Cycling benchmark?

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
camperman83
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Joined: 9 Sep 2022, 6:13pm

Cycling benchmark?

Post by camperman83 »

Im quite new to cycling as a hobby, obviously i can cycle and had to before because i lost my driving licence. Im looking at starting this as a hobby and wondered what is the benchmark for cycling? Do people also look at 5km or is it like 10km, or smaller for beginners?
Jdsk
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by Jdsk »

There's a very large number of ways of enjoying and getting the benefits of riding human-powered vehicles. A quick browse of this forum will show that. : - )

I can only suggest trying as many as possible and seeing what works for you.

Do you have any regular journeys on which you could switch to cycling?

Would you enjoy riding with others?

A merry heart goes all the day, Your sad, tires in a mile-a

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Paulatic
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by Paulatic »

IME people who say they don’t cycle much are capable of 10 miles before they know it. Cycle slowly at the speed of chat, a couple of stops at POI, and hey presto they can’t believe they’ve done it. Then there’s no stopping them :D
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jois
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by jois »

camperman83 wrote: 24 Sep 2022, 4:17pm Im quite new to cycling as a hobby, obviously i can cycle and had to before because i lost my driving licence. Im looking at starting this as a hobby and wondered what is the benchmark for cycling? Do people also look at 5km or is it like 10km, or smaller for beginners?
It depends what your trying to achieve really. The first bench mark I'd choose would be an ability to get somewhere you want to go. Then the ability do do so in a timely manner.

It doesn't really matter how far away that is
drossall
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by drossall »

jois is right. You have to set your own benchmark according to what you want to achieve. Many experienced riders would think of 50-70 miles as a good day out, but for a range of reason including "challenge" rides, people may do hundreds of miles, or even a thousand with short stops of a few hours.

If you're doing it for your own pleasure, and ten or twenty miles in a day, with a stop, is enough for you, great. Or maybe you're more bothered about achieving a certain speed, say finding out how long you can ride for at an average of 15mph. Or riding to work and back three days a week. Or...

Whatever you do, do it in stages. Getting to a first ride distance of 10 miles is harder than improving that later to 20 miles, and so on, because cycling is quite significantly about believing you can do it, as well as about the fitness.
camperman83
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Joined: 9 Sep 2022, 6:13pm

Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by camperman83 »

jois wrote: 24 Sep 2022, 4:51pm
camperman83 wrote: 24 Sep 2022, 4:17pm Im quite new to cycling as a hobby, obviously i can cycle and had to before because i lost my driving licence. Im looking at starting this as a hobby and wondered what is the benchmark for cycling? Do people also look at 5km or is it like 10km, or smaller for beginners?
It depends what your trying to achieve really. The first bench mark I'd choose would be an ability to get somewhere you want to go. Then the ability do do so in a timely manner.

It doesn't really matter how far away that is
Good point it did find it easier to cycle the distance to work because i had to get there. So maybe ill aim for something like the supermarket first which is about 4km, downside is im going to have to bring shopping back lol
drossall
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by drossall »

I've been riding with clubs for 45 years, and I still prefer to have a definite objective, such as going to a meeting or commuting, or taking part in an event. I do really like riding just for fun by myself, but it's too easy not quite to manage to get out there!
gbnz
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Joined: 13 Sep 2008, 10:38am

Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by gbnz »

drossall wrote: 24 Sep 2022, 5:05pm jois is right. You have to set your own benchmark
+ 1. Half a mile to the corner shop, a gold, or a diversion by Milan or the corner shop :wink:
rjb
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by rjb »

At the last count:- Peugeot 531 pro, Dawes Discovery Tandem, Dawes Kingpin X3, Raleigh 20 stowaway, 1965 Moulton deluxe, Falcon K2 MTB dropped bar tourer, Rudge Bi frame folder, Longstaff trike conversion on a Giant XTC 840 :D
brumster
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by brumster »

You may also find you might enjoy cycling more without measuring yourself or setting a benchmark. Just enjoy the moment.
Nearholmer
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by Nearholmer »

Personally, I wouldn’t worry about benchmarks in any hobby. Hobbies are there to be enjoyed, and if you “take to” cycling as a hobby, you will naturally find your way of enjoying it most.

Some people are naturally competitive, so enjoy trying to go further or faster or up steeper hills than the next person; some people are very sociable, and their main focus in cycling becomes the camaraderie of a group; some people are natural explorers, or nature-lovers, or history buffs, or whatever, so a bike becomes the literal vehicle for that.

Actually, thinking about it, I would worry about a benchmark: however happy you are now, cycling should make you happier.
simonhill
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Location: Essex

Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by simonhill »

Insufficient information from the OP.

He needs to say what sort of cycling he wants to do, otherwise it's just speculation.

I'm essentially a tourer and my benchmark is to be able to ride a reasonable distance day after day. I doubt this is his.
mattsccm
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Joined: 28 Nov 2009, 9:44pm

Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by mattsccm »

I would say that bench marks make life fun.
Pick a mate and try to beat him, be it a climb, the amount you ride in a day, month etc. Look for a set challenge maybe or a tick list. Maybe make sure that every ride has a new section in it. That will take you gradually further away from home. What I will say is that things like a 5k run are beginners park run targets. Get you off the sofa runs. To me the cycling equivelant would be 25 miles. Not for the the first time rider but more than possible with a month or so under your belt.
Nearholmer
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Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by Nearholmer »

Pick a mate and try to beat him
That made me chuckle, because it’s such a great example of the “some people are competitive” point I made earlier.
rmaxted
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Joined: 6 Sep 2022, 9:00pm

Re: Cycling benchmark?

Post by rmaxted »

Rather than distance try benchmarks based in time. Out for an hour, continuous on the bike for 45 minutes. Its not better but a bit different and I find that it helpd me for those longer days out knowing I can do an hour and bit of continuous peddling before I get all stiff.
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