Speed & Skill don't develop at the same pace

29/11/25 23:01 Filed in: Riding

I have seen this in early teen riders who get the racing bug. Usually the speed comes a couple of seasons before the skills develop. I won't name names, but several who went on to compete at pro level got their turn of speed around 15 years old, but didn't really learn to control a bike until more like 17 years old. Those were a scary couple of years to be riding beside them. Not quite an unguided missile. Worth mentioning that by 19 all these guys were capable of amazing feats on a bike. Teens learn quickly.

Mostly these days I coach older riders. Some have been riding for decades. Others are quite new to the whole cycling thing. But perhaps neither has experienced a bike at speed. It is tough to learn the skills to handle a bike going fast when you aren't fit enough to make that bike go fast. So the speed really has to come first. I've had some success with descending to obtain speed, I've also seen some crashes where the person thought they were faster than they were. The main problem with learning a skill at 50 or more kmh is the margin for error is smaller. Yes the skills you learn descending will set you up for success in a criterium race at 44 kmh, but you have to survive it first.

The take-away from this is be patient. If you are early in your riding you might want to descend like Tom Pidcock, but he's been at it for 20 years to develop those mad skills.

Michael Hanslip Coaching

If you want to go faster, you have to pedal harder

Speed & Skill don't develop at the same pace