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Stava or Map My Ride needs a wind feature

2K views 15 replies 11 participants last post by  redondoaveb 
#1 ·
I just rode a 40mi N-S ride and half of the ride was straight into 13-20mph winds from the South (made for a great ride back though).

I don't use stuff like Strava for competitions with others, I use it for data logging for myself. Stuff like calories burnt, miles ridden, etc.

Obviously, heading into gusty winds will make you work much harder than when it's still. A feature to manually put in wind strength/direction after a ride would be great...and have a different outcome concerning calories burned.

I wonder how difficult something like that would be? It wouldn't have to be overly complicated and you do put factors like personal weight into the program to begin with...
 
#14 ·
I agree that if you want that kind of detail, a power meter would get you that result. It would also give you a good training tool. Plus, if you are doing some century and want to last, the power meter will help you not expend too much effort early.
 
#4 ·
Obviously, heading into gusty winds will make you work much harder than when it's still. A feature to manually put in wind strength/direction after a ride would be great...and have a different outcome concerning calories burned.
Getting actual wind conditions that the cyclist experiences is pretty difficult if not impossible. Weather report wind speeds are taken 30 feet (10 meters) above ground and away from obstructions. A normal bike ride route is lined with buildings, bushes, trees, hillsides, etc. that significantly disrupt the wind. Even out in the open in flat country you don't experience the wind speed reported by the weather stations (Hint: wind speed at ground level = zero). Add to all this uncertainty the fact that the wind is always gusting, changing directions, and rarely a straight headwind and you can see where you don't have much of an idea what the wind is relative to the accuracy you could get from a good power meter.

My gut feel is that the wind you experience on a bike is about 1/3 of the reported speed but given that 1 mph faster on the bike (or 1 mph more headwind) is about 8% more power required due to the wind, headwinds are still very significant.
 
#5 ·
For every headwind, there's a tailwind. For my rides, it seems like it averages out. Most of my rides are out and backs either directly or a big loop. I start into the wind most of the time. On really windy days, sometimes I'm a little fried by the time I'm turning and putting the wind at my back. Like others said, get a power meter if you really want to know.
 
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