im 45 in november,i love trail riding or anything to do with off roading.problem is, that im struggilg a lot more now .tell me is there any 45s or over out there who i can look upto?

56 and not contemplating giving up till I croak

is this a joke?

I gave up when I was 34

29 in my case. 🙁

45 in August…never loved it as much.

simonfbarnes – Member

56 and not contemplating giving up till I croak

t®ibal©hief – Member

is this a joke?

No I think he really is 56 😯

Jeez, I got dropped by a 65 year old a few years back on the road and I was still pretty fit then…

50 and planning great things*

*and at a push can burn off my mates mid twenties sons

MrFC is 42 in March. The day he packs in cycling will signal the end of the world as I know it.

Trolltastic!! 8)

god, I hope I never have to give up. As above, there's really old chaps out there who are still fairly sprightly on a bike. I'm only 42 though, perhaps when I'm 45 I'll give it up to play golf.

you only grow old when you stop

Best age to give it up is the day you die.

45 is a mere youth. Get a single speed and start enjoying your bike.

Oh, and by the way, when you get to my age, you have to train hard just to be as crap as you were last year 🙂

When I'm really old and frail I'll get a bike with gears rather than give up.

still fairly sprightly

why does that word make me want to punch someone ?

I didn't start cycling seriously till I was 45, I'm now 56…

Cos you're a grumpy OLD git, Simon.

Eh? Hold on. You don't give. Not if your a cyclist.
Give up smoking.
Give up boozing if you like.
But give up cycling?
Not possible.

You're only 45 FFS!!!

I'm regularly taking a pasting off blokes in their early 60s. They tell me I can't do it 'cos I'm too young!!!

Give up cycling!!!???!!!

You merchant. You're 'avin a tin!!!

SB 🙂

Dear me 🙄 If you want to be old then be old. I'm too busy having fun to worry about being middle-aged (over 50 here) so point and laugh if you dare 😉

(Agree with sfb on "that" word. Positively demeaning).

THANK YOU ALL 😀

Cos you're a grumpy OLD git, Simon.

I'd way rather be grumpy than sprightly :o) However most of the time I'm far too busy to be grumpy…

age is irrelevant, carry on until you either don't want to or physically can't, whichever comes first.

Used to play crown green bowls with my grandparents when I was about 10, then took up golf and continued fairly regularly until I was in my mid 30s, moved onto bikes at the age of 43 or so. Slightly worried that if this is to progress I need to look at skiing in my 50s and sky diving in my 60s and neither really appeal.

simonfbarnes – Member

why does that word make me want to punch someone ?

Because you are a violent person who sees physical aggression as an easy solution.

Which is something that I have always suspected.

…..you nasty man you 🙁

Met a guy in his 70's in a pub garden. His very personalised bike caught our attention. My flatmate asked where the chap had cycled to today. He was expecting him to be local and just biking down for an early evening pint.
"Well" says Mr 70's "I haven't been able to cycle as much as I used to. Been helping my son strip out his flooring and replacing it, so not really had the time for the last month or so. Still, its sorted now, so I am back up to about 75 miles a day (recounts staggering route of todays ride), but I have got to do better than that as I am doing a trip with my mates soon and they are from up north and are well hard."

Turns out he went back in to cycling at around 60 and had toured all over the world on the bike we saw with him since re-starting. He was off to tour Europe in later summer with his partner and 2 friends.

He is right about the well hard guys from up north though. I sometimes visit the peak district (north from where I am) and you see these wirey tough looking ancient old guys chugging smartly up a bit of a hill, then you round the bend and realise they are at the top of a multiple mile steep hill they have just roared up. Amazing and wonderful.

ratadog – Member
…Slightly worried that if this is to progress I need to look at skiing in my 50s and sky diving in my 60s and neither really appeal.

So long as you don't take up cordless bungie jumping all should be fine 🙂

Thanks, just to be on the safe side I'll take all forms of bungee jumping off the list.

Because you are a violent person who sees physical aggression as an easy solution.
Which is something that I have always suspected.

there's a lot of difference between wanting to punch someone and actually doing it 🙂

So long as you don't take up cordless bungie jumping all should be fine

Well that's certainly an activity you don't give up till you croak.

48 here. Still loving it and no ideas of packing it in. At strathpuffer there was a chap in his 70s iirc and I have met a man of 92 who still cycled

I'm 48 and doing ok. The group I've started road riding with have me as the "boy". I think there was one today who was probably younger than me. All the rest (13 of us) are retired or heading that way.

The dad of one of my friends is 75 now. Last year he cycled (and camped 95% of nights) around the UK mainland coast, about 4500 in 3.5 months. He was expecting to do it in 4 months but got ahead of schedule. In 2007 he cycled from the Canadian border down and into Mexico and then back up to LA X to get the plane home. He is a marvel.

I'm 56. Taking my family into the hills is just like organising an STW meet! 🙂

I rode Cycle Oregon last year. A 500 mile week long ride. There were something like 30 guys over 70 riding it. I rode an 80 mile day with this guy. He's 75!

http://picasaweb.google.com/mcmoonter/HoodRiverHarvestRideOR09#5396224828619305682

He said he was thinking of having a T shirt made saying 'If I thought I'd live this long I'd have taken better care of myself'

My mate Len gave up at 82 he was worried about hurting himself. He's 92 now says he wants to start again.

My Mum used to work at Age Concern and there was one chap who would cycle in for his lunch every day on an old steel racer. He was well into his 80s.

So I suppose there's no age that you give up cycling, you give up when you've got no choice. Or like most of my mates you give up when you've got a car.

death

51 here and am planning to finish higher up my age group for this years races and next year i want to do the leadville 100 and get a silver buckle if i can train enough, well i can dream about the buckle anyway. when i worked in a youth hostel years ago loads of old boys would pop in during their weekend tours and n wales and shropshire are not the flatest of areas

simonfbarnes – Member

Cos you're a grumpy OLD git, Simon.

I'd way rather be grumpy than sprightly :o) However most of the time I'm far too busy to be grumpy…

Really? Are you sure? unless being grumpy on here is what you are busy doing I find it hard to believe that you are busy doing anything, you just would not have the time!

I know a bloke comes through my way often, 75, lives in Leeds & regulary heads out upto Thirsk, East Yorkshire Wolds etc.

A mate of mine is 50 now and has no intentions of giving up proper mountain biking.

He has said that he plans to take up golf when he can't throw his leg over a bike though, guessing it will be in his late 60's – early 70's.

im 45 in november,i love trail riding or anything to do with off roading.problem is, that im struggilg a lot more now .tell me is there any 45s or over out there who i can look upto?

Depends how short you are. Am 5' 11"…

…and FFS, I *started* MTBing at 51, get a grip you wuss!

:)))