Tailwind GPS: the app that scores your cycling routes by wind forecast

You've checked the weather app. It says 18 km/h from the north-east. But does that mean your usual Tuesday loop is going to be a slog, or the best ride of the month? Generic forecasts can't tell you. A north-easterly could mean a tailwind on the first half of your Saturday spin and a brutal headwind on the way home, or vice versa — it all depends on which direction your route actually runs.

That's exactly the gap Tailwind GPS fills.

What it does in plain terms

Tailwind GPS scores your specific cycling routes based on the wind forecast before you head out. Connect your Strava account, and the app pulls in the routes you already ride. Then, for each one, it analyses wind direction and speed against every segment of that route, accounting for your typical riding pace, and produces an hourly Tailwind Score that tells you how favourable conditions will be.

A score in the 80s means most of your route benefits from a tailwind. A score in the 40s means you're heading into the wind for a good chunk of it. You can see those scores laid out hour by hour across a planning window of up to 14 days, so you're not just deciding whether to ride today — you're picking the right day and the right time for your best ever ride.

Why a raw wind forecast isn't enough

According to Yellow Jersey, for every 5 km/h of additional headwind a cyclist loses around 10% of their speed, and that loss isn't symmetrical. The time you gain riding with a tailwind never fully compensates for the time lost fighting a headwind on the same out-and-back route. Wind direction relative to your route heading is everything.

That's why knowing the wind speed alone tells you almost nothing useful. What you need to know is: does the wind work for or against my specific loop today? Tailwind GPS answers that directly, with a number.

The features that make it practical

Strava sync, no rebuilding routes from scratch. Most cyclists already have their regular rides saved in Strava. Tailwind imports them automatically. There's no need to manually re-enter every loop you do. The app then applies its scoring engine to those saved routes immediately.

Hourly departure-time guidance. The score changes throughout the day as wind direction shifts. Instead of a single daily forecast, you can see whether 8am or 10am gives you the better ride, and make that call in seconds rather than trying to read a wind rose yourself.

14-day planning window. Subscribers can look up to two weeks ahead. That's useful if you're planning a long weekend ride, scheduling a club outing, or simply trying to avoid wasting a precious day off on grim conditions.

Smart alerts that come to you. Set your own thresholds. When the Tailwind Score on your Saturday loop hits 80, you get a notification. When rain is due during your usual mid-week ride, Tailwind will flag it and suggest leaving 30 minutes later to dodge it. You don't have to keep checking — the app monitors it for you.

Nearby route suggestions. If your usual route is scoring poorly today, Tailwind surfaces alternatives nearby that are scoring better. Sometimes a slightly different loop makes the difference between grinding into a headwind for an hour and floating home on a tailwind.

Headwind training mode. Not every ride needs to be easy. When you want a proper hard session, Tailwind points you at routes with sustained headwinds — useful for building fitness without needing a structured training plan.

What you actually see on screen

The live map overlays real-time wind data so you can see conditions across your area at a glance. Pick a route, scroll through departure times, and watch the score change. The breakdown shows you what percentage of the route is tailwind, headwind, and crosswind, the average wind speed, and the mean head/tailwind component. It's specific enough to be genuinely useful, and simple enough to read in 10 seconds.

A sample output from the app looks like this:

• Saturday loop via the dike, Score: 82 (Excellent), 71% tailwind, 18% headwind, avg wind 18.0 km/h, recommended departure: 10am
• Forest road loop, Score: 57 (Neutral), 35% tailwind, 38% headwind, avg wind 17.3 km/h

Same wind. Very different rides.

Free to start, $2.99/month for the full picture

Tailwind GPS has a free tier that gives you three saved routes and a three-day wind forecast — enough to get a feel for whether the scores genuinely match what you experience on the road. The paid plan is $2.99 per month and adds up to 40 saved routes, a 14-day forecast, email alerts, and wind score notifications. There's a seven-day free trial with no charge until it ends.

For most regular riders, that's less than a coffee a month to stop wasting ride windows on poor conditions.

Who it's built for

Tailwind GPS is built for riders who love their regular routes — from weekend hobbyists and gravel cyclists to club riders and racers. If you ride often, use Strava, repeat familiar loops, and find yourself squinting at a weather app trying to figure out whether today is worth it, this is the tool built for exactly that problem. The goal is simple: help you find your best ever ride, every time you head out.

You don't need to understand meteorology. You just need a number.