How to ride 26 mph with minimal effort

FREE pre-race checklist - more important than you think:

NorCal Cycling Merch:

20% off Stages Powermeters + accessories, USE CODE "NCC20" at checkout.

Stay updated with weekly bike racing commentary, tips, and strategy by subscribing:

My Strava:

Instagram:

Send Coaching and Collaboration related questions to:

[Mantis]

As a dude who's never rode in a group this was pretty informative. I can average around 15mph on my own and found it dumbfounding looking at others average speed.

[bonzaiii]

I was waiting for tips to ride 26 mph with minimal effort solo..

[MM-bgin]

Had no idea this is what’s going on in a race. Couldn’t imagine going that speed so close to each other especially when you are so close to the curb or gravel. Hats off.

[gchesterton]

Sitting in and saving energy is my forte. Solid top-100 finish every time.

[Bellerophon]

As someone who rides solo 95% of the time, 200-210W on flat terrain can get me to 20 mph over a long ride. Gonna need a Remco-esque CdA for anything more than that!

[ions]

I love watching those numbers when bridging to a breakaway. Modern bike tech has gone wild in the last two decades. Wireless shifting, tubeless tires, and all metrics being recorded in real time (with corresponding footage of terrain.). Great video!

[jordangraf]

This is awesome man. Just got a gravel bike after not riding for a long time and this kind of stuff is really motivating.

[WattWireNet]

Lots of good info here, thanks for the tips and data sharing. It's so cool to see the power output overlayed onto race footage w/ commentary.

[danielmarshall]

Simply an excellent and informative video, and very much so even for those of us who bicycle regularly but don't race. The fluency of the narration, supported by zeroed-in graphical data points and perfectly edited video, was spot on and compelling. Kudos! And thank you!

[swaaagquan]

Great video. I haven't raced in 13 years, but man this makes me want to get back into it. Without racing, you have no idea how powerful a good slipstream is. The combination of the commentary, video, power, heart rate and speed. Feels like super Mario.

[crbondur]

I like the "Two Questions". Definitely important reminders to be intentional about your work in a race. If you want to get really deep, you could apply this to your actions outside of cycling as well. :)

[chetanseth]

I have a Phoenix Hydra 29 bike (not a road bike). I have been mostly on solo rides only and pull about 100 watts with an average speed of 24 kmph (nearly 15 mph) for about a 60km (~37 miles) ride. I wondered about others on Strava who had average speeds of more than 30 kmph (>20 mph). I always thought that it was because of the slim tires of their road bike. But this video changes that perspective and cleared a lot of doubts!

[MrEddieo]

Great stuff man.. Too bad I am 68 and on BP meds which limits my bpm. On a flat flat road I can average 16/17 but over a hilly course I am really slow. Just came to cycling late in life. Still fun for me.

[jojee]

As a non cyclist, I would’ve never guessed that drafting played that large of a role. Cool stuff

[mr.sangaku]

"What are you doing and why are you doing it?" Definitely something to keep in mind. Thanks Jeff cheers man🤟🏼

[ryanmussett]

This is really interesting, I'm looking at getting in to racing soon. I started cycling July 2021 but only really cycle alone and am a bit nervous to take the dive as I didn't really know where I was currently at would be good enough to hang in a group. My solo average is a steady 19-20mph (cycle 5 days a week), 190W would be a touch above Z2 for me so feel fairly confident after watching this. Thank you 😆

[justinbouchard]

I'm new to cycling, two years, but also in Canada so it's more like a few months of riding. Something I found that I did and still do is ride with my legs tense to a certain degree. As opposed to allowing the muscle to just exist and work off of the joints it's like I'm flexing my legs while pedaling. I notice that i'm tons faster with less effort when my legs and just in general my body is relaxed and not tense anywhere.

[claudeschweizer]

dude, i cycle in the city alot, messenger for 4 years, total alot more – just my passion. but u just brought me alot closer to roadbikeraces with your video, 10minutes made me understand the whole game – finally. love it :) thx <3

[kidsafe]

Worth noting different phenotypes / body types like to attack in different spots at Alviso. I actually like attacking into the headwind sections (Nortech/First/Santos/Wilson) where it's slowest. Bigger dudes love attacking the tailwind sections like Grand and Disk. Blaine likes to attack anywhere.

[Paul-qblo]

Drafting and knowing the corse is essential to achieving this goal. The guy rides the course 7 days a week for a few hours everyday. It’s NorCal’s home turf and baby.