Terminal Velocity | How Fast Can You Actually Descend On A Road Bike?

[@gcntech]

What's the fastest speed you've ever reached on a road bike?

[@rubee4460]

74km/h ... so far :)

[@gagebinz9178]

Hey you responded to my dad's coment The fastest I've gone was 52 mph

[@chrisnelson5770]

I'm lucky to get over 40 mph (65 kph) - That's because I live in a place with very few long descents (Minneapolis) ... but mostly because I'm irrationally freaked out about high-speed descending.

[@kurtroeder8785]

I did once but it wasn't all me. It was a step and straight descent and I caught the draft of a crappy old VW bus. They weren't going quite that fast but after they passed I was able to accelerate and gain extra speed through the gap before I caught up. That's where I hit 100. I felt like every bump or vibration would send me into the air. It's pretty scary to be in an old VW bus going that fast--i don't know what they thought seeing a bicycle creeping up from behind in their mirrors.

[@3yearshardcore1]

about 88 kph

[@kf7914]

One thing that should be added is, never try a fast descent without eye protection. If you take a bug or piece of grit in the eye at that speed it can be a disaster.

[@GasGrassOrAssetto]

Always ride with eye protection period.

[@Zulanderr]

Even with eye protection those are scarey

[@frankzijnsofa]

@ He probably means that he likes it hard up the *** probably.

[@3yearshardcore1]

never ride without eye protection. Period.

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

Good advice. On - I believe My first - cycle tour from Amsterdam to Rome, I, too, got rammed into the eye by either a big fly, a bumblebee or a beetle while descending from a mediaeval town in the mountains some 50km north or northeast of Rome. Managed to maintain balance, but the eye hurt like mad, and took at least a couple of hours (if not much longer) to recover.

[@mikemarinojax]

I hit my highest terminal velocity sitting on the top tube. That was before I had completely analyzed the complexities of the insurance deductable.

[@RoScFan]

are you an american?

[@derekread763]

I remember doing 70.4 kilometres per hour when my terminal velocity was reached when I hit a Ford Siera and rolled through the back window onto the rear seat. The driver was quite surprised for some reason. Stay safe out there.😆😆😆

[@steveherring6660]

Derek Read hope you didnt get hurt!!!!! those pesky cars.

[@derekread763]

@@steveherring6660 Took the impact on thigh and rear window glass acted as a brake. It was one of those Sieras with a rubber spoiler on the boot lid, which is why I aimed for it. Funny how clearly you can think and how much you can calculate in 2 seconds. It was that or hit the kerb and become airborne with no bike. Take care!

[@brannmacfinnchad9056]

0:58 ....did he bunny hop the camera while descending?!

[@bigbad253]

As a 20 year old in the early '80s I regularly saw 50mph on the cable driven speedo of my Apollo III down my favourite steep hills.

[@cyclenutter2715]

Conor: 'wouldn't recommend top tube descending at home' Me: 'well I'll go do it outside then'

[@mrvwbug4423]

meanwhile half the roadies in my area do the top tube tuck on some of our steeper descents haha.

[@cyclenutter2715]

@@mrvwbug4423 haha

[@yap7656]

To be safe I try the position first on my wahoo climb and zwift

[@cyclenutter2715]

@@yap7656 haha tried the same! What's your Zwift name?

[@yap7656]

@@cyclenutter2715 T.Tan

[@julianbailey2749]

One thing not mentioned in the video. If the camera bike is in front of you, you descend faster as you have the following draft, I suspect that most 130km/h peaks were in this situation. There have been several events where chasing riders have complained about the camera bikes aiding a breakaway on fast downhills.

[@GasGrassOrAssetto]

Great point. 80 mph is pretty insane without a draft, itd have to be stupid steep.

[@conordunne219]

Yes good point! But I can honestly say... those descents in Tour de Suisse are crazy fast. At those speeds cars and motorbikes tend to stay out of the way in races.

[@markstone722]

One thing you need to take into account when descending is side winds. As can give you a nasty wobble at high speed. Not nice.

[@And-rc9yy]

Mr Froome would agree

[@3yearshardcore1]

Yeah, and feeling like you're about to lift off the ground unless you tuck in. Also scary to touch the brakes at those speeds. You truly know you're alive when you're playing so close to death.

[@Terrifier1984]

Specially on mountain passes once you get valley wind gust

[@robtk3]

"Always be prepared for anything during a fast descent..." Me preparing for 130 KPH descent on my Cannondale Synapse; Full face motorcycle helmet... check. Leather jacket... check. Heavy boots... check. Gloves, elbow pads, knee pads... check. Diaper... check.

[@ghowell13]

🏆

[@RichardMigneron]

Yeah, specially the diaper, when full will help with your aerodynamics and allowing you to go faster, which will help you fill it even more, vicious circle :-)

[@curtbentley]

I have a friend who wrecked going down a steep descent. He's lucky to be alive. I looked at this Strava, and right before he lost control he hit 62 mph (100 kph). Me, I've hit 50 mph before a couple times, and that's more than fast enough for me. I keep it under 45. Stay safe out there.

[@D4rkS4v4nt]

45mph is my top speed, plenty fast enough for me

[@sebastianjost]

My maximum is 60km/h (~35-40m/h)... If you think about what a tiny piece of dirt or a small insect could do when hitting you in the eye at those speeds you realize you really shouldn't go that fast. I mostly stay below 50km/h.

[@trabink2]

Same here, 50mph is good enough really...

[@YelCan]

I hit 100 kph racing. Hit a crack in the pavement, looked down at my wheels, and realized they weren't in sync with the road. I was airborne. Eerie. Crashed on a late Sunday training ride at 70 kpm; quick response from a friend, a life-flight, and superb medical treatment kept me alive. Took over a year to recover. Ten years before I got back on a bike. I live in a hilly region. Hard to stay under 65 kpm. Easy to hit 80 kpm on a few local hills. 60 kpm is fast enough if you're not paid.

[@davethedogdude]

Same, usually I don't do more then 40mph. I value my skin and bones.

[@agusglauber]

GCN: How fast can you descend on a road bike? Safa Brian: Yes.

[@AlecZier]

There are two cycling channels I occasionally watch on KZbin that really make me anxious. SAFA Brian & Terry Barentsen. Terry actually did a video with Safa in Mexico City once - kzbin.info/www/bejne/nqm5gnmLid6qf7M

[@notarabbit1752]

@@AlecZier I put Safa in Mexico in the same category as those people you used to see who were like, dangling one handed from skyscrapers and cranes

[@noonehere4332]

Alec Zier Have you ever watched Lucas Brunelle?

[@trevorhayes5414]

Over 30 years ago, flying down Wheelers Hill (FTG Rd) in Melbourne, I nudged (survived!) 90 km/h on a steel Peugeot with 21c Vittoria tyres & heavy Rigida rims. That felt pretty quick!

[@PoulHansenDK]

I went down from a pass in the Atlas mountains i Morocco on a mountainbike with 15 kg luggage at 68 km/h. When I got to the bottom, I stopped for a pee and when I turned around my frontwheel was flat. That has scared me so much, that I never descend very fast, even on a roadbike.

[@dfargey]

My fastest speed was achieved during a gravel event in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley. I was riding a Kona Rove with 47c tires on 650b wheels. I was at or near the back each time we climbed the North Mountain, so when we got to the final paved descent I threw away the brakes and hit 84.7kph. Passing some of those skinny dudes felt really good.

[@rp6760]

Will only try it on Zwift

[@khazza930]

no no no, he specifically said "don't try this at home"!

[@ghowell13]

@@khazza930 yeah, but you're anywhere you want to be, like MasterCard, in Zwift👍😂

[@mithral999]

You can even get a badge. Better than a hospital visit

[@sebastianjost]

Good decision! Getting hurt and not being able to ride for 6+ weeks really is horrible. After two injuries last year, I've learned my lesson. And never try to jump no-handed at 30km/h; it hurts xD

[@ritid69]

Why... go hard or go home

[@efeball970]

Having witnessed two of my friends going down at 75 kph(and narrowly missing them), I urge everyone to use extreme caution. Never forget that you're on a public road and it's rife with waste and defects and inattentive drivers.

[@cycomiles4225]

Even the attentive drivers. People just dont expect you to be that fast on a bike. Even when im going 25kph car drivers often miscalculate my speed (especially on rotors). Lucky that at that speed i can succesfuly break.

[@jochem1986]

I descended with 91.1 km/h last fall, on a Swiss mountain road... I'm still on the fence whether that was awesome or stupid.. But my BMC Roadmachine was a trooper. No drama, just speed. Will aerodynamic advancements lift the terminal velocity on a bike? Well yes, obviously if you lower your drag, you go faster. However, the faster you want to go, the more the air tries to hold you back. It's like a low-desity soup. So if you can lower your drag by 10%, you won't gain 10% extra speed. Less than that.

[@D4rkS4v4nt]

I'd be interested to know what tyres people are using at these speeds? Would be disastrous to get a blowout...

[@jochem1986]

@@D4rkS4v4nt GP5000s with tubes.

[@cyclenutter2715]

Jochem that explains it!

[@davidmarshall2399]

Drag force goes up with speed squared.

[@davidmarshall2399]

Though i see he explained this later in the vid. Depends what you mean by drag, the force, the coefficient, or the area. But generally if you want to go 10% faster (1.1), you need 21% more force (1.1x1.1 = 1.21) if the other factors remain constant.

[@ramdynebix]

On a touring holiday with panniers and stuff, I regularly encounter my own terminal velocity for that day/wind. Usually somewhere between 50 and 60km/h

[@tobortine]

75 kph descending in the alps. At the time I thought it was fun, afterwards I realised how badly that could have gone for me.

[@randomrandom316]

At least you realized after the fact quite a few don't, stay safe man.

[@Walking_Death]

I've just topped 80kmh a handful of times, scary stuff when you remember you're protected by Lycra and a polystyrene helmet. By far the most sketchy run ever was 79.9kmh (I know right?) measured on my Garmin descending the Lindis Pass in New Zealand... touring, with luggage on a Giant Cross City 0 Disc.

[@thenamesADRIAN1]

I got 56.8 mph (91.4 kph) yesterday on my Canyon Aeroad. Did not sit on my top tube on this descent. Will try on the next ride to hopefully get 60mph (96.6 kph)!

[@12chrismi]

This summer I ascended the Mont Ventoux in France. A lot op people climb that mountain of course, and not a lot of cars drive there, and when they do, they keep the cyclists in mind. After an agonizing climb, I finally made it. I am an amateur cyclist from The Netherlands, so go figure I never climbed before. We went with a small group of friends, and more often than I'd like to admit, I thought by myself: ''Why am I doing this?'' But after 3 hours I finally made it, and then came the fun part: the descend. That was one of the most amazing feelings ever. Sore legs, but firing down that mountain at 70 km/h. The maximum I achieved was 81 km/h. After that I went on some more climbs, and when I was climbing, I thought to myself: ''Every meter I climb, I can descend, and that was what kept me going.''

[@LEGALIZEROADRAGE]

104km/h going down terry's hill in the dandenongs...lucky no cars were driving up

[@guidospanoghe8896]

89.9 km/h on the Mont Ventoux. Should have waited a second longer before hitting the brakes reaching the following turn. Hold your hands in the drops when toptubedescending ! ( as shown by Chris F and other proriders ). And keep your eyes on the road Conor please! If you're able to gain speed by pedalling you're not going fast enough to need the toptube position imo.

[@stephanbrunker]

Practically, it depends on the gradient, the weight and the amount of curves. There is also the diaper factor of the road conditions. I maxed out on the Nufenenpass at 80 km/h which seems the fastest my 62 kg at the time will go because that one is really steep and straight and I felt pretty safe. The Fedaia in the Dolomites is another candidate for top speeds (straight and 11% gradient), but when I was there, I hit the brakes because the road was way to bumpy to my liking. If it is bumpy, the same speed feels very, very different.

[@kevcroft2815]

Downhill's the only time i'm faster than my son. The only good thing about a middle age spread!

[@AndrewBlucher]

Gravity assist!

[@ZaydDepaor]

As soon as you get to any high speed on a bike, the wind resistance if the most obvious obstacle...it is like riding through water or custard. As for a fast descent on a public road even if you are only doing 50mph....the feeling is "I can die any second now..." as you are waiting for a dangerous motorist, an unexpected traffic light, bend in the road, bump, pot hole, animal etc...and that feeling of anxiety becomes exacerbated if you are in an aerodynamic position which isn't conducive to stopping or controlling the bike...even worse on a hybrid if you are holding the centre of the handlebars.

[@RudiDwiHartanto]

Love this kind of well researched pro rider video. Connor been nailing it ✋

[@ElonMuckX]

Was not expecting it, but went down a street on my Mountain Bike at 45 mph (72 kph) without a helmet on. Never concentrated so hard, to keep my handle bars straight! Always wanted to go back with my road bike, AND A HELMET, but today I'm older & wiser:)

[@brannmacfinnchad9056]

That was actually a rather good video. I mean, the takeaway was nothing new, but I enjoy Connor's everyman, chatting in a pub, form of presenting.

[@dredprus]

Having read through many of the comments, if you are scared, at any speed, you are going too fast. Fear is the biggest enemy you face. You can't react properly when you are rigid with fear. Slow down to the speed that creates enjoyment...but never let your guard down. Ever.

[@mmwrn]

Came down my local hill on a technical descent 2-3 weeks ago and almost ran into a cyclist coming up the hill when my momentum around the corner carried me to his side of the road and had to bail off road after locking up my brakes and fishtailing. Couldn't see him through the trees. According to Strava, I went from 32 mph to zero very quickly. Broke my fall with my face but at least I didn't break any bones and my bike was OK - still rode it home. Learned a HUGE lesson that day!

[@kacperwieczorek384]

I once descended 95 kmph on a 200€ road/gravel bike with bikepacking bags on it on 20% descend > 1 km later had a crash :)

[@JibbaJabber]

Terminal Velocity can indeed be very personal, but is super simple to calculate: Go as fast as you can until you reach terminal velocity. It is at this moment you will sh*t your bibs, lose control and be terminated!! Once this occurs, get your mate (or next of kin) to rapidly recover your Garmin, Wahoo or other chosen votive offering (grave good). Upon pressing stop, not only will they be able to call TOD, they will also discover your max speed (amongst other interesting metrics). If you are a typical cyclist (see bell-curve), one can still discover this unaided. Simply, enable auto upload on your preferred KIA device. Moreover, if you also enable SOS, you have the added benefit of Search & Rescue (SAR) assistance. However, if you do properly "SEND IT", your device may be found but you remains may not - resulting in a small MIA shrine. P.S. At the moment of termination, try to keep the bike straight. Any change in direction, will result in a change in velocity (terminal) => acceleration!

[@gcntech]

That is the equation used if everything goes wrong 😬

[@Agent-vj3ns]

The pilot/insructor said terminal velocity when free falling is around 115mph when we last went skydiving. There's NOTHING like jumping out of a tiny, rickety seatless Cessna then going from over 100mph to 15mph with a simple pull. Go on a clear day and the float down is amazing; the expansive landscape reminds me of the Grand Canyon.

[@terrencebranscombe3257]

I've always ridden analog only, so the only time I was clocked on a downhill was by a trailing support vehicle. The descent was heading south from the Columbia Icefields in Jasper National Park. This was back in the late '80s and the bike was loaded down with a full touring kit of six bags and all the camping gear/food I could carry. We did 85 kph, but on those bikes, under that load, the fright factor was through the roof. Oh yeah, it was snowing too. Great fun.

[@funocguy24]

I did 94.95 kph/ 59 mph on Nohl Ranch Rd., Anaheim Hills, CA. USA

[@andrewreimann5203]

I once descended at 88mph, near the Twin Pines Mall

[@1958vintage]

I clocked 60mph descending Winnats Pass 4 years ago, but, in the current Corona-virus concern climate I won't be trying it again anytime soon. Safety is more important, especially now. On a lighter note, it seems like GCN have found a challenger for Tom Last for the Presenter face-gurning competition. Good work, Conor.

[@greggenna]

I do love it when GCN talks real science.

[@prestachuck2867]

Greg Genna It’s definitely a rare occurrence.

[@DaveShawMusic]

6:31 “This simple table or graph will show you...” Displays bonkers diagram that is neither simple, a table, or a graph... 😅😂

[@tanOcotO]

It reminds high school lol

[@PavltheRobot]

But this is simple...

[@headlesshorseman7077]

@@PavltheRobot hard to make it simpler at least

[@saifjalal3841]

TheDarkFighterek is the equation sin(theta) *9.81?

[@marcinswidzinski]

I once reached 60kmh on my fixed gear. It was not a steep descent, but a descent nonetheless. I still don't know how my legs managed to keep up with the cranks ;)

[@velislavbach4192]

They had to.

[@klaasdeboer8106]

Did you have brakes?

[@marcinswidzinski]

@@klaasdeboer8106 nope, just my legs and nothing else

[@tweeterby]

Once hit 56mph descending Garrett County Fondo but no other riders ahead on one short steep descent section. Almost hit a bear last year on Skyline Drive, Virginia doing just 30mph, so now safety first!

[@jordyd8916]

77km/h, heartrate up, sfincter tightly squeezed shut. Alu frame started loosing it's firmness and not giving me a lot of confidence.

[@michaelalatorre5208]

During the '80s , I recall coming down the northbound lane of Hawthorne Blvd in the Palos Verdes peninsula of Los Angeles, California. As it felt quite fast, I (briefly) glanced down to my bike computer and witnessed it change from 54 to 55 mph (88 kph). At that point, self-preservation kicked in and I began to gently brake. BTW, the posted legal limit there is supposed to be 45 mph (72 kph). All of this came to memory earlier this year as this is the same section of road Tiger Woods lost control of his Genesis GV80 SUV and crashed in April. He was going an estimated 87 mph (140 kph) at the time.

[@charliedrummond5356]

I’ve done 100kmh / 62mph. A few times. It’s always mental, but I do remember the first time - on a steel MTB with cantilever brakes, stomach on saddle, hands under the bars.

[@ianhuckle8101]

I've always been a pretty good descender on technical not super quick courses but crapped myself at just over 90kph in the Dolomites. 130kph is insane. Once got told a story by a guy in his first Vuelta. Descending at 100+kph he was utterly terrified. Sean Kelly came past him, riding one handed.... eating a banana !

[@grobson4]

My Strava record says I did 108 kmh on The Foxhole, the biggest descent on the Nurburgring. There is an event each year called Rad Am Ring, in which they close the track to cars, allow cyclists only, and you can go for it. 52 big ring, 500 Watts as long as I could, then tuck! Previous attempts topped 90 kmh (went around it 10 times) but on one of the attempts I had a tail wind, which explains the speed spike.

[@johntrentanove4111]

I went 84 kph on the final paved descent of a Gravel race in Nellysford Virginia on my Specialized Diverge with 38mm knobby gravel tires. For most of the 100 km race a rider, 30 years younger, on the same bike would pass me on the gravel descents and I would pass him on the climbs. Five miles from the finish on the last gravel climb I again passed him and knew the road was paved to the finish. I went all out and finished several minutes ahead. Later I was amazed when I saw my speed and how well the bike felt on the descent.

[@AndrewSmith-cd5zf]

I can get to 100 km per hr going down a racetrack called Mt Panorama in Bathurst. But I don’t do that sort of speed on public roads when I may come to a sudden halt. My safe descending speed is around 70 - 80 km per hr. Pretty easy to achieve if you’re over 100 kg and are planted on the top tube.

[@kristofferdean8844]

I was doing the top tube decent while racing in college in 2011. I'm 6'4 220 and it was my only way to try to catch back on after climbs. I did 72mph down Mt Charleston outside Las Vegas.

[@MOSloan]

My favourite descent is San Jose/Soquel coming down off Summit in Santa Cruz County, CA. You can pedal down all the way. It's a no braking delight! You would love the riding here. Come over for Sea Otter and I'll show you around, Big Man!

[@jimbobeire]

Not road, bikes, but a friend and I were lucky enough to come across a new road that had just been completed, but was closed off with rock barrier as it was a couple of weeks away from official opening. We just had to take it (it was also shorter than the old road, but the lack of traffic and the perfect smooth tarmac was the main attraction). There was one long descent, in a valley shielded from wind, where we briefly hit 100kph on our touring bikes. That's a speed which I would never go near on a road where there might be traffic, but in this case we were out in the middle of the road, and had the full width of the lanes for taking our turns. I've had some choice words for people treating one of my local climbs the same way, even though it's a public road, not closed to traffic.

[@FlyWithMe_666]

Scientific source: the cousin of the presenter

[@rhyskenny187]

You reach terminal velocity when the upwards forces equal the downwards forces(i.e. weight) so it does increase it last i checked... you're not in a vaccum on your bike I hope and if you were, terminal velocity wouldnt really be a thing anyway.

[@rhyskenny187]

considering the comment i replied to is now deleted im taking this as a win

[@brauljo]

@@rhyskenny187 It looks like you replied to OP since you didn't tag anyone. Fail

[@BlueSoulTiger]

@@rhyskenny187 the speed of light is the universe's terminal velocity?

[@rhyskenny187]

@@BlueSoulTiger well as far as we know...

[@carbonmafiaracewheels]

99km/h as a skinny 17 year old in 1995 near Baccus Marsh, Australia. Multiple times over 90km/h on my tri bike and road bike down Noosa Hill in the last 10 years as an overweight adult. Even jagged 80 down the same hill on my mountain bike. (Sealed road)

[@MrCyclist]

I did 82 km/h on route 58 in Vermont, USA on a steel road bike. It has no major intersections nor switch backs and descends to a flat area needing no brakes to slow down. One and only time,

[@markkelly5752]

Great video, great presenter!

[@AlessioPunzi]

Who remembers the nineties aero position, when riders would put their stomach onto the saddle and extend their arms to the drops?

[@JediMasterHilljr]

Alessio Punzi Cadel Evans did that all the time if I remember correctly

[@johnbourgeois1732]

@@JediMasterHilljr WE did that back in the early 70's but we put our feet on the rat trap, it was fun passing cars but when the light turned red the brakes were useless. It was scary, fun and dangerous!

[@Roq-stone]

I have gotten to 75 MPH on Mount Rosser (Jamaica). I had to limit my speed because I was getting a handle bar wobble. Equipment was a mix carbon fiber FELT road bike. It was fun doing the cross island ride (South Coast).

[@garrettturbett593]

107kph coming down Mt Tiede, west side. But didn’t feel this fast due to excellent surface and long straights.

[@douglaspate9314]

YES!! I know the descent! Sooooooo fast!!!

[@martinaxe6390]

I hit 50mph on my 1988 Centurion when I was 16 back in 2003. I've come close to since, but I've never gone over. I don't race, and while I trust myself and my bikes, I don't trust the roads, or more importantly, vehicle drivers. Most drivers do not think about bikes going faster than 15 mph, so they're not thinking about safe distances. The gust off of a large 18 wheeler with 10 feet can be intense.

[@carllange3950]

Back in the 90’s (pre-Strava), I had a reading of 63 mph on my bike computer on a 1/4 mile long 12% grade hill. (Chickened out and came out of my tuck early.) I was pretty particular about calibrating that computer, so I felt confident in the reading. I do not live in that area anymore, but with Strava I can see what some of my friends have posted. A 140 lb friend posted 50 mph, so I am sure that I was going at least 55 mph (and maybe 63 mph) with my 220 lbs. On the gentler hills where I live now, I hit 40+ mph all the time.

[@rasmuswi]

The fastest I've ever descended was in the 1995 Telemark Tours sportive in Norway, and I have no wish to ever go that fast on a bicycle again. I had no bike computer at the time, but I overtook loads of riders by simply braking less in the corners than they did, riders who talked about seeing 75 km/h on their head units. The bearings in the front wheel made strange noises I never heard them make either before or after that descent, and the brand new tires I had bought just before the event were completely worn out when I hit the finish line, the inner tube was poking out through several holes in the rear tire. Afterwards, my brother pointed out that mopeds aren't allowed to go faster than 30 km/h because their suspension wasn't made to handle higher speeds than that, and that my road bike had no suspension whatsoever. Nowadays I usually try to keep my descent speeds in check and use the brakes rather liberally.

[@LeesChannel]

I went flying down a crazy San Francisco sidewalk with my friend, we didn't notice that a panel of the sidewalk had been pushed up by a tree root and we went flying. Midair I saw that there was someone actually walking up the sidewalk that had been obstructed by the hill that we were now flying over. Scary scary stuff, I get scared now thinking about what would have happened if we didn't fly right over his head.

[@RichardTrange]

New to road cycling and fastest i've been is 63 kmh, but my god it's remarkable how much effort that goes in to going even faster than that for me on the decents i've been down. Never dared trying to sit on the top tube, just tucking in my shoulders and elbows and pedalling on those decents.

[@GorhamP]

~65km/h in Mallorca, from the Gorg Blau (reservoir next to Puog Major) down to Port de Soller. Second descent of my life, after the route 40 in Argentina's Patagonia. Could've probably hit 70/75 easily had I sat on the top tube, but I'd never been on that stretch of road before so no way jose...I did notice that sometimes I had to pull my ass back behind the seat a bit on the sharper pinheads as I got the impression that I could go over the bars from the force of the braking. I probably suck at descending as well... but the adrenaline was such that I lost nearly all of my voice from all the euphoric screaming. Amazing day

[@41bbc26e0a]

80 km/h on MTB. 26", 44 front and 11 at cassette. Like a hamster. When I was young and stupid :)

[@jamisonr]

Once I hit 55 miles per hour, which I think is around 88kph. This was on a short, straight, and steep hill down in south eastern Ohio. I had been down that hill several times and knew it was probably safest place to try for 50+. After doing it, decided I didn't like the feeling and try to avoid going over even 40mph now.

[@richaw6689]

Conor does science! Fantastic stuff.. those roads in Ireland look fab.. fav decent is the Cat and Fiddle near Macclesfield in the Peak District. It's local, a good long climb but a wicked decent! Moo!!

[@redjalapeno5714]

57 mph descending Wintergreen Mountain in Virginia. I was terrified. Since then, 47 mph is my max zipping around the foothills of Appalachia and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

[@VadersRage]

The fastest I've ever clocked was 57 mph (91.7 kph) on a 3+ mile (5 km) descent in Northern California. It was SO fast (to me at least) that the wind whipped up inside my sunglasses and I teared up, blinding me. This was done on an old '78 Colnago with no helmet (yeah, I know......stupid).

[@IcemanYVR]

108km/h, Mt. Washington, BC Canada before they put that damn sealtop coating on the road

[@secretagent86]

I live here, no way i would race down it!!!

[@markdee6689]

Nice bit of research, enlightening.

[@GregLanz]

85 KM/h is my peak speed on a windy steep downhill without helmet etc as this was in the 80's when I was a teenager. I tried a couple times after I'd gotten my rx-7 and the fastest I could get was under 80K

[@markreams3192]

57 mph twice. The first was Rabbit Ears Pass into Steamboat Springs Colorado and the second was Cottonwood pass into Buena Vista Colorado. Both times were quite scary!

[@johne7100]

About 78 kph on a hill near home. 9% descent with a strong following wind. 2001 Lapierre Ti kitted out for Audax with bags front & back and a dyno wheel.

[@danielbum912]

I got terminally fast watching this

[@christill]

I think I’ve been around 45mph on a road bike in the past but I didn’t have a way of recording the speed back then. And it was a smooth, straight road. Then I just did 40mph recently on my e-Bike. The road surface wasn’t the best and even with full suspension it felt sketchy to let it run any faster. And I think the slight motor drag was slowing it a bit. Which is quite handy to save the brakes.

[@RonaldCHillberg]

I've been over 100km/h. Being over 118kg makes it fairly easy is you can find a straight downhill. I find I gain about 10km/h going from sea level to around 9,000ft elevation. I'm getting older and a sense of mortality has me thinking that it's nuts to go chattering around corners at 80km/h just for kicks. The road going by three feet away just makes me think what is!

[@jdoe836]

My highest ever was 95.11 kph (59.1 mph) and have the picture to prove it. It was on a 1999 Trek 1000 Alpha Series. It was in the first leg of the Garrett County Gran Fondo near Deep Creek Lake in Western Maryland, USA. I remember the group I was in, picking up some serious speed, yet I was accelerating faster than everyone and had to ride "salmon" to avoid a collision. The only other ride coming close is Highland School Road near Fredrick, MD. I can easily hit 88.2 kph (55 mph). BEST DESCENT, Skyline Drive Shenandoah National Park, Mile 21-24. Great scenery.

[@alewis5836]

Hit 75km/h on a tandem with my dad on a 1 or 2% downgrade. It interesting to make sure you both stop pedaling at the same time at that clip!

[@carlosflanders518]

Ron Kiefel and Davis Phinney claimed that they got up to 93 mph (150 kmh) on Fremont Pass in Colorado. This peaks over 11,000 ft (3300 m) so the air density would be about 70% of normal. If you scale this to the air density at altitude in Switzerland it seems compatible. Maybe give Ron a call at Wheat Ridge Cyclery to follow up on this - he's very experienced in high altitude climbing and descending in all weathers. btw, Fremont Pass has a good surface with long sweepinf curves and excellent visibility, so it would be the best place to set a record descending speed.

[@rek32805]

Reached 100+ at the Nordschleife of the Nuerburgring during Rad am Ring Race. I did it several times and especially in the night a very special experience...

[@LoscoeLad]

When I was 15 I gave my mate a 'backy' (him sat on the seat, me standing) on my massive mountain bike. The dodgy 'speedo' said we hit 60km/hr, and while maybe not exact, it must have been close. Both of us had to sit on the floor after due to wobbly legs 😁

[@blueskiesnz]

92kph, steep downhill with a strong tailwind, on my MTB.

[@thephotoyak]

I had a rear tire go flat at 77 km/h. It actually wasn't overly dramatic. Just stayed calm and used medium braking force until coming to a stop. My max speed is 90 km/h.

[@michaelb1761]

My top speed on a local highway that has a nice long nearly straight downhill section is 90 kph. I don't descend this hill much because the climb to get to the top is not fun, and I don't consider the fast descent to be much of a reward at all. There's also a local hill called Miracle Mile with a 50 mph speed limit, and I descended that once on my old 10-speed when I was young and stupid, passing cars. I hit a piece of gum on the pavement. That was quite the clean up job, me and my bike.

[@darrylhuculak4996]

one clarification I would like to suggest. It's not necessarily the heavier rider that will descend faster, but the denser (more dense?)rider. As muscle is denser (more dense?) than lipid, the fitter rider will descend faster than a...less fit rider of similar mass. It's just science.

[@MosherMike]

60.1 mph - Milton Combe (Yelverton) 55.5 mph - Pork Hill (Dartmoor) 53 mph - Church Road (Plymouth) Plymouth and the surrounding area is the best for cycling.

[@gcntech]

yikes

[@julianallen515]

Loving the GCDN, Global Conor Dunne Network. First cobbles then descending and science! A welcome change from the Global Wine I did the hour record Network. ;-)

[@gcntech]

Haha thanks Julian

[@TheTonicro]

91kph, couple of corners slowed me down

[@AndrewBlucher]

😀😁😃😂😅

[@peterparahuz7094]

if you don't like corners, you might enjoy this kzbin.info/www/bejne/jaGkfHVtashjrrc

[@Grunge_Cycling]

I think the "Super-tuck" position is actually safer if you know what you're doing. You shouldn't load your weight on the top tube, but rather spread out your weight between your hands, chest, and feet. You can have a lower center of gravity and thus better high-speed stability. I wouldn't recommend riders with less than two years of experience to attempt this regularly.

[@freeagent8225]

My best was 20 years ago on an old Vitus bike 80kmh. It started shaking and I almost cried at the bottom. Never again, a Spanish man descented and crashed totalling his bike. I prefer going uphill.

[@johnandrews3568]

On Scenic Caves Road in Collingwood Ontario, i hit 119kph. I sprinted to 65ish kph at the top of the descent and then dropped into my tuck and held it to the bottom, only coming out to negotiate a blind switchback half way. It was terrifying... but I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

[@DavidvdGulik]

82 kph in the Ardennes, still don't know how I managed that on those roads being as rough and bumpy as they are. I could see a long way ahead, else I'd never dared it

[@aishainman]

This bike is just fantastic and it was shipped quickly and ready for pickup ...

[@AlexStavrinides]

Try riding a tandem! Mass x2 and easily hitting mid 50's mph plus the longer wheelbase makes it so much more stable and controllable. I've hit 61mph on a solo with the fear, but >55mph on the tandem and happy as anything dropping solo bikes out of our wake with ease.

[@thechumpsbeendumped.7797]

I don’t know my exact speed but 40 years ago I got stopped by a cop in an unmarked car as I overtook his car and several others, going down a short but steep hill near my home. It was a 30mph zone but most cars did at least 40 just by coasting so it was probably close to 50mph. He was pretty good about it, let me off with a warning and said half serious and half joking to be carful who I overtook in future. There was a time I probably exceeded that but it didn’t end well, I ended up being taken to hospital after running out of talent and road on the descent out of Ventnor on the Isle of Wight. Apparently it’s quite a common place to catch out the unwary cyclist. It certainly was on that day, coz a couple of mins before the ambulance arrived to take me off to hospital I hear a shout of “LOOK OUT!” from the people that had stopped to help me and crash, bang,wallop! Next thing I know is a bike flew past an it’s rider landed flat on his back within reach of me. The ambulance driver looked most confused when he arrived as he was only expecting one “passenger” for A&E. I got away without any broken bones but in a lot of pain for a couple of weeks with abrasions, sprains and serious bruising, to head, back and pelvis, the other guy had blood coming out of his ears and was unconscious briefly, so possibly a fractured scull.

[@CauliflowerEars1]

I love descending and going fast but quoting Juliet - "Don't descend like a bellend!" especially while A&E is busy with other things.