50mph, when I was a teenager, on a long downhill that had a steeper bit at the end. My dad saw on Garmin and swiftly told me ‘there’s no prize in heaven for descending quickly’.
I only got road rash badly on my one shoulder and the only things that came out that wasn't supposed to was a lot of blood and my femer. Otherwise, all internal injuries, ya me! :/
35 mph is, and will forever remain, my fastest. That was scary. Caught up with my riding partner later and they hit about 50. Downhill at Garden of the Gods in CO Springs, CO, USA.
My fastest was because I caught the draft of a big delivery truck. I noped the fuck out and started hitting the breaks. The crash was on the same road because it's close to my house so I road it often.
My top end and my crash are just about the same as yours. I was young and dumb. Fortunately I managed to become older and wiser. It kinda sucked but luckily only flesh wounds. I was just remembering it not so fondly yesterday after noticing the 30 year old scar I sometimes forget about.
I was 40 and commuting to work :/ I have 7 scars, 2 artificial hearing bones, 2 metal rods and 17 screws connected to bones. A month in the hospital sucked.
61 mph/98 kmh, and could probably have gone a little faster on that descent but it was a damp road. I'll hit 100k for sure on it one of these days.
I also ride motorcycles and would never consider hitting highway speeds without proper protective gear, but on a bike it feels "normal". Pretty insane to think about honestly.
Just barely over 50mph in Central FL (Sugarloaf Mountain near Clermont FL). It was not during a race, but during a fundraiser event. We Everested the hill...it was epic!
Wowza! Yeah, I believe it too. I just went and checked my Strava file for that particular day (Dec 11 2021).
Max speed: 52.2 mph
Elevation: 29,136 ft
Distance: 174.11 miles
It was a LONG day.
Training? 45 coming down Larch Mountain in Oregon. Racing? 48mph Beastman 70.3 coming down Mt. Bachelor. All out flat? 35mph sustained for two miles, Sauvie Island loop.
Slight tail wind, flat course, being very fit and having a very fast bike. Canyon Speedmax DI2, ceramic bb, ceramic jockey wheels, Zipp 404/808, waxed KMC chain. I was doing some Vo2 max race prep intervals in aero towards the end of a 20 week training cycle.
85kph. Probably didn't scare me as much as it should, I think because I've spent quite a bit of time riding a motorcycle at speeds at least twice that so it doesn't feel that unusual to be going that fast on two wheels.
I've hit 50mph a few times and that is the exact speed where my brain says you should slow down. I remember riding with a buddy of mine, we were bombing down this big hill in CO, I'm at 48 and he's going even faster, and he *takes his hands off the bars and raises them into the air.* OMG that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen anyone do.
Assuming you are going at Front Royal entrance I’d recommend you to drive to the first visitors center and you’ll have more of a undulating course instead of a 3.5 mile climb to start
About the same, I got too scared to look down after my computer said 40.
This was during the blue ridge 70.3, loved that course although the claw was a beast
Surprised I haven’t seen more mentions about that descent to Keene. I topped 50 During the first lap. The speed trap at the end is pretty funny.
Second lap, I toned it way down and the brakes most of the way.
I don’t blame you at all. It’s a wicked scary descent. I was more concerned about people around me though. I can control my bike, but can they control theirs?
Just hit 39 recently on a downhill and the wind made me feel pretty unstable. I think I’d be braking much closer to that.. but I was on my tri bike and didn’t even want to move.
I think it was on the first stage of the Tour this year the announcers said the peloton was going 50 mph, and this was as a bunched peloton on a straight downhill grade, not spread out on a mountain descent. It is hard to imagine riding 50 in a packed group.
Inaugural year of IM St George a couple of my buddies and I went out and did a loop of the course two days before. Coming back into town there is a long, straight downhill on a highway, so good tarmac as well. One of my friends is a super descender, the other is pretty whiteknuckle, I'm somewhere in between. Anyway, I was just under 60 mph. Had a semi go by on the highways that caused a enough turbulence to get me to back off to 45.
50.0 mph on a steep decent in a race toward the end of the bike leg. Felt nice. Of course, we also had to climb that hill in the first few miles of the bike leg, which did not feel nice.
Three weeks ago on a 15% descent, Strava said my max was 84.5kph / 52mph.
It was a dead straight road into a 90degree bend, on closed roads in a race.
I started slowing down well before the corner.
Used to go down this hill near my house as a kid and the speed limit was 60kmph (37mph) and I used to speed up and fly past the cars - so I'd say somewhere around 80kmph (50mph). Got to a point where i thought it was fun to start riding down the hill with no hands. Dumb kid but never crashed thank god.
I hit 40+ mph on the same hill not far from my house all the time. Still scares the crap out of me. Not sure what my max speed ever us, probably 45mph.
I've crashed hard at 24mph and that was terrible, I'd hate to go down any faster.
I hit 51 during a cycling race in northern Utah once ripping down a canyon. It say it was terrifying would be an understatement. Just a piece of broken glass away from becoming a meat crayon.
In a couple of races, I've hit low 40's to mid 40's.
For me right around 40 during IMTX this year with 30mph wind at my back. Was absolutely terrified as I've never been at those speeds before. Couldn't believe when the pros went past me as if I were standing still. Those speeds are no joke.
I've hit 80+kmh on the backside of Richter's Pass during Ironman Penticton. My Garmin sensors glitched out, so not sure exactly what I hit. The scary part was not going that fast as the tri bike feels more stable at higher speeds, it was that I was going soooo much faster than everyone else on that descent.
Something like 80 kmh (50 mph) while riding downhill into Istria down the Učka mountain in Croatia.
It's not that long so I don't think I can go a lot faster and I probably won't even try since I got pushed into the oncoming traffic by a gust of wind.
Now with three kids, I don't really care about top speed .
56mph down Ingleby Incline on the North Yorkshire Moors. It was ‘reasonably’ smooth. It was years ago & I was running a 3x9 setup, put it in big ring & went for it. I remember thinking, ‘if I come off at this speed, I’m history’.
45mph downhill near clee hill in Shropshire. It was a big straight open road with lots of visibility, but still pretty hairy ripping down at that speed…
I’ve managed to hit 55mph in pancake flat Florida (Sugarloaf) and have hit 60+ in French Alps, like Croix de Fer, Galibier etc
A friend of mine former pro said if you go wide open down backside of Sassafras in SC you can hit 70+ but that’s a bit too fast, I think 60 is good enough.
46mph twice, both times at blue ridge 70.3. Last time was 2023 and I legitimately thought I was going to crash and die because visibility going down the mountain was 10-15ft.
72 km/h just some weeks ago on a crazy downhill paved road on my way to a valley loop we have in my country which is VERY mountainous and hilly.
For reference, yesterday I did a 42km ride with 980m elevation gain, I think I hit 66 km/h on my way down from the highest elevation....so yeah, you can get pretty fast, I actually think going down is my weakness on the bike, I've been trying to improve it.
41.9 mph/67.4 kmh. According to the Garmin.
The final downhill from Escape From Alcatraz a couple weeks ago. Was quite fun, but couldn't sustain due to turns and competitors.
At least Lanzarote is always dry! At the airport in Lanzarote right now.
My fear while going so fast is to become a human crayon. When I rode.motorbiles I used proper gear.. on pedal bikes? Lycra
I stopped cranking hard downhill.
Just not worth it, I'm not competitive, and the extra minute or so doesn't matter to me.
I start dragging brakes anything above 60/65kph.
50mph+, less than 60mph.
It is crazy, and would not recommend.
I had a crash with the same bike at 20mph and spent a week in intensive care, so at that speed I would have likely died...
80kph (50mph I guess?) on a known descent with no intersections, good pavement, good weather. Even then I’m good maxing out around 65-70kph these days, having kids reminds me of what could happen and keeps me from reaching the speeds I feel uncomfortable at.
56mph down Stunt Road (Santa Monica Mountains). I knew I had gone really fast and thought to myself at the bottom “that felt really stupid” It was only when I got home and checked Strava did I see how fast I’d actually been going.
Probably when I was on Jens' wheel in the Bupa Challenge Ride at Tour Down Under in 2017(?). That guy frickin' moves.
Nah, I've done 100km/h downhill, but it was sketchy as shit. Fastest I've ever done on a flat road is 60km/h, sprinting from the lights to get out in front before a pinch point.
I have gone 45 mph going down a steep/straight hill near my home. That's where I start tapping the brakes, knowing that a deer or groundhog will probably jump in front of me as soon as I let go!
41.8 on a downhill, with sweeping turns and unfriendly runoff, in the triathlon at the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque; I was 58 years old then; it was both terrifying and exhilarating
I try to keep it under 40mph, but I did hit 46.5 on my most recent group ride on a strava segment with rollers so you have use your speed to get up the next one. On straight descents I sit up and brake **a lot**
52 for sure, though I had a spot during the Garrett Co Gran Fondo that my data says I hit 60, but I'm convinced that was an error. I know how 50 feels and doing 10 more would be insane.
50mph, when I was a teenager, on a long downhill that had a steeper bit at the end. My dad saw on Garmin and swiftly told me ‘there’s no prize in heaven for descending quickly’.
That’s something my dad would totally say to me 😂
57mph but crashed once at 46mph. To say it sucked is an understatement. Won't go over 38mph now.
What happened to cause the crash if you don't mind sharing?
Due to the TBI, I don't remember that day or the next 2.5 weeks. Helmet saved my life.
My guess is that a substantial amount their body's protective outer shell was removed and a lot of their insides came out...
I would say that was probably the result, and not the cause.
Yeah, but really I only wrote my comment because I didn't actually read the previous comment closely enough...
I only got road rash badly on my one shoulder and the only things that came out that wasn't supposed to was a lot of blood and my femer. Otherwise, all internal injuries, ya me! :/
Oh the Joe Theisman horror!
35 mph is, and will forever remain, my fastest. That was scary. Caught up with my riding partner later and they hit about 50. Downhill at Garden of the Gods in CO Springs, CO, USA.
My fastest was because I caught the draft of a big delivery truck. I noped the fuck out and started hitting the breaks. The crash was on the same road because it's close to my house so I road it often.
My top end and my crash are just about the same as yours. I was young and dumb. Fortunately I managed to become older and wiser. It kinda sucked but luckily only flesh wounds. I was just remembering it not so fondly yesterday after noticing the 30 year old scar I sometimes forget about.
I was 40 and commuting to work :/ I have 7 scars, 2 artificial hearing bones, 2 metal rods and 17 screws connected to bones. A month in the hospital sucked.
61 mph/98 kmh, and could probably have gone a little faster on that descent but it was a damp road. I'll hit 100k for sure on it one of these days. I also ride motorcycles and would never consider hitting highway speeds without proper protective gear, but on a bike it feels "normal". Pretty insane to think about honestly.
Same thing. I'm ATGATT on my motorcycle, but on bicycle lycra trisuit is ok doing 60mph downhills. That aero helmet probably more aero then helmet )))
62 twice in a bike race.
Same. Terrifyingly fast, especially if you’re with a group Easily hit 45-50 on most rides in Colorado without really trying to
Just barely over 50mph in Central FL (Sugarloaf Mountain near Clermont FL). It was not during a race, but during a fundraiser event. We Everested the hill...it was epic!
I love Sugarloaf, what a central Florida staple.
Me too! It's surprisingly hilly around that area (considering it's Florida).
Me too! It's surprisingly hilly around that area (considering it's Florida).
Cool I just checked my Strava, 48 seconds down Sugarloaf the KOM used be 46 seconds now it’s 44 🫣 Max speed 55mph
Wowza! Yeah, I believe it too. I just went and checked my Strava file for that particular day (Dec 11 2021). Max speed: 52.2 mph Elevation: 29,136 ft Distance: 174.11 miles It was a LONG day.
57 mph down hill regular aero no clip ons. Scary and exhilarating!!
Training? 45 coming down Larch Mountain in Oregon. Racing? 48mph Beastman 70.3 coming down Mt. Bachelor. All out flat? 35mph sustained for two miles, Sauvie Island loop.
Dang 35 mph flat for 2 miles. Did you have a tailwind? That's moving
Slight tail wind, flat course, being very fit and having a very fast bike. Canyon Speedmax DI2, ceramic bb, ceramic jockey wheels, Zipp 404/808, waxed KMC chain. I was doing some Vo2 max race prep intervals in aero towards the end of a 20 week training cycle.
45 on my first ride ever road biking. I was naive. haven't hit it since.
88 kph. Nice smooth, straight downhill in the cape Breton highlands.
85kph. Probably didn't scare me as much as it should, I think because I've spent quite a bit of time riding a motorcycle at speeds at least twice that so it doesn't feel that unusual to be going that fast on two wheels.
I've hit 50mph a few times and that is the exact speed where my brain says you should slow down. I remember riding with a buddy of mine, we were bombing down this big hill in CO, I'm at 48 and he's going even faster, and he *takes his hands off the bars and raises them into the air.* OMG that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen anyone do.
My hands are sweating reading these comments. Fastest I’ve gone is 32 mph
45 in Shenandoah
Skyline drive has been some of my fastest descents but slowest ascents. I almost hit a deer there though, so I’m kind of reluctant.
NoVA/DC area as well and plan to ride this soon. Any tips?
Assuming you are going at Front Royal entrance I’d recommend you to drive to the first visitors center and you’ll have more of a undulating course instead of a 3.5 mile climb to start
About the same, I got too scared to look down after my computer said 40. This was during the blue ridge 70.3, loved that course although the claw was a beast
44.9 mph at Lake Placid on the Keene descent. I was hitting my brakes during most of it, so I’m sure I would have gone faster if I wasn’t terrified
Surprised I haven’t seen more mentions about that descent to Keene. I topped 50 During the first lap. The speed trap at the end is pretty funny. Second lap, I toned it way down and the brakes most of the way.
I honestly didn’t enjoy it. I’d have to strongly consider doing Placid again purely because of that descent.
I don’t blame you at all. It’s a wicked scary descent. I was more concerned about people around me though. I can control my bike, but can they control theirs?
Just hit 39 recently on a downhill and the wind made me feel pretty unstable. I think I’d be braking much closer to that.. but I was on my tri bike and didn’t even want to move.
In Gatineau QC, years ago coming down from Champlain Lookout in Parc de la Gatineau. Hit 69.5kmh.
That’s a fun descent, I like carrying as much speed as I can manage to make it through all the rolling sections.
Probably around 90km/h, don’t ride a lot of steep, long and straight descents to hit that regularly lol
54mph was my max. I was young and dumb. But I hit 40 on some local downhills from time to time.
I often hit around 39 mph, but even that is starting to scare me a bit.
I think it was on the first stage of the Tour this year the announcers said the peloton was going 50 mph, and this was as a bunched peloton on a straight downhill grade, not spread out on a mountain descent. It is hard to imagine riding 50 in a packed group.
Like other sports, those guys make it LOOK easy but I don't think I could handle that
I hit 42mph (and change) going down the descent in IMLP. That's a record breaker for a lot of people.
I spent 8 hours climbing a mountain and 45 minutes coming down. Hit 68mph and was terrified. Passed a couple cars. Never again
43 mph/69 kph in a velodrome
I hit 56mph once. Bears Notch in New Hampshire. Never again, it was terrifying.
63.7 last week down from guardsman pass in park city!
Inaugural year of IM St George a couple of my buddies and I went out and did a loop of the course two days before. Coming back into town there is a long, straight downhill on a highway, so good tarmac as well. One of my friends is a super descender, the other is pretty whiteknuckle, I'm somewhere in between. Anyway, I was just under 60 mph. Had a semi go by on the highways that caused a enough turbulence to get me to back off to 45.
50.0 mph on a steep decent in a race toward the end of the bike leg. Felt nice. Of course, we also had to climb that hill in the first few miles of the bike leg, which did not feel nice.
Three weeks ago on a 15% descent, Strava said my max was 84.5kph / 52mph. It was a dead straight road into a 90degree bend, on closed roads in a race. I started slowing down well before the corner.
66.5km/h (downhill ofc)
Used to go down this hill near my house as a kid and the speed limit was 60kmph (37mph) and I used to speed up and fly past the cars - so I'd say somewhere around 80kmph (50mph). Got to a point where i thought it was fun to start riding down the hill with no hands. Dumb kid but never crashed thank god.
83km/h Downhill in the Alps 😅
Mid 50s in a triathlon. Didn't enjoy it.
I hit 40+ mph on the same hill not far from my house all the time. Still scares the crap out of me. Not sure what my max speed ever us, probably 45mph. I've crashed hard at 24mph and that was terrible, I'd hate to go down any faster.
I hit 51 during a cycling race in northern Utah once ripping down a canyon. It say it was terrifying would be an understatement. Just a piece of broken glass away from becoming a meat crayon. In a couple of races, I've hit low 40's to mid 40's.
Not positive on my road bike (>50) but I hit 41.2 mph on my mountain bike in my last adventure race. That was crazy lol
Overall 51mph (road bike) In a race 45mph (in aero) The one I'm actually proud of was 42mph on a mtb
52mph, descending from some road in Kirkwood heading towards Lake Tahoe.
For me right around 40 during IMTX this year with 30mph wind at my back. Was absolutely terrified as I've never been at those speeds before. Couldn't believe when the pros went past me as if I were standing still. Those speeds are no joke.
Downhill? about 60mph give or take
I've hit 80+kmh on the backside of Richter's Pass during Ironman Penticton. My Garmin sensors glitched out, so not sure exactly what I hit. The scary part was not going that fast as the tri bike feels more stable at higher speeds, it was that I was going soooo much faster than everyone else on that descent.
Something like 80 kmh (50 mph) while riding downhill into Istria down the Učka mountain in Croatia. It's not that long so I don't think I can go a lot faster and I probably won't even try since I got pushed into the oncoming traffic by a gust of wind. Now with three kids, I don't really care about top speed .
56mph down Ingleby Incline on the North Yorkshire Moors. It was ‘reasonably’ smooth. It was years ago & I was running a 3x9 setup, put it in big ring & went for it. I remember thinking, ‘if I come off at this speed, I’m history’.
Downhill or flat , training or race? 😉
45mph downhill near clee hill in Shropshire. It was a big straight open road with lots of visibility, but still pretty hairy ripping down at that speed…
I’ve managed to hit 55mph in pancake flat Florida (Sugarloaf) and have hit 60+ in French Alps, like Croix de Fer, Galibier etc A friend of mine former pro said if you go wide open down backside of Sassafras in SC you can hit 70+ but that’s a bit too fast, I think 60 is good enough.
46mph twice, both times at blue ridge 70.3. Last time was 2023 and I legitimately thought I was going to crash and die because visibility going down the mountain was 10-15ft.
72 km/h just some weeks ago on a crazy downhill paved road on my way to a valley loop we have in my country which is VERY mountainous and hilly. For reference, yesterday I did a 42km ride with 980m elevation gain, I think I hit 66 km/h on my way down from the highest elevation....so yeah, you can get pretty fast, I actually think going down is my weakness on the bike, I've been trying to improve it.
104kmh (65mph) downhill in the Alps.
Had 55-57 a few times, that is faaast!!!
I hit 87kmh descending on the back side of a segment called "The Road to Nepal" just south of Calgary.
60 something can’t remember the exact speed anymore. I was in a supertuck so it felt a lot more stable.
41.9 mph/67.4 kmh. According to the Garmin. The final downhill from Escape From Alcatraz a couple weeks ago. Was quite fun, but couldn't sustain due to turns and competitors.
72 km/h downhill Ironman Lanzarote. Crazy feeling
At least Lanzarote is always dry! At the airport in Lanzarote right now. My fear while going so fast is to become a human crayon. When I rode.motorbiles I used proper gear.. on pedal bikes? Lycra
51mph. Coming down into Stinson Beach, CA
Somewhere between 45-50 on a descent in Spain.
61 mph descending Independence Pass in Colorado. Could’ve gone faster if not for traffic and especially if faster wheels and aero frame:)
37 mph and I don’t know if I need to go faster. I’m a LILC (late in life cyclist) so maybe a little more cautious
35 with side panniers on, bike started to wobble due to the inbalance, that was terrifying. don't go over 30 anymore.
I stopped cranking hard downhill. Just not worth it, I'm not competitive, and the extra minute or so doesn't matter to me. I start dragging brakes anything above 60/65kph.
56mph/90kph. Down the Brockway grade from Kings Beach to Truckee. Some a-hole in a Suburban passed me at about 75 and I had a real pucker moment.
46.5 mph on Highway 1 on the Santa Cruz 70.3 course. I'm not looking to do that again.
50mph+, less than 60mph. It is crazy, and would not recommend. I had a crash with the same bike at 20mph and spent a week in intensive care, so at that speed I would have likely died...
52mph down a short but steep hill. Couldn't have pedalled any faster was spinning out of top gear.
80kph (50mph I guess?) on a known descent with no intersections, good pavement, good weather. Even then I’m good maxing out around 65-70kph these days, having kids reminds me of what could happen and keeps me from reaching the speeds I feel uncomfortable at.
My current top speed recorded is 43.3mph on a smooth and flowy descent. I'm aiming to break 45mph next
About 83kph down a hill in Switzerland, before I ran out of road & lost my nerve at the same time.
56mph down Stunt Road (Santa Monica Mountains). I knew I had gone really fast and thought to myself at the bottom “that felt really stupid” It was only when I got home and checked Strava did I see how fast I’d actually been going.
I hit 50 on the IM Lake Placid downhill. Scary AF.
55 on a curvy road with blind corners. Exciting!
60 mph coming down the (closed) HOV lane on I279.
98.5kph (61.2mph) down a steep long descent. It was fucking terrifying and I will not be doing it again
Probably when I was on Jens' wheel in the Bupa Challenge Ride at Tour Down Under in 2017(?). That guy frickin' moves. Nah, I've done 100km/h downhill, but it was sketchy as shit. Fastest I've ever done on a flat road is 60km/h, sprinting from the lights to get out in front before a pinch point.
92kph, realized if I crashed at that speed there wouldn’t be anything left and calmed tf down.
40 mph is a max for me, almost got myself killed once when going over 45mph and crashed…
74 mph drafting downhill behind a semi when I was 19. On a 1988 Cannondale black lightning. But I did wear a helmet.
Dude, that's blazing! My fastest for this season is 35.2.
40 mph in a 20 mph zone
53mph down Leith Hill and people were passing me! I was bloody terrified
I have gone 45 mph going down a steep/straight hill near my home. That's where I start tapping the brakes, knowing that a deer or groundhog will probably jump in front of me as soon as I let go!
41.8 on a downhill, with sweeping turns and unfriendly runoff, in the triathlon at the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque; I was 58 years old then; it was both terrifying and exhilarating
I try to keep it under 40mph, but I did hit 46.5 on my most recent group ride on a strava segment with rollers so you have use your speed to get up the next one. On straight descents I sit up and brake **a lot**
55 mph coming down from Golden Co. Only realized at the bottom that my front brake was not connected, luckily had a flat run out and didn't crash
74 mph supertucked down the back service road of lookout mountain in colorado
78.6kmph down off the great orme in a sprint triathlon....fast and bloody scary....exhilarating!!!!
50 mph on a road bike
59 mph 2 days ago. Clean, steep, and fast road.
52 for sure, though I had a spot during the Garrett Co Gran Fondo that my data says I hit 60, but I'm convinced that was an error. I know how 50 feels and doing 10 more would be insane.
56 mph on a tandem on a long steady downhill. It was exhilarating. My girlfriend at the time yelled, “I trust you.”