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How fast can cyclists run a mile?

Author

Emma Payne

Published Jan 21, 2026

An average cyclist with a perfectly okay bike takes about 5 to 6 minutes to cover a whole mile. The average cycling speed is considered to be between 12 and 18mph. If you are a recreational cyclist, you cycle at about 8 to 10 mph.

How fast can cyclists run?

Professional bicycle racers can usually maintain 25-28 mph on flat ground. But for a beginning road cyclist, an average of 13.5 mph is very respectable, especially on a longer ride.

Is cycling 3 miles in 10 minutes good?

To find out where you stack up, ride three miles and compare your time to a simple scale: Anything over 12-minutes is below average, 8-12 minutes is moderate — and where most cyclist fit in. If you finish in under 8 minutes, consider yourself extremely fit.

How long should a 3 mile bike ride take?

A person cycling on typical terrain with an average of 18 mph will cover 3 miles in 10-12 minutes. On the other hand, a regular rider biking on hilly terrain will take 20-24 minutes to cover 3 miles. For professional cyclists, they can easily cover 3 miles in 6 minutes.

Is 20 miles a long bike ride?

For most cyclists, 20 miles is not a long distance and will not be too challenging. However, for beginners and those that are out of shape, biking 20 miles will be more difficult. Riding 20 miles will be harder depending on your endurance level, the bike you ride, the terrain and weather, and experience of the cyclist.

38 related questions found

Is 18 mph fast on a bike?

The majority of riders can average a speed of about 15 mph on a one hour ride. A good speed for a beginner is 10 mph, but you should be able to get to 15 mph pretty quickly. If you start training every once in a while, you could get your average up to 18 mph, but training on a regular basis could get you to 22 mph.

How fast do pro cyclists sprint?

The average speed during professional road cycling sprints is 63.9kph (53.7-69.1kph) sustained for between 9 and 17 seconds for men, and 53.8kph (41.6-64kph) for 10-30 seconds for women.

Is 17 mph fast on a bike?

Average speed - indications

Most cyclists can achieve 10-12 mph average very quickly with limited training. More experienced, short-medium distance (say 20-30 miles): average 15-16 mph. Reasonable experience, medium (say 40 miles): average around 16-19 mph.

How fast do Olympic cyclists go?

Over the last several years, the winner of the tour has posted an overall average speed of right around 25mph (40kmph)–but that encompasses an entire tour. Uphill, downhill, time trial, flatland, it's all averaged at 25mph. A little faster than us. A little.

What is a good 20 mile bike ride time?

On average, it will take you an hour and forty minutes to finish a 20-mile biking distance. Of course, this is possible if you have a healthy physique, reliable bike, and average terrain. To understand these factors fully, read our guide below.

What is the fastest mile ever biked?

Denise Mueller-Korenek rode a custom bike at an average of 183.932 miles per hour — shattering a world record that had stood since 1995.

How fast is Peter Sagan?

Peter Sagan, racing at approximately 75kg, crossed the line in 2:26:00 with an average power of over 247 watts. His average cadence was 73rpm with an average speed of 39kph. The short stage contained over 1,250 meters (4,100 ft) of climbing and required around 2,000 kilocalories.

How do pro cyclists ride so fast?

But the other major way that professional cyclists go much faster than the rest of us in a race like the Tour de France is their expertise in drafting or slipstreaming. This is where they cycle "on the wheel" of the rider in front so they are protected from some of the air resistance.

How do cyclist pee in the Tour de France?

Pee at the side of the road

Some riders stop at the side of the road to go for a pee. The peloton may organise itself, selecting a 'nature break' slot during which the riders will collectively pee; at a Grand Tour tradition dictates that the GC leader determines when this will be.

Is 45 fast on a bike?

Professional cyclists can achieve a 45-MPH top speed on a bike using only raw power to propel themselves over the road, facing the wind.

Is cycling better than running?

The number of calories you burn in either exercise depends on the intensity and length of time you do it. In general, running burns more calories than cycling because it uses more muscles. However, cycling is gentler on the body, and you may be able to do it longer or faster than you can run.

Is 30 miles a long bike ride?

Cycling for 30 miles for two hours is considered a good pace for slow, fast, and experienced bikers. So, you would not have to fret about going faster than that. However, there's a huge possibility that you would not feel too good by the time you finish this mileage.

Is 20km/h fast cycling?

Cycling burns more calories

Cycling at a moderate speed of 20 km/h (12 mph) burns approximately 563 kcal per hour. And the difference is even bigger when we increase the intensity. A fast walking speed of 6.5 km/h (4 mph) burns 352 kcal per hour, while a fast cycling speed of 30 km/h (19 mph) burns 844 kcal per hour.

What is the top speed in Tour de France?

Top recorded speed: 101.5kph (63.1mph)

The fastest recorded speed at the 2019 Tour de France came on a white-knuckle descent of the Col de Vars by one of the peloton's hard men.

How fast is Mark Cavendish?

His top speed, 70.2km/h, may have only been the fourth-fastest of the top quartet on the stage, but the combination of Mørkøv's lead-out and Cavendish's sprinting know-how was more than enough to outclass his rivals once again.

What is the average speed of the Tour de France in mph?

Average Speed on Flat Ground: 25-28 mph

For many pro athletes racing in the Tour de France, being able to maintain a fast speed on flat terrain allows them to simply stay competitive with the other athletes.

How heavy is a Tour de France bike?

Today, bikes weigh in at just under 15 pounds—but not any lower, since the UCI's minimum bike weight is 6.8kg, which translates to 14.99 pounds.

How far can you ride a bike in 24 hours?

Austrian ultra-cyclist Christoph Strasser has set a new 24-hour world record on the road (pending verification), travelling a staggering 1,026.215 kilometres (637.66 miles). That equates to an (equally staggering) average speed of 42.75 km/h (26.56 mph) over the daylong ride.

What is the fastest a bicycle has gone?

On Sunday September 16, 2018, Denise Mueller-Korenek broke the bicycle land speed record of 167 mph, hitting 183.932 mph at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats. This story about the engineering and logistics behind this crazed effort originally ran on Thursday, September 13.