CommuteCommando

My dad lived to 83, his dad to 84 brother to 90 and an uncle (my godfather) to 97. That makes fifty something pretty midlife.

None of them were Clyde, however, so I had better hurry.

gif4445

I'm fairly new to cycling. At least at the haven't-biked-for-a-week-what-the-hell-is-going-on level. What is so great about the sport is the vast choices of involvement (for lack of a better description). I love to tour. See places and meet new people. So usually when I ride, my speed is on the slow side, but I like to cover decent distances. Occasionally when time is short, I will amp it up a bit, but not how I normally roll. I hate pace-lines (too ADD and want to look around too much). But doing a century, double century (hopefully this year), state ride, or a C to C (in the next few years) is what gets me going. Don't spend too much time worrying about everybody else. Just find your niche and enjoy!

Bob Nichols

I did ride my age most everyday back when I was 14 and had a paper route.

Phil_gretz

I'm 54 this year, and love to ride. Since I can remember, I've loved to ride my bike.

Today, I have a demanding high tempo job with long hours and a very long commute (by car). My wife and I are happily married and enjoy spending time together. I'm active in my church and also have growing (college age) kids as well as a house to maintain. Bottom line is that I don't have a lot of discretionary time.

I sneak rides by using my bike for errands, for gift shopping, for visiting friends.

I ride whenever I can justify the time. I enjoy exploring by bike. I like to revisit far away towns for a cup of cofee or a sandwich. I would ride for 8 hours if I could. Any day. How many miles would that be? Who cares.

Last fall, our Mens group decided to have the annual retreat in Luray, VA, some 90+ miles from my house. Chaaa-Chingggg! An opportunity to ride all day to the event. Great!

Bottom line - I woudl ride as far as my time and opportunity allow each chance I have. I'm not ashamed to say so. But I guess that I'm in the minority.

Phil

lenA

Having fun and achieving goals are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

big john

Obviously you haven't read the thread.

Mrs Slow Crank

I'm with you. I started riding last year. We did three weeks in France credit card touring. We're now in France doing six weeks of touring but with camping gear. No goal. Just want to be on the ground traveling, close up. This is the cheapest way to do it. Well, okay, maybe not after buying all the ultralight gear. But after yesterday, we discovered our bodies weren't built for this. But that's okay. We're still out there doing it, our way, our speed, our goofy style. It's not about the miles. It's about the smiles. Be happy my friend and know there is always someone out there like you. (We're the Cranks do France on Crazy Guy if you want to see a non goal oriented bike ride!)

Biker395 

The Yin and Yang of goal setting:

They can be a means to lift you from complacency ... a way to challenge yourself embark on a new journey.

Or they can be a means for you to forget what's really important ... the journey ... not the goal.

Biker395 

Pix or it didn't happen.

Steve Sawyer

Or running around with 20-year old women!!

I wholeheartedly agree. However, some of us have discovered that as with runners, long-distance riding starts to become addictive as you find yourself getting into that zone where you feel like you can ride forever! My longest ride to date was 38 miles, and I was definitely there - I didn't want to stop.

My long-term goal is to do a 200k brevet. The short-term is to do a metric in July and an imperial century by the end of the summer, for no other reason than they give me more of an excuse to get out and ride - "I'm in training hon!" or "I've gotta leave work early 'cause I'm scheduled to do a 30-mile training ride today, and I gotta beat those storms that are heading this way"

47p2

I have no inclination to do a century, not sure my legs would manage it either. Saying that my daughter thinks I should enter the 100 mile Lord of the Lochs Sportive on 28th September in the Fort William area of Scotland. My daughter and her friend have entered but I think my daughter's plan is to drag me along for assistance.

My goal is a lot more simple than clocking up huge mileages and wearing my body parts out faster than nature intended.
1. I want to loose a little weight (8lbs lost already and wish to loose another 10)
2. Live longer than my father who died when he was 54y 10m (I've now passed that goal)
3. Live longer than my grandfather who died when he was 60

Both my father and grandfather had heart attacks when they were 47 and both died before retiring age, so I decided that as they never managed to collect their state pension then it's my duty to live as long as I can and collect on their behalf

Planemaker

OP - Thanks for the reminder of why I decided to start biking this year. I was looking for an alternative to YMCA workouts and the occasional casual ride with my wife (she has an Electra Townie). Lately I have been fixated on getting my distance and speed up. I still want to get up to 30 miles by the end of May but, when the wife want to go for a cruise on Sunday afternoon I need to drop the planned long distance ride and go for the cruise.

Dudelsack 

Mrs Slow Crank

Pix? I'm new here. But since I have internet this evening (in a B&B then it's back to a campground) I'll try to figure it out. Yesterday was 17% grade (which I walked mostly) and today was about 15% (which I walked). Saving what little energy I have for the hill out of here tomorrow morning. (We're currently in Cucugnan, France.) I look out at the mountains (relatively speaking) and wonder what the bloody hell am I doing here?! But I wanted to see this area and that's that. So, back to the goal topic....guess I do have a goal. And that's to eventually arrive somewhere with flatter terrain!

big john

Biker395 is just teasing, we always ask for pictures. Please keep us updated on your trip and welcome to the forum.

FrenchFit 

Wanting to be "legit" I did regular metric centuries and the occasional solo 100 miler for a few seasons, but started to get so bored I wasn't paying attention to the road - twice almost hammering into the back of parked cars. Riding 20-30 miles seems about perfect, toward the end I'm thinking about other things to do and I'm not pissed that I've been on the bike all day. For challenges there are always hills.

lenA

the goal is the journey, the journey is the goal ....perfect harmony

Biker395 

Thanks, Big John!

Yea, Mrs. Slow Crank ... "pix or it didn't happen" or "I call BS without pix" is my standard invitation to show us your stuff. I want to live my life vicariously through others, and yours is sounding pretty good. Welcome!

I actually just returned from Paris and Normandy on Sunday ... although regrettably, didn't do any cycling there. Worse yet, I did too much of this:

Daspydyr 

I started riding for the sole purpose of improving my cardiac health. Now I love to ride. I can get lost on a Saturday morning and ride 60 miles. I also enjoy taking the mail to the post office and run to the bank. Both are around a mile. I also sneak down to the Walgreens for a Twix bar. There is a "Man Cave" about 6 miles from here. I keep thinking I will go down there, smoke a cigar and watch a game. But once I start riding that far I don't stop.

blt

I don't have a goal of doing a century or riding my age, either, and I don't really ride very fast. But ever since I was a kid, I have liked going far. I like a sense of adventure. I find going on a long ride to be fun, not work. I have vivid memories of taking off on my Schwinn 3 speed at age 12 and going for a 25 mile ride in hilly Kansas City, in my 12 year old mind, my first real "long distance" ride.

My goal is to enjoy myself, and if I'm enjoying myself while getting in some exercise, so much the better. If I only get a 10 mile ride in some hills on a weekend, it is because I don't have time for any more, and I hate that I have to come back to the house too soon. When I'm in good shape, I've gone 60 miles with nasty elevation gain, and I could go further if it were flat. My sweet spot is a decent 35-45 mile ride with decent elevation gain where I'll take my own sweet time and take about 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours, including rest/snack breaks and breaks to enjoy any views I may be getting along the way. If ever I have training goals in mind, it isn't to be able to ride a certain distance, but to ride a certain route that I know I would enjoy. I never think about riding my age until I've finished a ride and realize, "Oh, I rode my age today." And that happens maybe a couple of times a year.

Don't worry, however, about whether you are the only one. I often feel like I'm the only one doing what I'm doing, and I really don't care. People who aren't serious cyclists think I'm a serious, hardcore cyclist. The serious cyclists tend to think I am a very casual cyclist. And certainly everyone out there on a road bike is faster than me. In the last 10 years, I have NEVER encountered anyone out on a road bike whose average speed is slower than mine (not counting people on an MUP riding with children). Oh, there have been 2 or 3 times when I've passed someone, but it has been someone who had already passed me, I was faster on a relatively short uphill stretch, and then I was passed again on the downhill or flat. There probably are people like me out there, but I never see them on the road.

Whether or not I'm the only one, I DON'T CARE!! The number one goal for me is ENJOY. If it seems tedious and like work to others, who cares if I enjoy it, if it seems tedious and like work to me, then I don't do it. And if nobody else like me is out there, so what?

Mrs Slow Crank

Okay. Got one. Here's Mr Slow Crank on our way to Chateau Termes in Languedoc region of southern France on Monday. (Hopefully this uploads. I'm sure you'll let me know if it doesn't) Thanks for the support Big John, but I'll come through with something!

Steve Sawyer

There's something that I've observed about goals - and it actually reinforces the idea that it's the journey, not the goal, and it doesn't matter what the endeavor is...

When you set a goal that's beyond your current capability, the activity takes on a more technical aspect - you need to learn more, prepare and plan more, and it brings a whole new dimension to the activity. It helps keep the activity fresh and challenging. It also sets you up to be able to dial things back at times and just enjoy the simpler aspects. In the midst of the performance goals I've set for myself is the weekend of riding with the wife that we have scheduled for early August. Unlike me, Marcy thinks that coasting is a perfectly acceptable way of making progress on a bike, so it forces me to just cruise along with her, enjoy the simple pleasure of pedaling away for a few days and her company.

CommuteCommando

Maybe a 40 something. Twenty somethings, and even thirty somethings involve too much cultural dissonance for this old coot. Hell, I don't need to mess around. I'm biking to be fit enough just to keep up with the fifty something I already have.

big john

Yes, cool picture, looks like an ancient tunnel. Were there cars in there?

Mrs Slow Crank

Mr Slow Crank says, "Yes, there were cars. I was weaving in and out of them in the darkness. I was amazing." In actuality, there were no cars in the tunnel and saw only a few on the whole day's trip. Mr Crank has a vivid imagination. He probably thought he was near the front of a peloton getting ready to make a move, too. But, alas, I am his peloton.