You probably have decided to go to work on your bike, and you want to know how much time will it take for you to Bike three miles. Also, you may have set your health goals to ride a bike three miles a day and want to get an idea of how long biking this distance can take. Whatever the cause may be, cycling is the best approach to get your body shape, achieve your health goals, or even use it as a fantastic mode of transportation to work. It is also a great option to expand the number of calories you burn.
Well, to your question, “How long does it take to bike 3 miles?” the exact answer is “It takes 12 to 15 minutes to cover a distance of three miles if you ride at a speed of 18 miles per hour”. This time may increase or decrease depending on the expertise of the rider and certain other factors. This article will give an exact estimate of the distance you can cover according to different situations and factors when biking 3 miles.
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Biking 3 Miles – How Experience Affects Average Speed
The time required to cover a distance of three miles dramatically depends on the experience level of the biker.
1. Beginner Biker
Let’s start with a person who has just shifted 3 miles from his workplace. He has a bicycle, but he has not ridden it for years. Now, he intends to buy a bike to go to his work. For such a rider, you can estimate that more time is required to ride 3 miles.
Why?
Because the rider’s riding expertise is zero at the present moment, the maximum speed he can maintain on a flat road will be about 12 to 15 mph.
With that speed, it will take the rider about 25 to 30 minutes if he is cycling 3 miles.
However, people do suggest that beginners should not exceed 10 mph of cycling speed.
2. Athlete Biker
Similarly, consider the rider as an athlete who is already a runner in fantastic shape. Therefore, he can sustain a higher speed.
He can easily pedal at a 15 to 18 mph speed and even higher. It will take him around 12 to 15 minutes to bike 3 miles of distance at this speed.
3. Professional Biker
We see that professional bikers can easily maintain 25 to 30 mph of speed on a flat road.
Biking at a rate of 25 to 30 mph takes less than 8 minutes to cover a distance of three miles.
These professional bikers have trained themselves regularly to ride at such high speeds.
Professional riders might find riding a mountain bike to also be easy and some even take on journeys that reach up to 12 miles at a speed of 14 miles per hour.
3-Mile Bike Ride – Additional Factors that Influence Average Bike Speed
Other than the experience levels, there are a lot of different variables that affect your average speed and thus the average time to Bike three miles. Some of these variables are;
1. Bike Type
The type of bike on which you are riding makes a significant difference. For example, you will generally go faster on a road bike with drop handlebars and skinny tires.
Compared to this, on mountain bikes designed for off-road riding or on a flat-bar hybrid bike with clumpy tires, you will be much slower if you tend on doing at least 3 miles a day.
With a road bike, you can easily cover a distance of 3 miles quite earlier than with a mountain or hybrid bike.
2. Terrain
The surface you ride on significantly impacts the time required to cover 3 miles. The surfaces may be flat roads, hills, or even downhills.
On a flat surface with a smooth road and no hurdles, rocks, or edgy maneuvers, you can easily ride at an average speed of 15 mph. It will take around 4 to 6 minutes to cover a distance of one mile.
On the other hand, if you are riding on the hills, the steeper path will take you more time to cover three miles. Therefore, the time to cover three miles may also be doubled compared to the flat road.
On a downhill bike ride, it will take you less than 5 minutes to cover a distance of 3 miles. This is because, on a downhill track, gravity makes your ride much faster. Similarly, the direction of the wind will also increase the downhill ride speed.
3. Weather Conditions
Weather conditions dramatically affect the speed and ultimately the average time to Bike three miles. If the weather is windy, it may work in your favor by boosting the rate by the tailwind propelling you.
However, if you are riding in its direction, you will face problems in gaining your momentum and thus losing speed and increasing the time.
Similarly, rain makes the surface slippery and muddy. For safety purposes, you have to go slower on the Bike. This will increase the time to cover the distance of 3 miles.
Top 3 Tips To Speed Up Your 3 Mile Bike Ride
Here are some of the most amazing tips that will upgrade your riding skills, allowing you to ride three miles distance in a much shorter amount of time;
1. Pedal More
It is essential to know when to pedal and how much. Practicing pedaling more helps you feel confident on the Bike.
2. Brake Less
Braking less comes into your riding habits when you get familiarized with the roads ahead. This habit is down to practicing on the roads and taking steps to improve your technique.
3. Increasing Cadence
Cadence is the number of times you turn the pedals per minute. It is more about pedaling fast than paddling more. Practicing paddling more quickly will improve the speed of your ride.
4. Using Bike Gears More Efficiently
If you are using gears poorly, the speed is badly affected. Similarly, more time you will take to ride a distance of 3 miles. Therefore, it is crucial to learn how to use your Bike’s gears to help you ride faster.
FAQ
Does Physical Fitness Affect Bike Speed?
One thing you will need to keep in mind is your physical fitness. One of the main reasons experts riding at much faster is due to increased physical fitness. Professional cyclist makes a profession by riding their bike.
How Many Calories Does Cycling 3 Miles Burn?
It is estimated that the average 155-pound person could burn around 149 calories for every 3 miles they pedal. However, this would depend on the terrain. A hilly terrain might force you to put in more effort and burn more additional calories. If you bike 5 miles, it would take even longer, but burn more calories. The calories burned are heavily influenced by a variety of factors like how long it takes to bike the set distance of the distance your cycle.
Is Cycling 3 Miles A Day Healthy?
If you want to stay in shape and improve your overall health, cycling is one of the best sports that you can choose to do so. You don’t necessarily need to bike 3 miles each day, but somewhere in that region with a decent cadence could help you stay in shape and burn plenty of calories.
How Long Does It Take To Bike 3 Miles Conclusion
Hopefully, you have known the exact and accurate answer to your question, “how long does it take to bike 3 miles?”
We tried to give you an insight into what factors can affect the speed and ultimately time to cover a distance of 3 miles on your Bike.
We will love to hear your feedback as well.
Till then,
Happy Riding Riders
