How good did you used to be?

Was out riding today and met and old acquaintance, and we got to chatting about how good we were, the rides and races we used to do.

I used to be quite good…. 🙁

The older I get, the better I was

Erm. Last year I was 4th at 10 under, and SSUK, and in an SXC, 2nd in a race in the USA, 3rd at Relentless.

This year I smashed my knee in and have no results to show until Moray this coming weekend apart from getting in the main run of the Mega. So last year I was OK. This year I'm a wildcard.

"I could have been a contender"

Funnily enough, I just scanned these old photos of me on my BMX. They are mid to late '90s.
I used to be pretty good. I wouldn't do a one hander any more, but one footers creep in occasionally.

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GT Fueler_0001 by Chase 71, on Flickr[/url]
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GT Fueler_0002 by Chase 71, on Flickr[/url]
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GT Fueler_0003 by Chase 71, on Flickr[/url]

I was good enough to get sponsorship from Yamaha GB and rode for the British team at the ISDE a couple of times.

Now I just piss about on pushbikes for a laugh. 😆

I used to be shit. I'm a bit better now, but not much. Enjoying it though.

I used to be the Mid Shropshire Wheelers Hillclimb Champion. It doesn't get sicker than that….

I've won 'things' on the bike. You know, things smaller than the tour de france but bigger than the cycling proficiency test.

I'm not telling though, not the done thing. It's nice to enigmatic, those who don't know me in 'real' life might imagine I've won 24hr races and Polarii etc.

I'm at the peak of my physical endurance but as a married man my days of competition are behind me. Plus I've got gert love handles.

Nothing special but glad to have given it a go.

cycling proficiency test.

was the high light of my riding career…

Rugby – Very
Bikes – Reasonably
Drinking and fornicating – Still at the same very high level

i dont race as much as i used to … 2 years ago i raced everything going near enough- 3/4 times a week ! placed pretty well in alot of them

now i just pick and choose – just prefer to get out on my bike with friends , new faces , old faces and in different places

Enthusiasm has always been greater than ability.

If I tried to do a 360 bunnyhop now.. or even a 180 tic toc I would die..
And there's no way I could possibly wheelie to my Nans house any more..

I used to be shit, but I was brave. Now I'm shit and a coward.

Recently discovered a 35foot deep bombhole in the clyne woods near Swansea. I used to ride it in flip flops on my Saracen rigid with no helmet. I stood at the top, padded, helmeted and 6" 'all mountained' up and…… Yep bottled it.

Sounds like me.

Recently bought a Wolf Ridge 140mm 'cos the Mount Vision was 'too limiting'.

Now find i'm still cr@p – just embarrassingly overbiked…. 😳

Not very – I'm better now than I ever used to be. Only thing I've lost is 180 bunny hops but I can do proper jumps now which are more fun anyway.

I used to be shit, but I was brave. Now I'm shit and a coward.

I can relate to that

Actually much better than 15 years ago…I can now pull a proper manual for a fair distance and even hop to manual onto foot high stuff which i never thought I would pull off. Just learnt to aerial the quarter pipe as well 😀

Hmmm… I ran a 3.5 hour marathon at 15, after 11 miles training a week for 5 weeks…Three peaks cyclo cross, Three peaks fell race, top ten in the North West 'cross league, top ten in the Diamond Back series years ago, decent third cat, raced in Belgium and Holland, Mallorca…

Could have done better I suppose, but have a decent job that I've never neglected, plus kids and wife, who I have neglected on occasion…

Best advice I ever got; 'Don't give it up, or you'll look back one day and think what you've missed'

I was never very good, now I'm totally rubbish.

I was a pretty good runner, I've beaten Mark Lewis-Francis over 100 metres.

On a bike, I am and always have been very average.

2retro4u
Marin County, Cali

I had a good minute or two. The first time I rode with Gary Fisher, in 1971, I hammered him.

It was 30+ years before I did it again, but I finally beat him for only the second time in my life in a computerized race on trainers a few years back.

Here I am in a 1974 criterium.

Now THAT'S a pain face!

I might actually be at my peak at the moment (skills wise, I'm enjoying one Deuchars too many in terms of fitness).

Problem is I'm always nursing pathetic injuries or broken bikes, so am not actually getting to enjoy it!

i used to be pretty good

I used to be quite something, now I'm quite a something.

I've won a large collection of multi-tools and a broken crank brothers pump, so I reckon I used to be ok.

NB I'm not sure if crank brothers pumps are just crap or whether mine was just duff. Or maybe they just give duff ones out as prizes.

Rugby – good.
Skiing – good.
Partying – athlete!
MTB – I'm just a novice really but my mum still loves me.