How many of you are solely consumed by cycling, or is cycling just 1 passion?

I am a new dad, and hence have little time, so am never able to decide wether to bike, run, climb or birdwatch (i know!). I love them all equally and sometimes I feel like Im going mad trying to decide how to spend my limited free time. The trouble is I am ultra competitive and just cant do anything for fun, there has to be an end goal! The trouble is I want to do well in all my fav hobbies/ sports.

Anyone else suffer the same?

hmmm… presumably before you became a new dad you also liked shagging but that ain’t on the list now 😉

I am untterly uncompetetive and think it is one of the saddest human traits. I also love lying in bed and watching TV. I couldn’t give a toss whether I am good at something or not.

my other interests include eating, breathing and sleeping. so no not really 😉

other interests

😯 i don’t understand the concept

nice to be good at stuff.

healthy to allow yourself to do stuff for other reasons.

healthy to have ore than one interest.

competitive bird watching,that must be thrilling. 😯

um….

I have been consumed by cycling in the past, to the extent that it dictated when I got up, when I went to bed, what I ate, how much I ate, when I ate and generally dictated my entire life.

I didn’t drink, I ate a tiny amount of food, I went to bed at 9.30, I got up at 5.15, rode for an hour and a half, worked all day, met the boys from the bike shop three times a week, did the chain gang, raced at weekends and repeat…. My holidays were bike trips to Belgium and Holland, my legs were like wood, my wardrobe was bike t-shirts and jeans that never really fitted over my thighs.

i was obsessed.

i also enjoy pre-ride banter and post-ride drinks……. 8)

i seem to have three vintage cars which i compete in hill climbs driving tests etc,

i have a baby on the way in a couple of weeks,

i design the “odd” mountain bike

it’s a good job i work in a school so get 13 weeks off a year

I’m now just as happy to be out on the bike or out in the wilds on foot.

Whilst on foot i can see more and ask more questions about the world we live in, the places, the creatures.

I take photos for the memories, to research and fuel my knowledge and to share.

I take ok photo’s, though others think different.
I can ride a bike about average.

I’m delving into the art of writing, just trying to make it creative, don’t care too much how it reads grammatically. That’s not my point.

Cycling opened up a way to the wild outdoors.
Now i’d rather ride in a group and have a laugh or walk alone and open my senses to more.

The trouble is I am ultra competitive and just cant do anything for fun, there has to be an end goal! The trouble is I want to do well in all my fav hobbies/ sports.

You now replace everything else with looking after wife & child, seeemples 😆
+1 what the others say

just cant do anything for fun

Time to learn.
Know a few peeps just like that(work with one atm), did`nt stay married long 😐

Relax, enjoy, your time will come around again.
Been there done that and thought I had got away from it all.
Now a grand father to 4 🙄

sharki

I’m delving into the art of writing

Strangely enough I was asked to write something to be inserted into a well known web site recently. Have not put pen to paper in that way for 40 odd yrs. Found it difficult to start with but ended up rambling for 2 pages. Something I may pursue, that or painting/drawing and taking pics. Enjoyed all 3 when at school but work etc took over my teen years.

good post i think!!
i have way to many interest so my mrs says!!
before i started mtbing i lived breathed and slept rugby and golf. i played rugby at a high level so i had to train every day of the week twice some days i also play off 4 in golf so i have to practise a lot!!since i had to stop playing rugby 6 yrs ago i have coached for the last few seasons which i didnt think it would take up so much time plus i had another big op on my knee last yr so i had to knock golf on the head and i havent swung a club in 17 months!!but with my mrs and the little one im choosing to keep cycling and knock rugby coaching on the head just so i can keep fit.
sorry if my grammer is all to **** im no school teacher!!

Really time to grow the **** up sunshine…

my daughter is seventeen months now and between having a job and looking after her theres not much “me time” left over. I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.

enjoy the time you have left your life as you know it is over once the sprog arrives. your new life will be rewarding and challenging and probably leave you no time to fanny about bird watching…. enjoy.

In no specific order

Hillwalking
Traction kiting
Freediving
Fishing
Kayaking
Motorhoming to facilitate all of the above.
Oh, & downloading porn 😀

Another thing about parenthood is that as one door/chapter in your life closes another opens as cubemeup is finding.

As a motor mechanic and then a factory fitter I never thought I would end up becoming a swimming teacher, member of the school PTA and then dep Chair of the new school board system in the kids school.
I had always played badminton and a bit of swimming(for FUN)before starting with squash which did take over my life!!! Luckily I worked shifts when my kids were young(still do)so could play as much as I liked during school hours.
Then biking started to take over due to the squash causing too many aches & pains. Do one, could`nt do the other. Squash got binned 3yrs ago so that I could concentrate on biking. Still got the aches, that is just old age.
Just wait till that hits you deep_river, even more frustration 👿

crikey – Member

um….

I have been consumed by cycling in the past, to the extent that it dictated when I got up, when I went to bed, what I ate, how much I ate, when I ate and generally dictated my entire life.

I didn’t drink, I ate a tiny amount of food, I went to bed at 9.30, I got up at 5.15, rode for an hour and a half, worked all day, met the boys from the bike shop three times a week, did the chain gang, raced at weekends and repeat…. My holidays were bike trips to Belgium and Holland, my legs were like wood, my wardrobe was bike t-shirts and jeans that never really fitted over my thighs.

i was obsessed.

Did that from the age of 15 till 25, had a really bad crash that messed me up good style. Now just feel happy to get out on bike or on foot to look at the world.

Having a wife who now has a degenerative illness makes me realise how lucky I am to be able to do the normal things we take for granted. As she says “it makes her angry that those that can don’t” but please make sure its fun as doing it to the point of obsession is not healthy.

Trekster, i’ve never written like that, not even when asked to at skool.

Have now managed to ramble several thousand or more words of literal nonsense.
Not sure if i enjoy it yet, some of the comments have been rewarding and
have kept me typing.

I think in a perfect world, that’s what i’d like to end up doing.
Writing a narrative to put along side my photographs, for people to read whilst on the bog. If there’s a arket for that sort of thing.

“it makes her angry that those that can don’t”

Sensible and undoubtedly wonderful woman.. The best advice I was given was do it, because if you don’t, you’ll be 40 odd and be wondering why you didn’t.

Cookeaa – well said squire, couldn’t agree more.

I am into so much stuff. I’m clearly obsessive about stuff, I’ve been called faddy in the past but none of it’s a fad as it doesn’t go away. I like hifi, musical instruments (bass, guitar, drums, harmonica), Road racing, Cyclocross, MTB, radio control anything, guns, the game of Go, web design, motorcycles (sports and custom), fishing and cars.

Couple all this with being a dad and I have little time left to sleep 🙂

crikey – Member

“it makes her angry that those that can don’t”

Sensible and undoubtedly wonderful woman.. The best advice I was given was do it, because if you don’t, you’ll be 40 odd and be wondering why you didn’t.
Thanks she is indeed a wonderful woman.
I wouldn’t have married her otherwise 🙂 she gets so pissed off with people saying “oh its a bit cold/wet/hot to go for a walk when its the one thing she loved doing whatever the weather and now her legs just won’t work it breaks my heart to see he look at the hills as we drive past knowing she will never get out on them again 🙁

Really time to grow the **** up sunshine…

my daughter is seventeen months now and between having a job and looking after her theres not much “me time” left over. I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.

enjoy the time you have left your life as you know it is over once the sprog arrives. your new life will be rewarding and challenging and probably leave you no time to fanny about bird watching…. enjoy.
Although I understand what your pushing at, I’m not sure I totally agree!
I know 2 people quite well who have children that have said their hobby’s & fatherhood have made them better husbands. 1 has triplets & frequents here, he has still continued riding/running/skiing and his wife has also carried on her sporting pursuits. His take on it is time management & I agree from other experiance.
My Brother in Law is also a keen Runner & birdwatcher with 2 children now aged 14 & 11 and at no time did him or his wife (county level netball & swimming) give up on any pursuits. Both of their children were included in their activity’s and have individually found their own love of sport & nature.

Guitar/music, photography, video, 3d graphics/animation and that sort of thing. Biking has only really quite recently taken over as the “number one” hobby, though it used to be quite big years ago when me and all my mates rode bmx/skated. None of the others give me the same thrill as bikes do, guitar and playing live almost does but its lost its magic for me.

I like having more than one interest but at the same time I feel almost guilty if I spend too much time on one over the others.

i design the “odd” mountain bike

with your grasp of physics it would be mate 😉

climbing, running, snowboarding, writing and performing electronic music, none of which I have any time for since i started my own business. sigh.

I’m on paternity leave at the moment and I’m musing on how much I’ll be able to get out on my bike.
I also play the saxophone – as does mrs Ed, and the gigs I do are payers so should still be doing them as we need the cash – but the bike will be relegated to commuting and creative rides dependant on timing with child care duties

no regrets though

took me six months to get back to being able to do night rides. even those were sporadic… your free time really does become valuable and rare….

while I’m sure there are super men/women who fire out kids work fifty hour weeks and scale etna on the weekends most if not all of those people are a heartbeat shy of a breakdown… if your having a kid your number one focus or “passion” for the next few years should be pretty self evident…. if not well leave it all to the missus I’m sure she’ll understand…

I’ve always been ‘multisports’, motorbike trail riding, walking, windsurfing, surfing, kiting, canoeing, dinghy sailing, mountain biking, floorball, fotball, tennis, badmington etc etc. Not all at the same time and lots have now expired but overlapping and some have lasted years. I’ve decided there are disadvantages (and advantages) to this, playing both tennis and badmington has made me crap at both, whilst having windsurfed quite a lot meant that picking up dinghy sailing was easy (and understanding wind helped with kiting). From a mountain biking perspective I’d say it was ‘bad’, mainly as my sole foray into a formal club didn’t work out – I just wasn’t as fit/skilled as everybody else who did it as what appeared to be an only hobby.

Do what you enjoy, and if you hook up with like minded/equalish abilities that’ll probably make it even better.

Other interests? I should be so lucky!

Apart from biking it’s just work, family and the very occasional night out.

Even the veggie gardening, which I love, has fallen by the wayside.

🙁

Although people keep asking me if I want to take up skiing/snowboarding and my standard response is “are you mad? I’ve spent too much on my bikes to even think about it!”

I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.

that’s hilarious. you obviously sleep too much.

“I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.”

Slightly judgemental comment based on what?
You have to be more creative in how you carry out your interests, train early am or when kids in bed, or ride/run to wherever your going and meet rest of family. And train smarter,(using heart rate) so no wasted sessions.

I play euphonium in a brass band, and to a fairly high standard as well if I do say so myself. Not as high as when I was a yoot, when I performed at the Youth Proms @ Albert Hall, but I get by. Think Brassed Off but with more beer and not as many sexy Flugelhorn players.

I also tinker with cars when I have the money, snowboard/ski, and golf on occasion.

Dabbled in many outdoor pursuits over the years but probably what I enjoy best is trekking – multiday walks across the wild bits of Scotland and Europe

Been heavily into my motorbikes in the past

Used to play hockey fairly seriously and I never found another outlet for the competitive stuff since retiring

I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.

That’s a bit strong. I’m a Dad to two girls under two and still manage to get out on the bike, tinker with my Lambretta’s, go to scooter rallies and make music. Granted, not as often as before and i can’t be as spontanious…but i can still have some “me” time.

Also, i spend a hell of a lot more time with my girls than mates/colleagues who have no interests of their own. Maybe i’m the exeption to your rule!

I’m sure there are dads with lots of other interests but I doubt they’re particularly good Daddys.

Read the last bit of my post again! Both people are wonderful fathers and their kids adore them, they are probably just better at manageing their time I guess. Oh and neither them or their wife’s are stressed or burnt out.

I love mountain biking, road riding, bmxing, unicycling, boxing and badminton, and do them all to a decent standard. But recently I’ve just had to let the bmxing and badminton slide a bit. I think you’ve got to decide which of your interests are the most important, and focus on them. You can’t do everything.

Having a wife who now has a degenerative illness makes me realise how lucky I am to be able to do the normal things we take for granted. As she says “it makes her angry that those that can don’t” but please make sure its fun as doing it to the point of obsession is not healthy.

+1 my wife has FSH MD and uses a wheelchair most of the time now, really OP just be happy that you can do your activities. I have been guilty of being obsessed with cycling i even won a race once 😉 but now i just chill and if i run/cycle its a bonus.

It all changed for me when my son was born, he’s 8 now and believe me it’ll change your life beyond measure.

just biking 🙂

backcountry snowboarding. I only got into biking looking for abit of summer fun..
sometimes I am not sure what I love the most now!

Art, music, food, the outdoors, photography, girls.

In any order really. The last two are not directly linked 😀

I have time to ride a couple of times week at best. All my spare time is spent with my wife and two young kids. As I mentioned above, what cookeaa said is rightish. Maybe the bad dads is a little strong, but I would certainly put selfish in there. To pursue all there hobbies and pastimes can only be at the detriment of time spent with their kids. I sure don’t have time for loads of pursuits and I am pretty sure other dads don’t have more hours in the day. And mores to the point, cycling excepted, I can’t understand why a dad would want to spend time on that many hobbies instead of doing things with their kids. Since my kids came along I don’t even see my mates these days as cycling and family take up ALL my time, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.