I am just curious about the distances the cyclists here ride.
I try to get anywhere from 80-100 miles a week while balancing family and work.
I ride mainly for fitness and for the sheer enjoyment of the ride.
This site has given me access to some great routes and that has gotten me to increase my distances.
I am an ok rider but try to average 16-17mph through some pretty hilly areas.
Since this was my first real summer of riding ( I was a runner) I am looking forward to next spring when I can try my first century ride.
I put in about 125 - 150 miles a week. I commute to work about 4 times a week and usually do a club ride on Saturdays.
Like you, I do it for fitness and I really enjoy it. Every morning when I wake up, I can't wait to get on my bike!
I don't really ride to race, just for exploration, fun, commuting, and fun. Was that too much fun? Since I've been getting back into the swing of things I am planning on averaging 100 mpw, with a nice gentle 14 mph average speed. One week I went crazy and have about 300 miles in a week, but now I'm scaling back and will build back up to several hundred but still looking to average 100 mpw with at least 10 miles on weekdays and at least 20 to 30 mile rides on weekends.
When I lived in Cali, I was averaging about 80 mpw, with an 16-mile commute (there and back) during weekdays.
CM
I'm tapering down now but at the height of my training I did 100-120 miles per week. The most I did in one week was 420. That was Ride the Rockies when all I had to do was ride. That's definitely not a normal week!
This was my second season of endurance riding and it was much easier than last year. Long distances were a lot easier and I became a better hill climber. Here in Colorado, that's very important.
The first century is hard. After that, you know you can do it and they get easier. I completed a 120 mile ride with lots of climbing in July and it made the flat (by Colorado standards) century I did a couple of weeks ago seem positively effortless.
Sharon
Started riding again, after a twenty year layoff, about two months ago, currently doing 30+ miles per day with one rest day and a longer ride at the weekend, so managing about 200 miles per week.
Problem is that I am still rusty with gear selection, maintaining cadence et al. And, as a consequence only managing 15mph average, though this has risen from first 10 mile ride taking almost dead on 1 hour.
I have found that sticking at it and not lettinhg those hills that kill your legs affect your concentration has lead to fairly significant improvements.
I am doing this to ramp up endurance so that I can complete a double marathon in the Alps, and can think of no better or more fun way to begin my training.
Here in Brussels on Sunday was a car free day, and the turnout was amazing, makes me rue all those lost years.
Vive le Velo !!!
I am a aerobic instructor and teach Aqua, indoor spin, and for the first time beginning this spring, leading outdoor bike rides. It is very hilly in Tn, and I started on a hybrid and found that I couldn't keep up with my students. I haven't really done alot of outdoor riding until this year and didn't think I could ride long distances. So, my outdoor rides were for beginners. 16 miles and gradually working up slowly. Well, my husband bought me a trek road bike about 6 weeks ago. Well, that changed everything!!! I just completed the Jack and Back 120mile ride and this morning, I'm headed out for a 40mile. I'm taking a instructor and her new road bike for the first time. I hope she finds the passion that we all seem to have. I avg about 110-140mpw including indoor spin. Loving it!!!!!!!
Since I started riding, six weeks ago, I've been averaging 40 miles per week, limited mostly by the time I have available to ride.
I'd like to get my average speed up to around 15 mph before I start commuting, but once I do that'll add about 45 miles each day. My ultimate goal is to commute three or four days a week, with occasional recreational rides on the weekends.
Depending on which of the route maps is correct*, my usual trip is either 11 or 14 miles long and I bike a minimum of 4 times per week totalling either 44 or 56 miles minimum per week.
Usually I bike 5 times a week soooo... that per week average is more likely 55 or 70 miles per week.
(*) 2 Wheeltech map says my route is 11 miles.
Map My Ride map says my route is 14 miles using the same coordinates as the 2Wheeltech map, go figure! 
I started riding again on 4/30 this year becuase I saw 205 lbs on the scale and I could not run because of my lungs. Started slow doing Mountain biking 40 to 70 a week, then at the end of May I started doing some Road Biking. Went to roadbiking full time in July. Currently riding 100 to 150 miles a week. Done 1 centery this year and 1 centery weekend(The Hilly Hundred in Indiana) as well as 2 metric centurys. Bought a New bike (2007Bianchi 1885) on 8/30/07. Really has improved my riding. Plan to ride all winter whenever there is no snow or ice. Plan to do the 24 hour challenge as well as the dairyland dare and the RAIN ride across Indiana next year. Have averaged over 600 miles August and September. Looking to hit that total this month as well. Note: have lost 20 lbs plus so far.
JDCBiking
I ride for fitness and eventually will do some races/centuries, etc...
Just got back from taking 3 months off due to school, ride 15miles/workout@18mph 5 times this week. Will start out next week adding another loop for 22miles/workout keeping the 18mph and working back to doing 28mile rides @ around 20-23mph average speeds.
Have a question though- how fast do most people ride during centuries? I'm always afraid I won't have the endurance. I probably could have done one last fall but never felt "ready".
Any tips for getting to that point? Probably joining a club team or doing those long rides to build confidence? Besides that though, how far do you think you should be riding/week as a general rule before doing any of those long distance rides?
I usually put in anywhere from 120-250 miles per week depending on the mixture of MTB and road rides.
If I ride all MTB, it is usually 120-160 miles.
All road is usually 180-250 miles.
I've just recently got a road bike and i'm in training to cycle across Europe in the summer. www.biketothefuture.org.uk
I try to commute twice a week (60 miles) and cycle about 60 miles on the wkend. I'm reading through all your posts and everyone seems to be averaging 15/16/17 mph! Am I slow? I average about 12mph. As i say i've been cycling serioulsy for about a month.
We/I ride between 150-250 miles depending on the type of training I am doing... We (my wife and I) do a charity ride in Mid July that is 500 miles and we need to be in good shape for it... we do the ride on a tandem but train on both singles and tandem... once the ride is over we taper off to around 100-150... the most I ever did was about 350 a week... back in the racing days... and logged about 8000 miles per year....
Since we are just ramping up, our average is around 16-16.5.... as we get fitter, its into the 18-19 for just us... on group rides its in the 20's...
I'm on the heavy side(bastards call us clydsdales), about 235 so hills are tough... the wife is light, about 120... but we still get up the hills in fair shape(on the tandem)... just not as fast as singles... its all in the training... I'm 51 and the wife is 46...
I usually do 40 to 80 mpw. I try to keep it around 20mph but usually end up around 18mph. Keep in mind that I'm in berlin and its flatter than a pancake. (I miss my California hills 8*( ). The most I've done in a week is...724miles (it was summer break)
I'm a 5-day a week, year round commuter ... 20 mile round trip to work, so I usually average 100-130 miles a week. Occasionally I'll get in a decent weekend ride, but more often just short rides on the weekends. I'm about to hit 10,000 total commuting miles since starting in March 2005
And we had a nasty rainy day Friday for National Ride Your Bike to Work Day - I didn't see any other commuters Friday morning, and only one cyclist on my way home that evening ... too bad (don't see too many other commuters here on any given day, but I'm certainly seeing more than I saw three years ago! Also have a lot more people asking me questions about commuter cycling, that always makes my day).
I commute about 80-90 miles per week, thats 5 days a week, rain or shine. I can't drive and there isn't a bus to my work so I dont have a choice, although I Never wake up thinking I dont want to cycle to work!
I also try to go for at least one ride per week after work. If the weather is good, I'll do about 30 miles (mainly flat) instead of the 6-7 it takes to get home.
And the weekends are used for longer rides (50-60 miles) if im feeling up to it, otherwise I'll do 1 or 2 rides of about 30- 40 miles over more hilly terrain.
With the English weather, this cam mean it's pretty sporadic, I just try to do as much as I can while the sun is out!
I cycle commute each day 'from' work (20 miles), which gives me an average of 100 per week. I take the 'express' bus into town (downtown Phoenix), then ride home in the afternoon.
My wife and I ride Sunday mornings some 8 miles, but she is new and working her legs and lungs (and butt) into a longer ride soon.
I'm currently between two peak seasons ( I raced hard through the beginning of June, took 1 week off) and am ending a second base building for endurance for late season and fall races. My mileage is really high for me and this second base building period exceeds my spring base period by about 30% in total mileage and about 25% in total time spent. Currently my weekly totals are between 275 and 325 miles per week with most rides in the 45-50 mile range plus one near 100 miles once per week (training 5 days per week). My mileage will decrease beginning this week and I incorporate more quality power workouts and less straight endurance rides.
I live in Jerusalem, which has steep hills of formidable size in every direction. I ride about 320km to 350km - or roughly 200 miles - per week. I get a real high off burning so much energy working out, and it's also great getting out of the city every day.
I live in Racine WI, and I am doing about 16 miles per day four days a week and unfortunatly I do not get out on the weekends. So I get about 64 MPW total.
I am looking for ways to increase that with just commuting.
I live in Arizona and during the summer riding is pretty much out unless you get up and ride at sunrise - summer miles i get around 80 a week - 15 to 20 morning miles before work a couple times during the week and a 30 - 50 miler on Saturday mornings with employee cycling team where i work
winter on the other hand, it's to dark to ride before work so i have to wait until after work to ride, which gives me more chanced because it's not hot (55-75 all winter) 15-20 miles a few times after work during the week and 40 - 60 miles on Saturdays (i can ride longer because i don't have to worry about it getting to hot) so I get closer to 150 miles a week.
157.33 miles per week (over the last two months).
Here's how I came up with it...
((551 + 820) / 61) * 7
Where 551 is miles for June, 820 miles for July, 61 is number of days total in June and July, 7 is days in week.
Looking at Training Center, I rode 33 days out of the 61, so average per ride this summer is 41.55 miles.I started about 3 months ago with a 35 pound MB. After 3 weeks I bought my first Road bike (Allez Elite Gerolsteiner '07) and felt in love with the sport. I started just for fun but now I mix the fun with a nice workout. I ride 50 - 80 miles per week at an average of 16 - 18 mph depending on the route. Since I live in PR we have a nice mix of flat and hill roads making the experience an enjoyable one. My goal for the next 3 months is to increase the riding mileage to around 120 mi. Goal for next year (Feb '09) is to run a three days race around around the island (350 mi).
El fiebru from PR
I'll throw in my 2 cents.
I'm a roughly 200 mile per weeker, since I have a 32 mile round-trip commute every day, plus I ride with the wife when she gets home sometimes. I ride in races almost every weekend (it would be a stretch to say I compete since I get blown off the back quite frequently), and try to get in at least 1 additional mountain climb a week (I live near Golden, so there's a nice hill to climb there).
I'm with unexceptionaracer--I need to find someone to pay me to bike. I guess I need to be better than a Cat 4 racer though...
Oh yeah, and if you really want to do a century, do the Durango 100. In case anyone was wondering, yet it is uphill all the way from Farmington, NM to Durango, CO. You'll hate your life. It actually made the Triple Bypass (awesome bike race from essentially Denver to Beaver Creek Colorado) seem easy. Do both. Then do Ride the Rockies. You'll be a sick climber after that.
It all depends on which direction I head out in, but my weekly mileage can be anything from 20 miles to 150 miles. Ditto my rides, they can be as long or as short as my legs will decree!
So long as you love what you're doing, who cares about the distance?!
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