VegasJen

I like to think I'm in pretty decent shape for my age and condition. I seem to have this opinion despite continually being humbled. Some of you may recall my thread HERE about taking my TT bike through the Red Rock scenic loop, which features about 5 miles of near continuous incline averaging about 4% with a peak over 10%. In that ride, I had to dismount and walk the bike up almost a mile of the route.

It was suggested that the TT bike was really the wrong kit to be riding that route, and that I would be better off with one of my road bikes with better gearing for climbing.

So today I was once again in Vegas and took in my Roubiax with 3x9 gearing. Starting off, before I even got into the scenic loop, I'm going up the road (probably only a 2-3% grade) and get passed by a guy on a Tarmac. I felt like I was cruising along pretty good, but this guy passed me like I was having a picnic.

We both got into the scenic loop and he took off but I just wanted to keep him in sight, use him to help pace me, but he bugged out and I just couldn't hang. Once again, around 3.5 to 4 miles into the loop I was really struggling to keep going. I never did dismount and walk, but honestly, the thought did cross my mind on several occasions. By the time I finally got to the summit of the loop, I was still on the bike, but probably not going much faster than a walking pace anyway.

This is distressing because I was considering trying my hand at the Mother Load 200 sometime in the next couple years, but there is a lot more elevation change in that ride. I guess I need to just come to terms with the fact that I'll never be at that level.

GhostRider62

If you have not been riding consistently (4-6 days per week) for 5 or more years, go easy on yourself. It takes time to be able to do 200 miles and most people could not do what you currently do. You have to pace off your ability at the time, not a rabbit on the horizon.

Chuck M 

IMHO, while there is nothing wrong with pushing yourself, the worst thing you can do is compare yourself to other people. Train and improve if you want to beat yesterday. But don't believe you have to beat every bike out there.

CAT7RDR

IDK, are you wheezing for air? Struggling to get your breathing regular? Is Exercise induced asthma a possibility?
My nephew had to use an inhaler to play HS basketball

Comparing yourself to another athlete that for all you know is a local pro or top amateur does not tell you much.

rsbob 

Only compete against yourself. Go for ever faster PRs on segments and longer distances at faster speeds. Track your progress and look at training, diet, sleep and change as appropriate. When you see yourself getting faster and stronger and you are happy with your progress, then start competing against others. There are many coaches out there that can help you with a plan.

Eric F 

Gaining fitness is a process, and there are a lot of factors that affect how that process goes. Some are in your control, some are not. As others have said, track your progress in comparison to yourself on familiar segments.

mschwett 

if you don't ride up "big" hills often - like a few times a week - you'll never get good at riding up hills! on level ground it takes almost no energy to keep going at moderate speed. riding uphill is a whole different ball game. get a bike with the right gearing for your fitness, weight, and the slope of the hill and do it often. you'll get better.

rsbob 

“To win on the hills your must train on the hills”. Heard this ages ago and it keeps me heading to the climbs at least 3X/week.

SpedFast

Sometimes we just need a little humility in life. My best times are obtained when I'm trying to show up some old guy on an ebike or just someone younger than me on any old bike, which is most riders out there. In the end though, you're the only one that knows if you gave it your all. I remember you saying one time that you push yourself every time you get on a bike. I'm the same way. Just can't help ourselves, can we? Take care, Smokey

VegasJen

I know I don't have to beat everybody out there. But it is kind of deflating when I'm putting some work into these grades and some guy passes me like he's on his way to grandma's house for Sunday brunch. At least that's what it looked/felt like to me.
Not sucking wind. I don't have asthma. It's just that I'm putting all the power I can into pushing the crank down while the bike (and me) is going up. Honestly, sometimes, I'm pushing down so hard on the pedals that I need to pull up on the bars at the same time.
There aren't a lot of big hills in my immediate area. One of the reasons I take a bike whenever I go in Vegas is for more variety. Where I live, it's not flat, but it's more rolling hills.

Troul 

there will be times I feel I'm dropping behind, but then I'll reflect other aspects that play a factor in cycling performance & try to make gradual changes in those suspect areas. Sleep* , Diet, Stress, & weather/environment are huge in how far & fast I can push myself. Lately, the weather has sucked & the environment has not been so positive, so I was not successful in clicking off some rides ending in miles that I would have liked to end up with.

3alarmer 

...there are all sorts of levels. If your goal is to have some fun and stay in shape, then as stated above, comparing yourself to some other guy who rolled past is not the best way to measure progress. The pro team riders on the road circuit are animals. Just the way it is. And IME working for the local fire department here, nobody is a strong as he thinks he is. That's how you get hurt. Never go at 100% unless you are prepared to experience injury and the rehabilitation process. Might be acute injury, or it might be chronic. But eventually you will get there, if you are going 100% at all times.

tempocyclist

Don't we all. There's always somebody faster than you, no matter how fast you are. Comparison is the thief of joy.

You may never attain "that level" but with commitment you will get stronger and faster.

I'm no slouch. I once went on a ride with a recently retired pro, on one of the longer/steeper climbs, he shot up ahead to the top, rolled back down, then rode up a second time, getting in two complete climbs in around the same time our bunch took to get up there once!

downtube42

The performance of other people in your age group gives you an idea of what is possible, for a person in your age group. Since we're talking about climbing, body mass is also a significant factor. Individuals vary, of course, but it's an indication. Aside from that, it means very little.

That said, you now know it's possible for a human to go up that hill that quickly. Use that for inspiration, if you're so inclined.

Trakhak

Have you considered working with a coach?

Also, many riders these days find software-based workouts on an indoor trainer productive. Zwift is the most popular training software, but I prefer Xert. I started using it at the end of last year's riding season, and it kept me engaged enough to keep riding through the winter.

Their thing is that all your metrics are measured during each indoor ride---and each new recommended indoor workout is adjusted based on the previous week's worth of ride data.

Xert provides very sophisticated feedback-based training plans. The workouts will never be more than you can handle at your current fitness level.

You can input training data from outdoor rides, too, and that information too is used for planning workouts.

Mtracer

I know how the OP feels. While very quickly after taking up cycling, I learned to not truly compare myself to others. That doesn't mean I can't admire or even envy them a little. It does sort of suck to be working hard, and someone passes you making it look easy. Seeing Strava climbs where elite riders do it at speeds I can't even hold on the flat.

What really bugs me is to hear a story about someone that's maybe a year into cycling that started with an FTP around 100 W, more than tripling it to 300+ W in less than a year. I've been riding for 4 years and have gone from something like 170 W to 240 W, at best. Some of that with some pretty focused training effort. But at age 62, it's just a reality that I'm not going to make gains like a 20-year-old would. And being 62 years old, I'm likely not that many years away from not being able to make gains at all.

I have accepted the reality of my abilities or potential. So, I mostly focus on improving relative to myself. And even there I have relaxed quite a bit. I've learned that things out of my control like injury, sickness, or life don't have to keep me off the bike for long, and I lose a lot of those hard earned fitness gains. So, I've learned to try to just keep improving as best I can. Accept the fitness setbacks that occur, and just keep climbing the mountain.

Barry2 

I’m 59 and I’ve been working with a coach for about 3 years.
My goal was to climb my local (3,500’) mountain.
I made it up there last Saturday.

A good coach can teach you so much.
Try one for a few months and see how you feel.

Barry

VegasJen

I like that. Think I'm going to steal it!

But ya, your example resonates with me. I don't like to think of comparing myself to a retired pro, or even a high level amateur, but it does kind of suck the wind out of my sails to be putting out the effort and see someone else not breaking a sweat.
Exactly. I know I shouldn't, but it's hard. We all start at different places and we all have inherent physiological abilities and limitations. The reality is I'm not built for doing what I do (swim, bike, run). Physically, I'm built more for picking up heavy things and putting them down. But I don't like that. Part of what motivates me is doing the stuff I shouldn't be any good at (and I'm not any good at), but pushing through anyway.

LarrySellerz

Hey Vegasjen, from what ive seen from your posts you are a mother****er. Try not to let people mess with you. Keep on keeping on.

Eric F 

Do you know anything about “some guy”? I’m guessing not, and that’s okay. Maybe he’s put in a LOT more work than you.

I rode with a 24yo kid on a (mostly) easy-paced group ride on Sunday morning. He’s only been riding for 3 years, but after the group ride (40-ish miles) he tacked on another 50+ on his own, and hit his goal of 500mi for the week. I’ve ridden with him before. I know he can (and does) ride away from me any time he chooses when the grade tilts up. I’m 30 years older, 30 lbs heavier, and ride ~100mi/week. It would be unreasonable of me to expect to be able to climb at his level.

Also…That 24yo kid is way below being a pro-level rider. Truly talented riders are at another level.

My point…There’s always someone better.

50PlusCycling

On a January January morning of a long time ago I found myself standing with a company of other young men, freezing cold, and teeth chattering. I had been in the Army for nearly a year, doing PT every day, going to the gym in the afternoons, and running on weekends. I was young, lean, and fit.

This day was the first day of “RIP,” a three week selection course for the Rangers. I had ben preparing for this training for nearly two years, and judged myself more than ready for it. I was not.

A man a few years older than myself came to the platform in front of us, putting out his cigarette as he climbed the steps. He put us through a course of PT that pushed me harder than I had ever been pushed. I did pushups to the point of collapse, and was run until I was throwing up next to the road. I, who got a perfect score on my previous PT test, was shamed. The older, cigarette-smoking PT instructor did more push ups than I did, and ran up and down the formation, and barely broke a sweat.

No matter how good you may think yourself at anything, there are indeed people much better. Of that company of young men I stood with that morning, less than one in three were still there three weeks later.

PeteHski

This is so true. Even Pogacar found that to be true at last year's TDF!

I'm a reasonably strong rider for my age and if I go to local events I'm usually one of the fastest riders in my age group. But if I go to larger events then suddenly there are guys my age who can leave me for dead. That's just how it is.

Here's a nice little video of a local TT, where a really fast guy showed up (fastest in the world at the time) and made the local "hotshots" look pathetically slow. As the saying goes "Sometimes you are the hammer and sometimes you are the nail".

Jughed

I started road riding in my 20's - was an "A+" group ride guy, could ride with the Cat 4/5 people. Was only a roadie for 3/4 years at that point... and found myself quickly humbled by roadies that had 5/10+ years in the saddle, were Iron Man types, were regional road racers.,,

In my 50's now, started back on the road 4 years ago - working back up to the A group... and every so often I will get flat blown away by someone, just flat blown away... at this age, some roadies have 20++ years and 100k+ in the saddle. Ex racers, ex Iron Men... or just long time club riders...

You don't know the pedigree of the person blowing by you. And there is a huge performance gap between the recreational/5-6 hour per week person and the 15+ hour per week athelete.

And, as hard as it is to admit - there are athletes and there are regular people. The "athlete" group is a small subset of humans, people are just born with genetic advantages. I am not, nor will I ever be in that group.

PeteHski

I don't think having 20++ years is necessary to be competitive. Those guys were probably fast or faster than they are today after only 3 or 4 years consistent training. It's just that guys are more likely to keep riding competitively long term if they were competitive in their early years. People tend to do things they are naturally good at. The old-school thought was that you needed many years in the peloton to become a competitive Grand Tour rider. But that model has been smashed in recent years by the youngsters.

What really matters is your genetics and commitment to consistent training. The only thing I do notice is the difference in bike handling skills between guys who rode a lot as kids vs those who only started riding as adults. I know some super strong riders who started riding in their 30s and 40s and their bike handling skills are pretty clunky at best. It's the same with skiing. Adult learners almost always look robotic, even when they have decades of experience. Those who start young just look more natural. I think that applies to most sports involving some level of skill/balance.

Sorry, drifting a bit OT, but for the OP I wouldn't worry about not having decades of riding experience. That in itself is unlikely to hold you back very much over the next decade.

DonkeyShow

No matter how good you are there will always be someone better. Don't let it discourage you. Safety and fun are most important.