tsl

Um, I don't think it's a contest, but I appreciate the sentiment.

osco53

My Recumbent and my Mountain bike got me off ALL my meds, got me a flat belly, and I don't need afternoon naps,,ever !

I feel like I did when I was 30 and look it to! Body definition Is coming back, I can climb out of the Single tracks I ride down Into.

~~I feel Good~~

Jim from Boston

What have you accomplished after 50?

I started an avid cycling lifestyle around 1970 at age 20, mostly touring, including a cross-country cycling honeymoon at 27, and last tour was at age 36, after first child. I kept on with various levels of cycle-commuting, and road cycling. I’ve had a good job with same organization since age 32, and at age 50 entered into a newly-formed,well-paid partnership which has been sustained til now (65) with good prospects for the near future.

At about 56, I started a more rigorous annual training program based on mileage, for a couple of Centuries a year, with various amounts of adherence, mostly restrained by work and family activities.

At 58, I joined Bike Forums, and that has pretty much catalogued and defined my cycling activities:

Unfortunately over the past few years work has cut significantly into my perennial, but unattained goal of 5000 miles per year. This year though I had a significant re-thinking of my training goals and

This is a sea change for me, and suits me better at this stage than my emphasis on mileage in my earlier days.

gif4445

Outside of casual biking with my kids, cycling really didn't start with me until my 52nd year.(I'm 58 yo) Since then I have rode several centuries, one double century, many state rides and a 3/4 Coast to Coast. God willing, in the years to come I would like to complete the C to C, and explore endurance cycling. Maybe enter the Trans Am race. Oh, and along the way I have shed around 35 lbs.

eatontkd

ditto!!! +1

BluesDawg

Managed to not get banned from 50+ for 10years.
Rode a **** load of miles on several really nice bikes that I maintained myself, many that I modified and several that I designed and built up.
Rode my age or more on or shortly after my birthday every year for a decade, including age 53 while in the middle of aggressive chemo and radiation treatment for throat cancer.
Handed off the bicycling club I started to younger and more aggressive people who have accomplished more than I dreamed we ever would.
Led many club rides.
Planned routes for all my club's charity rides and many club rides.
Escaped corporate existence and managed to survive as a part time bike shop mechanic/salesman (with much assistance from my younger and very understanding wife).
Turned middle Georgia on to gravel grinding.
Stayed alive.

John_V 

Didn't start riding again until I was 63, when my wife got me a bike for my birthday. Since I was still working, I didn't do too much with the bike until I turned 64 and bought my very first road bike and did my first MS-150. Living in Florida, I can't lay any "claims to fame" on climbing, but I do ride 6 days a week (weather permitting) and average anywhere from 35-55 miles per ride. I bought my first carbon road bike in January, 2012, at age 65, and have ridden over 32,000 miles on it. As of this year, I have completed my 6th MS-150, ridden twice across the state (diagonally) and participate in 8-10 charity rides a year with my cycling team. In 2016, I will be doing my 7th MS-150, will continue my riding routine and will do my 3rd cross state ride at age 70. Sometimes I wish that I lived in an area that I could ride my bike to the store or to other places, but I live out in the country and the only road that accesses my house is too heavily traveled and too dangerous for cyclist, even though it does have a bike lane.

cccorlew

I earned the California Triple Crown jersey by riding 5 doubles in a year. That's me in the middle.


dan curtis ron by curtis corlew, on Flickr

Lived through the Devil Mountain Double. 200 miles, 20,000 feet of climbing

DMD start by curtis corlew, on Flickr

Rode from Portland to Canada via Mt. Ranier with my sweet wife on an Adventure Cycling ride.

Headed toward Bridge of the Gods on bike path Washington Cascades_0489 by curtis corlew, on Flickr

I bike commute darn near every day

Morning commute by curtis corlew, on Flickr

And we have BIG cycling plans for this summer.

treebound 

The Mt. Evans climb looks interesting.

Let's see, I'm older that my dad, his dad, my mom's dad, and a couple of uncles and aunts who all never made it to 60. Bicycling I'm certain has contributed to that.

Future goals is to just do my best to keep on keeping on.

Shp4man

My greatest accomplishment is raising two daughters who are decent human beings that are a positive contribution to society. Bike related, I can still ride 50 miles a day, but at a bit slower pace than when I was younger.

Wanderer

So far, I made it 20 more years............................

Dudelsack 

Anyone who hops on a bike at our age deserves at least a participation trophy.

Kindaslow

I ride a road bike to get somewhere, like to and from work, and to be in better shape when I MTB. Reading everyone's responses shows our age group is pretty heavily leaned toward road bikes. In life, my wife and I became completely debt free, and that was pretty cool. We also published our second book. A small, but important accomplishment for me related to biking was first getting a completely clean run on a hard MTB trail on my geared MTB and then on my SS fully rigid MTB.

h2oxtc

... cycling accomplishments since turning 50? At the age of 49 I bought my first bike in 30 years wanting to get back into cycling ... and took almost another year to actually get out and ride it. At the age of 51 I met a group of cycling friends who have helped me rediscover the joy of cycling and foster an addiction of buying and building bikes, which perpetuates the joy of cycling, and the circle continues. I have no doubt that at 56 I'm still a newbie in terms of cycling and look forward to new cycling experiences both north and south of the 49. BF and the "friends" here in the 50+ is another dimension to the joy of cycling. Thank you all.

Jseis 

Diagnosed with arrhythmia at 54 that my doc said I could exercise myself out of if I went hard and steady for a long while. Took me 5 years and I did. Had a few wrecks, one left me knocked out cold and when the doc told me he was X-raying my hips "because I was "of the age"" I realized I needed to dial it back...slightly. Rode several annual back to back centuries, probably do that till I'm bored. Realized that the odds were against me riding solo on our rural roads so switched to beach riding on my fat-bike. I now ride 1200+ beach miles a year and really don't miss the highways. Helped organize a fat-bike meetup and met tens of new friends. Helped fund a new local trail that sparked new connecting trails, a bike shop, and has been identified as the single most important rec attribute for our recreational and resort community.

Cleaned up my 42 year old Motobecane Grand Jubilee to occasionally go out and relive the dream that started on that bike nearly 40 years ago on a X continent bike journey.

Maelochs

I have successfully continued to age, and in this field of endeavor, I am constantly breaking boundaries. Always setting a new PR.

chasm54

But in the context of this thread it's important to remember the most fundamental principle of Einsteinian relativity. The faster you move, the slower time goes.

bent4me

Started riding my age since 50 in my birthday month more than a decade ago, published 3 articles in Bikesovernights, created a blog over 9 yrs ago with over 500 posts, pedaled over 50k miles in 10 yrs, and learned some bike mechanics.

Road Fan

I still have a dream of riding 100. Hoping for this year!

I'm 62 now, and I restarted at 50 - been in BF for about that long. In that time I went from 15 mile rides to 40 and even 65 a few times. I also went on a two-day tour 65 per day. Work and life both get in the way, and I think it has to be that way.

OldsCOOL

It does take time and a predictable work schedule. I was working part-time which helped. Just set aside one day of mileage riding. Others can be an hour or so twice a week. No science, just upping the miles. It was simple in that manner though simple and easy are not synonymous.

Road Fan

No science, hmmm! there's a challenge for me!

OldsCOOL

Consider this: the body can go further than the mind wants to go.

tg16

At 55 I got a gym membership, changed my diet and did C25K. After that I kept running and within a year of starting I had placed 3rd in my age group at a 5k, lost 90 pounds and did a half marathon in less than 2 hours. This made a big change in my life as I went from checkups every 6 months and listening to my doctor tell me a heart attack was imminent and taking tons of medicine to just thyroid meds and annual checkups. Not to mention the chronic depression from being so unhealthy. Since then, I've done 4 marathons and a handful of half marathons.

I also became an empty nester after my youngest grew up. I raised her as a single dad. On 9/30/2012, I met a wonderful woman whom I married on 11/9/2013. This woman encouraged me to start riding a bicycle. I began to ride and then this year in April did my first duathlon. At my 3rd. duathlon, I took first place for my age group.

After saying, "read my lips, I won't swim." I've decided to do a full tri.

I've also switched to building my own bikes and it looks that my wife is enabling me to buy another frame and do a build. I won't say more as you can read my post on what it is like to build up a bike.

My life is so different now than it was and I have to thank @TriDanny47 for the post that got me to write this all down and remind myself what life was like and what it is like now.

ltxi

Cycling? Got back on a bike significant/serious (at over 70) and now in the best cycling shape since I was a "real cyclist" up through the mid-80's.

fryardds

New to the Forum. I have really enjoyed and am inspired by the posts in this thread. Super cool stories guys.

Since 50 (now 56), I have had a blast riding the bike. Back tracking a bit though, I started riding for stress relief in 1981, which was my first year in Dental school. Not long after I started riding I became involved with a local Indianapolis cycling team. Started racing following that. Throughout the 80s and 90s I primarily raced crits, with some road racing and time trialing. I also enjoyed occasionally riding centuries like the Hilly Hundred and Apple Cider Century, etc.

Around 2008-09, I began loosing my nerve for the dangers of racing crits, but I did continue to do road racing and TTs. As I turned 50, I started doing more Sportive/Grand Fondo type events along with some hill climbs. I really have enjoyed training for and participating in these events. My first was the Mt Washington Hill climb. The following year I did the Triple Bypass and the following weekend the Mt Evans hillclimb. Next year I raced the Assault on Mt Mitchell, which was great fun. After that I took a trip to Europe and rode the Etape du Tour in France. That event was epic for me, so awesome to do a stage of the TdF with thousands (11K+) cyclists. Last year I went to Maui and did the Cycle to the Sun up Haleakala. Really amazing to do a race from sea level to 10K ft in about 35 miles.

Looking towards 2016, I wanted to head back to Europe. I looked at several Sportives and Fondos and settled on doing the GF Stelvio Santini. Should be another personal epic ride up (and down) the Mortirolo and finishing on the Stelvio. My wife and I have never been there so we are excited about traveling there.

Like you guys, riding has so enriched my life over the years with the people I have met and places visited. I just love to ride and can't wait for the outdoor season to begin again next year, but until then the trainer awaits.

Brian