An underrated aspect of cycling as a sport is ...
#76
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Recap.
Only Racers are actually participating in a sport, and are better than cyclists who don’t race.
Cyclists are better than people who merely ride bikes.
People who ride bikes are better than noobs.
With practice and not necessarily all that much time, it’s easier for a newbie on a bike to fit in with in a higher group, than it is for a cyclist to learn how to play tennis.
BF doesn’t fail to disappoint!
Only Racers are actually participating in a sport, and are better than cyclists who don’t race.
Cyclists are better than people who merely ride bikes.
People who ride bikes are better than noobs.
With practice and not necessarily all that much time, it’s easier for a newbie on a bike to fit in with in a higher group, than it is for a cyclist to learn how to play tennis.
BF doesn’t fail to disappoint!
#77
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Really? (Next you're going to tell me I like vanilla ice cream more than chocolate ...)
Tracy Austin won the US Open less than one year after turning pro ... and that's just as irrelevant to the discussion as Mike Woods. Neither is representative of average participants in either sport.
I don't get why this is so difficult for some people to grasp. Some sports have a steeper learning curve than others. Mike Woods became a pro cyclist a couple of years after he started riding and was on the World Tour a couple years after that. He could do this because his w/kg mattered far more than his lack of skill. He certainly wouldn't have been able to succeed as an elite mountain biker so quickly. A track star can become a good wide receiver pretty quickly, he can't become a quarterback. No golfer ever was able to be a pro after only a couple of years. High skill sports take years to develop. Road cycling is not a high skill sport. It just isn't.
#78
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Do you deny that some sports are more skill based than others?
#80
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You've played tennis about a hundred times in your life, and you've been on less than a hundred group rides. I've done more than that this year alone. So, how can you possibly tell me I'm wrong when I say my reaction would be similar in the two scenarios you offered?
One year after turning pro isn't the same as one year after just picking up the sport.
Do you deny that some sports are more skill based than others?
It is my opinion that reaching an equivalent level of competency in tennis and cycling requires roughly the same amount of time (and effort). I think your mistake is thinking that riding in a group indicates a higher of competency than it really is.
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#82
High Plains Luddite
Probably too late to add a serious reply at this point, but I agree with the OP in terms of having enough stamina to hang with your friends/neighbors/kids/whomever on a casual weekend ride and not being the guy who goes home early because he's exhausted.
#83
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#84
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Just to be clear I don't "resent" anyone being on a ride. I do feel safe or unsafe depending on the rider. There's no number involved. It's more about willingness to listen, observe and learn. You have your own standard, no doubt. No reason to suggest that mine are excessive or wrong. They are mine. Not suggesting anyone else has to adopt them.
#85
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You've played tennis about a hundred times in your life, and you've been on less than a hundred group rides. I've done more than that this year alone. So, how can you possibly tell me I'm wrong when I say my reaction would be similar in the two scenarios you offered?
You said that, but since it is an example of someone being able to pick up a sport quickly, I don't agree. IMO it is relevant.
It's kind of what this whole thread is about.
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You've should have just told me there was only one acceptable answer when you asked me what my reaction would be to the two proposed scenarios. It would have made it easier for me.
I expressed my opinion that I disagreed with the OP when he stated:
Why is it so hard for you to accept that my opinion is different?
I expressed my opinion that I disagreed with the OP when he stated:
IMO it would take a person much longer to become an above-average recreational tennis player than to become an above-average recreational cyclist
Why is it so hard for you to accept that my opinion is different?
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#87
Senior Member
I'll just say that my position, which is what I think the OP was intending is: a cyclist with above average skill can ride with a cyclist who has below average (but not terrible) skill without any detriment to their enjoyment. The same is not true for many other sports.
And with that, I think I've wasted enough time on this.
#88
You can do it by the seat of your pants. See what I did there?
#91
Senior Member
What exactly are these skills that are so difficult to master in cycling that would enable me to ride with a group and that can't easily be acquired? The first time I rode with a group, a serious group that is, was many years ago. I don't remember having to master any particular skills. The most difficult part of the ride was keeping up, and that was simply physical fitness.
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#93
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What exactly are these skills that are so difficult to master in cycling that would enable me to ride with a group and that can't easily be acquired? The first time I rode with a group, a serious group that is, was many years ago. I don't remember having to master any particular skills. The most difficult part of the ride was keeping up, and that was simply physical fitness.
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Well, just off the top of my head: whether you can hold your line, whether you can pedal a high cadence smoothly, whether you can look back or take a drink without wobbling, whether you can take a pull without accelerating, whether you can draft without letting a gap form, whether you can bump elbows without freaking out, whether you can stand without shoving your bike back, whether you can follow your wheel smoothly through a corner.
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#95
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Well, just off the top of my head: whether you can hold your line, whether you can pedal a high cadence smoothly, whether you can look back or take a drink without wobbling, whether you can take a pull without accelerating, whether you can draft without letting a gap form, whether you can bump elbows without freaking out, whether you can stand without shoving your bike back, whether you can follow your wheel smoothly through a corner.
But I will not deny these so-called skills are important for certain kinds of riding. I just don't see them as taking long to develop.
#96
if you're 50 and you're thinking about trying out basketball at the local YMCA, don't! You'll get your ass thrown around like a rag, and then only to get knee pain down the road. Stick to cycling.
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#97
Senior Member
Yeah. I'm 40 and I still play basketball regularly. It's definitely the sport where I most feel my age. My days of playing it are definitely numbered.
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#98
Senior Member
But the in terms of cycling, what many people are talking about is not five-on-five at the local Y; but rather, shooting hoops in the driveway, solo.
#99
Full Member
Thread Starter
Not that I relish fanning the flames, but I had this thought/question as I was riding yesterday.
There are thousands and thousands of people who make a living teaching tennis in the U.S. Same for golf. How many professional cycling coaches are there? I presume that elite-level cyclists get coaching, but in tennis, it's not uncommon for all levels and ages of players get private coaching. Go to most any tennis center, and you can get a tennis lesson. Similar with golf. Is it true that tennis players, golfers, baseball/softball hitters & pitchers are more likely to seek out private coaching than cyclists? If so, why? And if so, would this be evidence that these sports have different learning curves and different challenges in terms of skill development?
There are thousands and thousands of people who make a living teaching tennis in the U.S. Same for golf. How many professional cycling coaches are there? I presume that elite-level cyclists get coaching, but in tennis, it's not uncommon for all levels and ages of players get private coaching. Go to most any tennis center, and you can get a tennis lesson. Similar with golf. Is it true that tennis players, golfers, baseball/softball hitters & pitchers are more likely to seek out private coaching than cyclists? If so, why? And if so, would this be evidence that these sports have different learning curves and different challenges in terms of skill development?
#100
Senior Member
(and no one who only hits a tennis ball against a backboard is taking lessons.)