How to improve my performance on a commute?

Question

I commute to work on a Trek 7100e hybrid bike. It's about 15 miles (24km) each way, along flattish suburban roads and a (fairly smooth) canal towpath. It takes me about an hour. Due to the distance (and extra time compared to driving), I only do this about once a week. I'm a medium-height, slightly built guy, reasonable fitness level. What is the best way to improve my speed and reduce my time, without spending much money?

• Pedals - I don't really want to go clipless due to the expense, but I'd consider it if it's the best way. Are toe clips and straps likely to make much difference?
• Reducing 'luggage weight'. My standard pack for work is a change of clothes and some basic bike maintenance stuff (tube, pump, tools, and a cable lock). It's currently in a double pannier that's probably overkill. Should I consider going to a rack trunk, a handlebar bag (no rack required), or something else? I don't like cycling that far with a backpack.
• Tyres - change to slicks? Or narrower tyres? Would that mean I'd need to change the wheels too?
• I'd assumed (and read somewhere here) that changing to drop handlebars would be more trouble than it's worth.
• Something I haven't thought of?

EDIT - just a quick update. A work colleague had some spare LOOK clipless pedals and shoes, so I gave them a try. And I'm a convert! I see a definite improvement in performance, especially in acceleration - I can get up to speed a lot quicker than I could before. Thanks to everyone who answered. I'll probably try skinnier tyres too, but not until I actually need to change them.

EDIT three years on. I upgraded to a road bike (Pinnacle Dolomite 4, 2016) and that's been the biggest improvement in speed. I still have a rack on the back (just a rack top bag now, no panniers), clipless pedals, and 25mm tyres inflated to 100psi. I usually try to leave some clothes in work to reduce weight. Record time is now 51 minutes!

Answer 1

I posted a comment

Slick tires would make a difference, if you're not using them. Maintaining 24 kph on a hybrid that you ride one day a week is pretty good. The next two increments after slick tires would be clipless pedals, riding more frequently, and then a road bike.

... but decided a full answer was needed.

Given that the trip is 24 km, doing it in 60 minutes is 24 kph. Not bad for a lightly built guy riding a hybrid that is reported to be heavy, one day per week. By my figures, you're putting about 150 watts into the pedals to do that. This assumes you're using wide, non-slick tires.

Switching to thinner, slick road tires would gain you 2 kph for the same effort, possibly 3 kph. That gets you there 5 minutes quicker.

But to put 150 watts into the pedals, you have to produce more, because without your feet being clipped in, they will slide a little, and you have to use energy to keep them in place. Lets guess that's 10% of your effort - 15 watts. So you're really producing 165 watts. That translates to about 1 kph faster if you were clipped in. But as the late night TV ads say, but wait there's more. With your feet clipped in, you can produce more power because you can pull the pedals up as well as push down. How much more? The experts argue. Some claim 15%, others 40%. If it's 15%, that's another 24 watts (15% of 165). So after your aerobic system has adapted to delivering that much extra oxygen, you'll be up to about 29 kph. But I think you'd need to be riding three times a week to develop that sustained pace.

Extra training can take you faster, if you are riding regularly. How much is up to your innate abilities and dedication.

And how to go even faster? A road bike. For the same power that drives you at 29 kph on the hybrid, you'll go at 31 kph on a road bike, getting you there in 47 minutes.

So, you said you didn't want to spend much money. I'm arguing that clipless pedals will give you good return. They also support you as you work to increase your strength and fitness.

Answer 2

If you take the clothes in to work when you're driving anyway the tools etc. should fit in one or more of [saddle bag/triangle bag/top-tube bag] (the last of these is nice for a smartphone as well). Removing the panniers and rack will reduce drag as well as weight, and at these speeds drag is important (don't forget the 24km/h is an average including stops and slowing down for bends etc.).

For commuting on "fairly smooth" stuff like most towpaths, slicks may be going too far, but tyres designed for touring may be better than what you've got (the stock tyres on hybrids vary a lot, you could tell us what yours are). If you're buying new tyres anyway, go for anti-puncture -- on most roads the average commute over a few months will be quicker because the loss of time to a puncture is so much more than to the weight/rolling resistance penalty.

Without changing your bars or going for a road bike you may find a slightly more tucked position beneficial (by adjusting the stem or tilting riser bars forwards). Tucked vs. upright on my hybrid makes about 10% difference in downhill peak speed in a test I did recently, so a marginally more aerodynamic position might gain you a few minutes if you're equally efficient.

As for pedals, I recently switched to SPDs for commuting. The benefit is marginal if you have a lot of stops unless you can track-stand or clip in very fast -- clipping in causes a slight delay but then you can accelerate harder. You could consider half-clips -- I wish I had. These will help stop your feet sliding around and may fit cheaply to your existing pedals. They're basically toe-clips without straps, and won't let you pull-up, but the benefit of this is still under debate.

If your commute is an hour by bike and half that by car, you might find that knocking a few minutes off would mean you could happily ride twice a week, then you'd get (bike-)fitter, saving a few more minutes. Once a week is actually hard, 2-3x is good in terms of tiredness and perceived effort.

Answer 3

The way the human body reacts to training means that fitness will improve most dramatically if you exercise every two or three days. You would improve your times the most by commuting one extra day each week, and also going for a spin each weekend because you'd become a lot fitter. This is free but it will cost you some time.

Answer 4

Are you too limited in time? If not, consider cycling more often. Take note of your time and put that in a paper - you should clearly see a trend after a couple of months. Three times a week to start with should be a good short/mid term target. Long term target: every day. Not to mention the health benefits.

Answer 5

You could improve your commute time by carrying less stuff on the bike. I keep spare clothes and a pair of shoes at work for the few times I need to change, rather than carrying them with me.

Depending on your climate, you might get away without a coat/jacket going to work, but require it on the way home so consider keeping a jacket at each end too, ready for a downturn in the weather.

Carrying less stuff makes the ride faster, and more enjoyable too.

Answer 6

Byron's answer isn't wrong - it really spells out the upper limit to what people can pull off. You're not going to get a 15 mile commute down to 30 minutes without some extraordinary measures.

The usual options apply - you can get a bigger better engine, a better transmission, or do a better job defeating drag. Since you are the engine (with a caveat), getting a bigger engine isn't going to get you much improvement. You will improve, and twice a week will get you faster improvements. The biggest changes will be your better balance and technique (you'll waste less energy wobbling, and have better pedal stroke), and greater aerobic efficiency. But you'll also get better at choosing gears. That's half of how the pros are so good, and you'll get some of that.

A better transmission is the pedals, tires, and things like bike flex. You've found Look cleats, but people should consider the cheaper and more available SPD derivatives. You can do a lot with a better bike, as you've already found.

Next, the biggest source of drag over 10mph or so is wind drag aerodynamic drag. There are lots of ways to reduce wind drag, starting with a road bike that has drop handlebars. You are the biggest source of wind drag on a bike, and the less of you in the frontal area, the less wind drag. Likewise, you can greatly increase your average speed by switching to a recumbent, since you have an even smaller frontal profile on a recumbent. All of the bike land speed records are set on fully-faired recumbents because they have the least wind resistance.

Finally, the caveat from up top. You can now get a bigger engine. There are lots of e-bikes and conversions that will let you go much faster. Kind of a bike version of a hybrid car. If you're still doing that 15 mile commute, you might want to consider a good road bike with an e-bike conversion. You could pretty readily manage 20mph consistently that way. An e-bike converted recumbent might even get you 25 consistently. Of course, you could also shorten your commute by not living so far from work or not working so far from your house...

A note on your updates. Some newer research is out, and if that towpath isn't paved, you would probably be better off with wider tires and lower pressure. Article describing research The earlier studies were based on rolling resistance with a smooth, steel surface (since that's how the test rigs were set up, rolling against a steel roller.) Later research on real-road conditions found that a lot of energy was wasted in tire/pavement interactions and suspension losses. The solution was to switch to bigger tires and lower pressures, since the tire flexing resolves most of the issues, with lower energy losses. It's a bit counter-intuitive, but the research has been replicated many times now, and it's now pretty clear that high pressure narrow tires are only better on very smooth surfaces.

Answer 7

You're not going to save much time getting fit or buying a new bike. 15 miles will take 45 minutes (20 mph) to an hour (15 mph). If you are a Cat 1 Pro rider, you might be able to make it in 35 minutes, drenched in sweat.