Road Bike Vs Mountain Bike Speed
Based on the speed test i found the road bike rolled on average about 11 faster than the mountain bike.
Road bike vs mountain bike speed. A general rule of thumb is that if you are switching from a mountain bike with knobbies to a road bike you will be between 15 20 faster at the same watts effort. Less popular as difficult to film and televise and is the only mountain biking event at the summer olympics. Any comparison between a road bike and a mountain bike has to keep in mind that road bikes are meant for speeds and style whereas mountain bikes are meant for stability balance and sturdiness. The road bike vs mountain bike question has no easy answers which is why we recommend seriously considering your needs and buying the bike you like first.
However if you put the mountain bike on the same touraine i e a smooth paved trail the difference in speeds between mtb and road bike should be closer. Fyi over a 2 3 mile stretch of hilly curvy paved trail today an experienced road cyclist did it about 30 seconds faster than me on my mtb 26 2 2 tsali tires inflated to just under 40psi. Help save the planet and buy the best bike you can afford then add to your carbonless and frugal lifestyle with a second bike. It s not ideal and you ll work pretty hard but it is possible.
This discrepancy in speed results from the weight of the bikes the position of the riders and other basic differences in construction. The road bike was running standard road bike tires at about 80psi. Unlike road bikes which can t function in the mountains you can use a mountain bike to ride on paved trails. Mountain bikes can scramble over roots and rocks that would stop a road bike in its tracks but when it comes to pavement a road bike will take the lead every time.
On my reasonably flat commute i average around 16 mph on my road bike but your average speed is dependent on many different factors. Mountain bikes are created for off road cycling in non paved rough environments. One interesting thing to note is that a lot of the speed difference in the test seemed to come in the first 10 yards along the test track as the bikes accelerated up to speed. Another reason to think about mountain biking over road biking is that there won t be any cars.
The first one is its versatility. Typically that s only a change of 2 3 mph.