Thorn Cycles Forum

Community => Thorn General => Topic started by: Andrew on July 27, 2005, 04:30:26 PM

Title: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: Andrew on July 27, 2005, 04:30:26 PM
What's the fastest speed you've recorded on your touring bike?

>Speed?
>Location?
>Bike?
>Luggage?!!

Disclaimer: Thorn in no way condones speeding or cycling in a dangerous manner.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: hoogie on August 01, 2005, 12:48:51 AM
*88.5kmh [55mph]
*coming down off clyde hill, central otago, new zealand
*avanti mountainbike
*towing fully laden BOBYak trailer
passed three cars on the way down too ...

*83kmh
*going down last hill into myponga, south australia
*trek 520 touring bike
*fully laden with 4 panniers, handlebar bag and tent/sleepingbag/sleeping mat on rear rack
[picture of the bike loaded here: http://www.hoogie.co.nz/bikes/trek_520.htm]
(http://www.hoogie.co.nz/images/sa_trek_loaded1_small.jpg)

fastest unladen speeds:
102kmh on a racing bike on tarmac
64mph on dirt on a mtb
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: riptoff on August 01, 2005, 05:40:52 PM
Towing bobyak trailer recently downhill about 40kph got into a tankslapper (motorcyclespeak) ie, violent oscillation, managed to stop gradually, but one spoke broke on rear wheel. Why did this happen?
Trailer not overloaded, say 20kg.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: hoogie on August 02, 2005, 02:17:31 AM
i had a pretty smooth track and a straight run down the hill that i went down ... i have never suffered any pronounced oscillations when towing my bobyak trailer, it has always tracked pretty straight and true ... I tow it behind a sturdy aluminum mtb and i always look far ahead and make small adjustments to the steering ... managed to easily get over 70kmh on a downhill gravel road one day whilst fully laden [dunstan trail, coming down off the top into paerau, central otago, new zealand] ... got brake early for thso corners though!
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: rogerzilla on August 05, 2005, 03:53:12 PM
Indicated 57.1mph on the Nomad, lightly laden, down Snap Hill near Marlborough.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: ahconway on August 05, 2005, 09:44:39 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Andrew

What's the fastest speed you've recorded on your touring bike?

>Speed?
>Location?
>Bike?
>Luggage?!!

Disclaimer: Thorn in no way condones speeding or cycling in a dangerous manner.



I managed 42mph on my Raven a couple weeks back in Hertfordshire. I didn't know the hill was coming, so it was quite a surprise! The bike handled it so well, it didn't even occur to me to check my max speed until later. No luggage to speak of except my rack-top bag.

Andrew
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: AndyB on August 09, 2005, 02:05:06 PM
*62.5mph
*Descending Bwlch y Groes (546 meters) in North Wales
*eXp R
*Fully laden
(http://www.sjscycles.com/ForumGallery/Hill.jpg)
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: Magnus Thor on August 15, 2005, 05:02:38 AM
72 kmph, downhill in Hvalfjordur, around 50km outside Reykjavik, Iceland.  Towing a fully laden BOB Yak, riding a Raven Catalyst.  It was fun while it lasted and the bike handled perfectly.

Magnus Thor
Iceland
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: chris on August 18, 2005, 04:59:59 PM
*43.1 mph
*Cowal Peninsular, Scotland
*Thorn Voyager Kiddiback Tandem + Isla Trailerbike
*Fully laden Front + Rear Panniers + Panniers on Trailerbike + Tent + 2 kids.

*57 mph
*On flat road just South of Butt of Lewis with Northerly Gale pushing me along
*Muddy Fox Courier
*2 Panniers
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: daisy on August 19, 2005, 08:58:59 AM
DESCENDING A MIGHTY HILL IN WALES NEAR SOME PLACE I CANNOT PRONOUNCE ( RHYL ? ) JEEEEZ IT WAS FAST I THINK I REACHED THE SPEED OF SOUND....WELL THERE WAS AN ALMIGHTY BANG ( SOUND BARRIER? )I THINK THE EXCESSIVE SPEED I'D REACHED TRANSMITTED A LOT OF HEAT INTO THE TYRES 'COS MY BACK TYRE WAS FLAT SHORTLY AFTER REACHING MAXIMUM VELOCITY....
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: eriecommuter on August 28, 2005, 04:14:47 AM
39 mph in Brookvale, Prince Edward Island, Canada (right past the only ski park in the province) on a Raven with my 8-year-old daughter on a Burley Piccolo.  Smooooth.  See her picture in the member's gallery.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: pourly on August 29, 2005, 08:43:19 PM
50.4 MPH Down a hill from compton to streetly (West Berks) on my Thorn Raven (yep i definetly run out of gears however i knew the hill) with two panners medium heavy i guess dont no how many KG's bike stuck to the road well thankfully
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: JNDavis on September 08, 2005, 08:19:51 PM
Wow!  I don't feel such a wimp after reading some of these maxima.  This could be an excuse for buying one of those GPS things as my xTc lacks any computer at the moment.  However, descending speeds seem to have increased since switching from an Audax to the xTc.  The handling of the new bike is sensational and the fat tyres cut out nearly all of the road noise which used to rattle me.

So, no exact numbers, but hanging on for the plummet between Kate's Cottage and the Creg ny Baa on the TT Course seems very fast, particularly if I go for it on the bend by the cottage.  Boardman and Obree have exceeded 70mph on this stretch.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: stutho on November 08, 2007, 09:42:05 AM
*96kph ~ 60 mph   (on GPS)
*Hill into Pontypridd South Wales
*Raven Sport Tour (with Off road tyres on!)
*1 pannier <4Kg

Bike handled fine but I promised myself that I would never go as fast again!

Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: Dirk on November 08, 2007, 10:04:35 PM
If memory serves me correctly, 40 mph on good tarmac and 38 mph on dirt road with loads of rocks and potholes etc', in Alaska, on my Raven Nomad. You can see what I was carrying in the members gallery.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: The Raucous AUK on November 09, 2007, 02:46:28 PM
quote:
Originally posted by stutho

*96kph ~ 60 mph   (on GPS)
*Hill into Pontypridd South Wales



Is that the one dropping down from Church Village onto the industrial estate? I think it's called 'Power Station Hill' although the power station is long gone.

Or is it the one down to the polytechnic.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: stutho on November 09, 2007, 08:17:19 PM
Um - Not sure! I think it was this one.(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q313/stutho/Pont_map.jpg)
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: PH on November 10, 2007, 03:14:02 PM
52.?
A53 heading south past Ramshaw Rocks a few miles north of Leek.  A nice two mile hill that's a pain going the other way.
Hewitt Cheviot
Lightly loaded - on route to Meerbrook Hostel.

I've done this hill a few times, the bike and luggage don't seem to make that much difference.  If the road is clear, dry and it's not too windy I'll hit 50 but have never got to 53.
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: lb1dej on November 10, 2007, 04:56:03 PM
Speeds of 60mph on a bike (same as the legal limit for cars which have ABS braking etc and therefore much shorter stopping distances) seems hellish fast. If you were to hit a third party not only would you be killed but quite possibly they would be as well. Is it only from cars that we expect consideration for other road users?
Dave
Title: Re: What's the fastest you've been on your bike?
Post by: Toby. on November 12, 2007, 07:02:02 PM
Seems a shame not to go for it when the coast is clear! 62.5mph, Dartmoor to Tavistock, Explorer Tandem (is that cheating?), unladen, ears pinned back. Best to be sure that tyres etc. are in good nick too!