RMoudatir

I am wondering what a decent sprint speed is to win races? I have been cycling since August but my sprint speed has not improved much. On a flat road I hit a max speed of 34.4 mph, how many watts would that make since I weigh 130lbs.

hefeweizen

Win at what level?

ClydeTim

I'm a slow sprinter. I have hit 33 on the flats as a Clydesdale. My buddy usually kicks my butt with a 36 mph but we are not racers and he is 190 lbs.

I'd say you would have to hit far more than 34 to win a race, figuring it's a flat sprint to the finish.

Wildwood 

Fast, really fast.

indyfabz

1.21 gigawatts.

RMoudatir

I'm not sure if having proper gearing would help since I am using a single speed and spin out with a 49/16 gear ratio, would having a proper road bike with bigger gears improve my efficiency on the sprints?

OldTryGuy

Getting off the BMX bike and on to a full sizer might help.

morfeeis

Man would i love a 49/16 on some of my climbs. But yes that 16 might be holding you back. I've hit 40 for all of .000000620004 seconds on a 12/32 with a tail wind. I new and dont know crap but i would think endurance would trump a strong sprint in anything over a 30 minute crit.

RMoudatir

49/16 on climbs? I'm not sure if it is that good lol since I really struggle on 10-15% climbs with 25% spikes.

jorglueke

How long of a sprint? If you're talking over a minute period you need 37mph will win you pro races. Over 10 a second burst you might have to get closer to 40mph.

caloso

34.4 mph might be enough to win a Cat 5 crit. I know it's not enough to win a M45+123 race, though.

How many watts it would take to do 34.4 could take anywhere from 600w or 1400w, depending on the wind, how flat the road is, whether you were led out or spent the entire time in the wind. Way too many variables.

Also, I would not consider 1 minute to be a sprint.

wphamilton

Last year I was reaching 34-36 for a few seconds on sprint intervals. I was 55, never raced on a bicycle and never trained to race, so I think if you want to win with a sprint you'll need to develop it considerably better than that.

rm -rf

Your 49/16 is 144 rpm at 34.4 mph.

alcjphil

Winning a sprint is as much about timing as it is about speed. There are guys who hit amazing speeds too soon or too late and lost out to someone who never went as fast as they did. Race conditions also affect results. Some riders are great uphill sprinters, others like flat or downhill sprints. The speed of the pack is another factor, especially in the amateur ranks. Pros will ramp speeds up using a sprint train, that almost never happens with amateurs, they will hesitate, the peloton will bunch up looking for someone willing to commit and jump on that wheel. The fastest sprint I ever did was on a training ride with my team. The guys ramped it up well over 50 kph and the sprinters on the team sat on. We had an agreed finish line and the team sprinters just went for it. I have no idea what my max speed was, but the guy I passed told me he was doing 68 kph. Sprinters can always go a bit faster at the right time, that is what sprinting is all about

RMoudatir

Well for me it was very unstable sprinting at that speed that my bike felt like it was going to fall from all the lateral movement from the cadence.

fietsbob

you got a racing licence ? Cat 2 or 5?

PepeM

I don't think I can go above 30mph.

My 1-5 minute power is decent though.

jorglueke

The speeds some of you attain are just insane. When I was biking 150 miles a week for the commute and relatively young and svelte at 215lbs at 6'5"+ there was one hill that was longer but none too steep that I'd bomb down as release for having to climb all the hills coming up from the river. Well downhill I'd get to 32mph maybe 34mph once but on flats? I think I maxed out 24-25mph and that was still a slight downward incline since coming back I'd get stuck around 17mph.

RMoudatir

I've never been in a club or race before I just started cycling in August

alcjphil

When I reached that speed I was a master in the 50-60 year old category. The old guys can go fast too

12strings

I can get myself up to the low 30's on a flat stretch, but I always get scared of the speed and back off before reaching what is likely my Max... I'm a chicken.

I don't normally descend hills at much past low's either.

caloso

It is great training to sprint on a fixed gear. It takes a lot more training to develop a fast, smooth spin than it does to develop strength. Most of us are over geared. I learned that the first time I rode on a velodrome.

BlazingPedals

I've been laser-clocked at 39 mph on flat ground.

unterhausen

with a lead out train? I'm going to speculate that at 130 pounds, sprinting might not be your strong suit. That's ok, just drop the sprinters on the hill before the finish. Just like anything else, you have to practice to sprint well.

Sangetsu

I've done over 70kph in race sprint, Robbie McEwan has gone over 75kph. But these sprints are led out, so the speed is quite high before sprinting starts. Funny that I have never tried measuring my solo sprinting speed, but at my age now it is not going to be impressive.