How much faster is a track, than roads?

Not sure if you're trolling, but 4 laps= 1600m

A mile= 1609m which is why it registers as 0.98

My guess is that the surface alone may well be 1 second per lap/400m faster compared to a pancake flat concrete road as at least the track has some bounce. Run it with very modest elevation (nothing greater than 2% at all and no more than a total of 5 m/km net elevation) and the track might be 2 seconds per 400m faster

As for Grass, something to keep in mind is that even though it is way softer than the roads, you are at least able to spike up on it, meaning that flat and firm grass may well only be 2-3 seconds per lap/400m faster on the track. However, wear flats on the grass and that can definitely increase to over 4 seconds per lap/400m slower than on the track.

Just my best guess: From experience I would say 10 seconds. Could be less. It depends if you have wind on the roads.

RunWild wrote:

My guess is that the surface alone may well be 1 second per lap/400m faster compared to a pancake flat concrete road as at least the track has some bounce. Run it with very modest elevation (nothing greater than 2% at all and no more than a total of 5 m/km net elevation) and the track might be 2 seconds per 400m faster

As for Grass, something to keep in mind is that even though it is way softer than the roads, you are at least able to spike up on it, meaning that flat and firm grass may well only be 2-3 seconds per lap/400m faster on the track. However, wear flats on the grass and that can definitely increase to over 4 seconds per lap/400m slower than on the track.

Any thoughts on road vs crushed stone / gravel trail, assuming both are flat?

I typically see improvements of roughly 11.76 seconds per lap improvement for my runners. You're results may vary.

What if the road course has a total of 80 foot of net drop from start to finish? And assume one turn of ~20 degrees at the .25 mark.

JaneRunning wrote:

What if the road course has a total of 80 foot of net drop from start to finish? And assume one turn of ~20 degrees at the .25 mark.

good question.

4:30miler wrote:

Not sure if you're trolling, but 4 laps= 1600m

A mile= 1609m which is why it registers as 0.98

Not trolling, it matters, because if I run with it (still on my left arm) the opposite direction (so now my arm is on the outside), I will get 1 mile in approx 1550-1570 meters instead.

just another guy wrote:

I typically see improvements of roughly 11.76 seconds per lap improvement for my runners. You're results may vary.

Not sure if trolling? I assume you mean per mile?

52.43 wrote:

Just my best guess: From experience I would say 10 seconds. Could be less. It depends if you have wind on the roads.

Yeah that makes sense lots of factors.

JaneRunning wrote:

What if the road course has a total of 80 foot of net drop from start to finish? And assume one turn of ~20 degrees at the .25 mark.

Right, that's why I said "average" I know there is no real average, but just theoretically.

4:30miler wrote:

Not sure if you're trolling, but 4 laps= 1600m

A mile= 1609m which is why it registers as 0.98

Math isn't your strong suit, eh? That's OK.

MikeRoss BAA wrote:

How much faster per mile is a track, when compared to roads. And by mile I mean 4 laps around a track as compared to running a mile using my garmin on my watch?

A couple things to consider. 4 laps on the track typically register me around .98 or .97 miles according to my watch. (Wearing it on my left arm.) Roads have varying turns hills. All things considered is their a consensus about how much time 4 laps of a track as opposed to 1 mile on the roads will differ? Assuming "average" road terrain?

There is no answer to this question. The track will be faster but the seconds per mile will depend on how fast you are running.

This is a mistake commonly made by Ventolin who removes a set amount of time from runners performances whether they are running 800m or 5km, for lack of drafting.

The track isn't faster. Your Garmin isn't accurate enough to pick up on any minor differences though.

Under the right conditions, roads are faster. Also indoor tracks are often faster than outdoor ones.

Bioploiod wrote:

Under the right conditions, roads are faster. Also indoor tracks are often faster than outdoor ones.

Indeed

I sometimes run workouts like 4x2 mile (or 3200) alternating reps on the track and on a relatively flat (very gently rolling, but fast) measured tempo loop right next to the track. A lot of times during the same workout I run faster on the road loop (even though it's a full 2 mile vs 3200m)... I'm guessing Probably because the road loop is more protected from the wind, and psychologically the track is tougher for me. I feel like I can get into more of a rhythm on a long straightaway on the tempo loop

Regarding gravel/crushed stone, I find that that surface is roughly 5 seconds per kilometre slower than it would be on a flat road (roughly 2 seconds per 400m). With spikes it might not make much of a difference compared to flats on a road, but more often than not you will not be able to get away with spiking up on crushed stone/gravel, especially if we are talking about a rail trail.

Not Forrest wrote:

RunWild wrote:

My guess is that the surface alone may well be 1 second per lap/400m faster compared to a pancake flat concrete road as at least the track has some bounce. Run it with very modest elevation (nothing greater than 2% at all and no more than a total of 5 m/km net elevation) and the track might be 2 seconds per 400m faster

As for Grass, something to keep in mind is that even though it is way softer than the roads, you are at least able to spike up on it, meaning that flat and firm grass may well only be 2-3 seconds per lap/400m faster on the track. However, wear flats on the grass and that can definitely increase to over 4 seconds per lap/400m slower than on the track.

Any thoughts on road vs crushed stone / gravel trail, assuming both are flat?

I think all else being equal they're probably about the same. Tracks might be a tiny bit faster as a surface, but it's probably pretty negligible in most cases. Personally I'm always noticeably slower when I do repeats on the roads as opposed to the track, but that could be largely mental. Also it's pretty rare to find a pancake flat road, especially where I live. Even the flattest routes I know have at least a little bit of a roll to them.