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Bicycle age

T

TarpitCarnivore

Member
Teggy said:
Something that surprised me from the club ride yesterday was the number of older dudes with big guts. If you are riding as much as these guys do and still maintain that kind of fat you must be going pretty hard with those recovery meals.
Click to expand...

How old are you? If you're 25 or younger you haven't hit that point of "oh fuck, it's hard to keep weight off" age yet. Also, some of those dudes can/will probably kick your ass on rides. The one thing about cycling is while body size can matter in a lot of areas, if you've got an engine then you've got an engine.
 
Y

Yaboosh

Super Sleuth
TarpitCarnivore said:
How old are you? If you're 25 or younger you haven't hit that point of "oh fuck, it's hard to keep weight off" age yet. Also, some of those dudes can/will probably kick your ass on rides. The one thing about cycling is while body size can matter in a lot of areas, if you've got an engine then you've got an engine.
Click to expand...


I'm 32 and still waiting on not being able to eat whatever i want with no visual consequences.

I have no engine though.
 
T

Teggy

Member
TarpitCarnivore said:
How old are you? If you're 25 or younger you haven't hit that point of "oh fuck, it's hard to keep weight off" age yet. Also, some of those dudes can/will probably kick your ass on rides. The one thing about cycling is while body size can matter in a lot of areas, if you've got an engine then you've got an engine.
Click to expand...

I'm 43 but I keep close track of my intake. I have no doubt they can beat me but I've only had a road bike for a month...
 
T

TarpitCarnivore

Member
For a lot of those dudes riding a bike is more a social activity than anything. It's a great way for them to hang out and meet people while trying to keep fit. So a lot of the time they'll book end a 3 hour ride with beers. That stuff just catches up, fast.

My comment about kick your ass was more in judging riders based on their appearance. I've seen super lean dudes on decked out bikes barely hold on, while other dudes on steel bikes & a beer gut are hauling ass.
 
T

Teggy

Member
TarpitCarnivore said:
For a lot of those dudes riding a bike is more a social activity than anything. It's a great way for them to hang out and meet people while trying to keep fit. So a lot of the time they'll book end a 3 hour ride with beers. That stuff just catches up, fast.

My comment about kick your ass was more in judging riders based on their appearance. I've seen super lean dudes on decked out bikes barely hold on, while other dudes on steel bikes & a beer gut are hauling ass.
Click to expand...

No, I mean, I absolutely know they can keep up, that was why I was surprised at their shape. These are club regulars who do 30-50+ mile rides every weekend, sometimes Saturday and Sunday and are likely riding during the week as well. So they are really packing on the calories.
 
T

Teggy

Member
I'm amazed the while most of my body is aching today, my knees are doing just fine. I don't know if I can credit my new inserts for that.I was getting numb toes, though. I'll have to see if that is something that will need to be addressed or it will go away in time.

And I can't imagine having toothbrush bristles scraping through your cuts is a pleasant feeling.
 
G

Granadier

Is currently on Stage 1: Denial regarding the service game future
Drove past a car with a Bianchi on its carrier. Worth more than my entire car.
 
H

HTupolev

Member
Set a hill climb segment PR yesterday on a segment I've done a ton of times... while riding my 34lb Stumpjumper drop bar conversion with 2" gravel tires. Yay pacelines.

Lots of green and grey contrast right now.

kiR5dUR.jpg


Teggy said:
Something that surprised me from the club ride yesterday was the number of older dudes with big guts. If you are riding as much as these guys do and still maintain that kind of fat you must be going pretty hard with those recovery meals.
Click to expand...
Everyone in the ride probably followed it up by eating exactly what they needed to to compensate. The body is pretty good at getting you to do this. If they had a belly, the belly will remain.

Exercise isn't a very strong driver of weight loss.

Granadier said:
Drove past a car with a Bianchi on its carrier. Worth more than my while car.
Click to expand...
The important thing is whether it was fancier than their car.
 
T

TarpitCarnivore

Member
Set out to do 60 today and it was hell from the get go:

-- Car wedged me in and I lost balance falling over; guy proceeded to berate me and ask why I hit his car. He shut up real quick once he saw I was with 4 other people
-- Lead group was 26-28 and I just couldn't hang on
-- Every time i pedal my left leg had shooting pain. My hamstring felt tighter than a rubber band. Am now sitting on an ice pack because stretching it right now would make no sense
 
G

Granadier

Is currently on Stage 1: Denial regarding the service game future
HTupolev said:
The important thing is whether it was fancier than their car.
Click to expand...

They were driving one of those Honda Accord not-quite-crossover things. While it's probably worth more than the bike, the cool factor was faaaaarrrr lower.
 
M

Mascot

Member
Teggy said:
Something that surprised me from the club ride yesterday was the number of older dudes with big guts. If you are riding as much as these guys do and still maintain that kind of fat you must be going pretty hard with those recovery meals.
Click to expand...

That's because road bikes pretty much pedal themselves. Their guts would evaporate overnight if those fatties bought mountain bikes.

:p

Edit: thanks for all the tips and suggestions re bike computers, folks. I've decided to keep it cheap and simple as I get all GPS functions I need from my phone. I'm probably going for the Sigma Pure 1 ATS wireless as it's got a big display, looks cool, and is cheap (£18).

214752_1516206.jpg
 
T

TarpitCarnivore

Member
For you tubeless people, ever have an issue with a sealed puncture re-opening on it's own? Yesterday while getting ready for a ride a sealed hole opened twice before staying sealed. Could this have been a tire pressure issue?
 
T

Teggy

Member
Mascot said:
Edit: thanks for all the tips and suggestions re bike computers, folks. I've decided to keep it cheap and simple as I get all GPS functions I need from my phone. I'm probably going for the Sigma Pure 1 ATS wireless as it's got a big display, looks cool, and is cheap (£18).

[/IMG]
Click to expand...

I don't know what I would do without Ride With GPS on my handlebars - it saved me twice this week when riders ahead of me took a wrong turn. But I suppose it is not really that important if you are doing mostly trail rides.
 
G

GamePnoy74

Member
Teggy said:
Something that surprised me from the club ride yesterday was the number of older dudes with big guts. If you are riding as much as these guys do and still maintain that kind of fat you must be going pretty hard with those recovery meals.
Click to expand...
Where I ride in SoCal there are lots of dudes riding with guts bulging out of their fitted club jerseys
including me. lol.

At the end of the day, they give zero effs. They outside, enjoying life on two wheels. Good for them. We call can't look cut and lean like Froomey or S(w)agan while on the bike...but hey, ride anyways. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Have completed one of my major cycling goals for the year. Went out with a friend of mine on Sunday and took part in the Dorset Gravel Dash 100... him on his skinny CX, me on Old Faithful (MTB).

Amazing day. Perfect weather, and aside from one silly crash, we had pretty much the perfect ride. Even my back injury didn't end up hurting too much. :)

https://www.strava.com/activities/593132814
 
M

Mascot

Member
Teggy said:
I don't know what I would do without Ride With GPS on my handlebars - it saved me twice this week when riders ahead of me took a wrong turn. But I suppose it is not really that important if you are doing mostly trail rides.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I never need to navigate on-the-fly so I think GPS would be a waste. Strava chugs quietly away in the background on my phone.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Teggy said:
Is 404 a lot of suffering?
Click to expand...

For cycling? Yeah. It's about my fourth highest ever. In terms of suffering per hour, it's only just about in my top ten, but the fitter you get the lower your suffer score as you're able to do far more at a lower heart rate (and you recover quicker).
 
T

Teggy

Member
Psychotext said:
For cycling? Yeah. It's about my fourth highest ever. In terms of suffering per hour, it's only just about in my top ten, but the fitter you get the lower your suffer score as you're able to do far more at a lower heart rate (and you recover quicker).
Click to expand...

Suffering per hour, amazing what can be quantified these days XD
 
M

Mascot

Member
Psychotext said:
I can just picture Mascot shaking his head in disgust whilst reading that. :D
Click to expand...

I was riding around the serenity of Slade yesterday evening when I saw a huge bird of prey take off and fly down the track about five metres in front of me, matching my pace. It was magical - I was half expecting an Attenborough voiceover. I later stopped for a snack in the dappled sunlight and a bright red fox emerged from the trees, watched me warily for a few moments before casually walking off, all to the tune of evening birdsong.

I guess I must have a clear conscience or something.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Oh man, on the subject... I was at the top of a hill they call "The hell forts" and I looked to my left to see a huge bird of prey effortlessly riding the thermals to stay completely locked in position for a hunt. Must have been a few meters away from me at my eye line. Beautiful.

Saw a few deer on the ride too, which is always cool.
 
M

Mascot

Member
I normally see rabbits, foxes, squirrels, sheep, cows, horses, peacocks, one hare, one badger, various birds of prey, and the odd druid.

Oh, and loads of fucking dogs.
 
T

Teggy

Member
We also have a black bear that usually visits my neighbor's bird feeder a couple of times a year. But I don't live in the boonies or anything, I'm 45 mins outside a major city. We've probably encroached on these animals' habitats and they wind up coming out looking for food. We get coyotes as well.
 
M

Mascot

Member
Psychotext said:
I've never actually seen a living badger in the flesh before.
Click to expand...

I was driving back from a country pub one night (in Shirenewton, if you know it) and had to stop on a narrow lane because two massive badgers were fighting in the middle of it. I'd never seen anything so vicious and intense in all my life. It was truly brutal, a real fight to the death. The sense of energy was incredible. Full-beaming and sounding my horn didn't break it up immediately, but slowly nudging forward eventually did. I'm sure if they wanted to they could have smashed my windows and nicked my car. And I'd have let them.
 
M

Mascot

Member
H

HTupolev

Member
Psychotext said:
This seems like a great idea for training rides: http://www.gizmag.com/powerwheel-slowwheel-resistance-cycling-wheels/19859/
Click to expand...
I can see the benefit for riding with a much slower cyclist, but otherwise I don't really get it. Unlike people on-foot or swimming, bicycles (besides single-speeds) offer a simple and effective way to increase resistance: gearing. Riding 20mph at 105rpm and feel like you have a lot more in you? 53-11. Going up a 20% grade and feel just a bit too spinny? 53-11. Vincenzo Nibali? 53-11. Bombing down a 20% grade and you're already 53-11? Well, you're screwed, but this resistance hub disengages at these speeds too; sneak a lead-filled bidon in your cages, tuck your chin into your front tire, flip your saddle and slam your seatpost (wait, maybe that wasn't quite it), and out-descend the competition.

It never gets easier, you just switch out your 52-tooth chainring for a 60-tooth chainring and then go slower because you're an idiot.
 
C

Christoff Yurievich

Member
Psychotext said:
Have been watching the Highland Trail 550 ( http://www.highlandtrail.net/ ) riders over the last few days. As crazy as I am, I'm not yet in their league.

Proper monsters, especially given a lot of the terrain requires literally carrying your bike (which weighs a fair chunk because of all the bags).

http://trackleaders.com/highland16
Click to expand...
sounds similar to then great divide ride here in the states:
http://www.bikepacking.com/routes/great-divide-mountain-bike-route-gdmbr/
 
P

Psychotext

Member
HTupolev said:
I can see the benefit for riding with a much slower cyclist,
Click to expand...

Well, I'm assuming that's pretty much the point. Unless you have no hills near you. (I live in Wales... so that's not a problem)

Christoff Yurievich said:
sounds similar to then great divide ride here in the states:
http://www.bikepacking.com/routes/great-divide-mountain-bike-route-gdmbr/
Click to expand...

I have friends on the Tour Divide this year: http://tourdivide.org/about / http://trackleaders.com/tourdivide16

It's somewhat longer than the HT550, though with less hike a bike (and frankly, much nicer weather on the whole). No bears on the HT550 though. :D
 
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