If I can maintain about 10 mph on a mountain bike on the road, how many mph's could I get from a road bike?

Question

If I can maintain about 10 mph on a mountain bike on the road, how many mph's could I get from a road bike?

Answer 1

15.6 mph.

No seriously: It depends on how your mountain bike is set up. If you are riding big knobby tires on a heavy full suspension frame, you could expect to go quite a lot faster. That's why people race road bikes on the road, they are way more efficient. I'm a road rider most of the time, but when I ride my mountain bike on the road to get to the trails, it amazes me how much more work it is.  

Answer 2

I would say 4 to 5 mph more for a hard tail mountain bike and 6 to 7 for a full suspension bike.  When I ride my comfort/hybrid bike on the trails at 14-15 mph it feels about the same force used to ride 19-20 on my road bike.  Of coarse you know the faster you go the more efficient the road bike becomes due to the rider position.

Jack J    Nice find on the bike calculator, I never seen one like that before.  Added to my favorites thanks.

Answer 3

at least 5-7mph more

Answer 4

10 mph is quite easy on a mountain bike

I once road 89 miles from oxford to cambridge on a mountain bike with knobbly tyres and averaged 16.7 mph

On I road bike I would do at least 20 mph

So I would quess you should manage 15 mph ish

Answer 5

It depends on the type of bike.  I use both a mountain bike and a road bike and I would usually expect to be averaging about  5 mph more using my road bike.

Answer 6

You would likely gain 2 - 3 mph or so. If you'd like to figure it, this site: http://bikecalculator.com/veloUS.html

will allow you to calculate the difference.  Just enter rider/bike weights, (the road bike will likely weigh 5-10 pounds less) then you can compare Tire types from MTB to clincher. Also, riding in the 'drops' on a road bike will also gain you a bit. Good luck.