyfv

Obvious trolling, yet the complaints fall on deaf ears....

10 Wheels

You Slow.

Me When I was 14

Road Fan

The usual answer is probably not.

It might be a good assessment to see where your next tier up in age is in terms of similar rides, and think about “can I get there in two years?”

GhostRider62

Wow, I am more than twice as fast as the average for my age per that article, so, I do declare it to be super duper scientificy