Turning point.

[Lewis Moon]

I need some advice. I’ve been riding (again) for about ten months, I’ve lost 45 lbs and last Friday I did 30 miles solo at 20+ mph. However, I’ve basically hit a mental plateau. In my past permutations as a rider, I’ve always ended up racing, but this time around, I don’t know if I want to “go there”. I’m 56 this month; just got a hip replaced seven weeks ago, have a job, family (complete with sullen teenager) and all the issues that go with those situations. I’m also, as my wife the psychologist has succinctly pointed out, a competitive a$$hole. Racing and its physical and mental toll on me, was probably one of major reasons for a previous failed marriage.
I need goals. While I’ll be the first to say that riding is a reward in itself, I also know that having some sort of goal, other than to “get better, faster, yadda” allows me to focus and plan, and gets me off the couch when my butt starts to grow roots. The problem is, I really don’t see much out there that interests me other than racing. The thought of grinding out Century/Gran Fondo rides doesn’t interest me in the least. Besides, in order to adequately prepare, I’d need to ride more than the six or so hours I can put in per week. I live 51 miles from work so I can’t commute. What else is out there?
I also can’t “just race”. If I don’t feel like I’m at least trying to be competitive, why am I even out there? Also, for some reason I absolutely hate crits, which make up about half of the racing calendar and are most closely aligned with the amount of time I can put into training. Really hate them. Nasty, brutish little races they are.
So, I’ve painted myself into a corner. I’m thinking I might try CX this year, but the ‘cross scene in AZ is rather limited. It seems to be the best fit and is something completely new, so the learning curve will keep me interested and motivated, but there are limited opportunities to train specifically for ‘cross in AZ. We don’t have a lot of what you would call topsoil around my home, just rocks on top of rocks, and I’d have to drive about ½ hour just to get to a park with grass. So basically, I’d be training on the road for ‘cross. I get out pretty regularly on my mountain bike, but I’m an old roadie and love the feel of a fast, skinny road bike.
Does anyone else have any other ideas?

[christian]

Just to be clear, you did 30 miles at 20+ mph average 7 weeks after a hip replacement?







Congratulations! That's awesome.

[thwart]

Congrats on the weight loss and improved fitness.

Nice thing about 'cross is that a training ride can be only an hour long and still be quite a workout. So... very time efficient.

[Lewis Moon]

Just to be clear, you did 30 miles at 20+ mph average 7 weeks after a hip replacement?







Congratulations! That's awesome.

Thanks. It was one of "those rides". My doctor is a rock star so I healed VERY quickly and was back on the bike with basically unlimited time to train three weeks post op. I'm back at work now so it's back to six hours per week. :(

[572cv]

I'm a little older than you are, used to race (poorly). For me, having targets is also a significant motivator. Around here, the kinds of rides I target are significant climbs and a century or two. These require training and, for the centuries, provide a date-certain deadline. The best motivator at this point, though, is a trip. We pick an area, book the trip, and then all the rides have meaning. We generally rent a house or apartment, and ride from that location or nearby. In the spring or early fall, the "off season", its a reasonably priced vacation too. In recent years we've climbed in the Pyrenees ( the Aubisque was a ride of lifetime), in the Alps (l'alpe d'huez !), Provence and the Ventoux. The trips have been in September, so there's all spring and summer to train. We went to northern CA in the late spring for some riding last year, which was also a good motivator. This year, we may try the Dolomites. I'm pretty happy with this routine. There's a target, and a reward every year. Plus, one can see what Velotel and Maxn have been enjoying all this time....

[ultraman6970]

Dude, sincerely? Just enjoy life... some people is just too competitive but at your age, i'm even younger and my race days are over, left that behind like 20 years ago.

Just ride, have fund with your wife and kids, and forget to be the best in everything. Sincerely ?there is more in life than being the best... work, enjoy riding... no worries... not getting mad for losing a weekend race (if you get mad because you lost a race is clear that something is going on there)... enjoy your family... golf??... to have fun you dont need to be the best... you know that right?

[Hls2k6]

The fact that there aren't many road races around you could be a blessing. Pick one event every 10-12 weeks as a motivator, then train your butt off & see how it goes. As for being overly competitive, work on it. Seriously, just ask yourself if that's the person you (as a 56 y/o husband & father) truly want to be.

[redir]

After 15 years of racing I'm pretty burnt out. I use a bike to ride to work and sometimes to run errands but I don't see much of a point in riding long centuries or anything like that either. I would ride a lot because of racing but that's about it. It's a social thing too. Once it warms up I'll go out on the local rides just to hang out and at least stay fit. I keep saying I want to go one more year but I completely blew off the CX season which is normally my biggest and best. I did one race this year after not riding a bike for like 6 weeks. Like you I thought it was just a complete waste of time because I couldn't be competitive. I started racing because I enjoyed hurting people and hurting myself, I'm over that now :)

[Steve in SLO]

The idea of training for an event every so often seems a good one. Perhaps train for a weekend trip several times a year in a challenging place you would like to ride in. Take your wife and whatever sullen kids that'll go on some trips, and some ride buddies on others.
At our age, the chance of a spot on the olympic team long past, but it is fun to catch up and pass younger riders on climbs.
Or: take up another hobby and challenge yourself there. Guitar at 50 is working for me.

[Lewis Moon]

Dude, sincerely? Just enjoy life... some people is just too competitive but at your age, i'm even younger and my race days are over, left that behind like 20 years ago.

Just ride, have fund with your wife and kids, and forget to be the best in everything. Sincerely ?there is more in life than being the best... work, enjoy riding... no worries... not getting mad for losing a weekend race (if you get mad because you lost a race is clear that something is going on there)... enjoy your family... golf??... to have fun you dont need to be the best... you know that right?

It's really not THAT bad....I just find that I am more motivated when I have concrete, measurable goals, and racing provides that. Racing also provides comraderie (SP?) and, well, I just enjoy it. Watching the Worlds this weekend I was particularly struck by the camera shots of the riders at the starting line, all figity and jittery, with their hearts in their throats. I remember that. I'm self aware enough to know I'll never be the "best", but that doesn't mean I don't want to be the best I can be. Training w/o goals becomes stale pretty quickly (for me).
...and I do enjoy life outside of riding...that's one of the reasons I limit ride time to 6-8 hrs/week.

[bluesea]

Buy a surfboard, and hit the local hotspots. After you've been chased out of the water or even punched out, you will appreciate cycling without the edification you desire from competition.

[carpediemracing]

What makes you hate crits?

I have a feeling that you could get a lot of your competitive fires satisfied if you raced crits. They're short, they're intense, they require immense amount of thinking, and you can be very unfit and still do very well.

If you hate crits you may be approaching them in a less optimal way.

With your fitness you should be competitive in Cat 3s, maybe some lower intensity P123 races, and definitely M55+. I haven't averaged 20 mph on a training ride in forever, maybe 20 years.

[FlashUNC]

Is there a local time trial series?

There's one here in Charlotte that seems like it would meet your goals, and reminds me of reading about folks who compete in the British Ten'ers.

Its a race against the clock solo, so you can slice and dice the competition however you want -- age group, overall, yourself, etc... -- and while its racing, its not diving into a corner shoulder to shoulder with someone else at 28mph. (I also hate crits with a passion.)

The local series here uses the superspeedway for NASCAR, so there's the added benefit of riding on something that you normally don't.

[veggieburger]

Local time trials are a great idea. You can battle your own times, and try to keep up with the younger folks too.

Look @ Granfondos, even organized tours. There's always a couple dozen guys on those big organized fundraiser tours who try to race it, who try to keep up an inhuman pace, even though there's no points and no prizes. Finishing first or second on a big ride like that is a great feeling, and it doesn't require 14 hours a week training regime.

[jr59]

try some rando events!

[chromopromo]

I would recommend cyclocross but is it possible with a hip replacement? First, you will fall a lot and second do you have the flexibility to get your leg over the saddle? My bad hips already limit my remounts and I always assumed a new hip would mean the end of racing. I would love to hear different.

[shovelhd]

I know your doctor says you are healed, but have you discussed with him/her what the ramifications would be with a hard crash on that hip within the first year of replacement? That would be the arbiter for me. If they said it could be catastrophic, I would take the season off from racing, do some time trials, hillclimbs, things like that, and set my goals and sights for the following year. If it is safe to race now, then by all means race. You don't say where you are from but Masters racing here in the Northeast is great. Good luck.

[EricEstlund]

try some rando events!

That would be my first thought. I know many riders that have "retired" from racing that really enjoy the structure, group support and clear training and event goals without the strictly competitive atmosphere.

[tiretrax]

What does your doc suggest? My friends with artificial joints have been limited to rides under 100k.

What about mtn biking? My AZ friends love to ride out there. It could be time for a full suspension 29'er.

[Lewis Moon]

I would recommend cyclocross but is it possible with a hip replacement? First, you will fall a lot and second do you have the flexibility to get your leg over the saddle? My bad hips already limit my remounts and I always assumed a new hip would mean the end of racing. I would love to hear different.

Doc sez I can do anything I did with the old hip. I specifically asked him if a crash might jeopardize the replacenent. His answer: "Are you worried about breaking your "good" hip?...that's how much you should worry about the replacement".
Really.
I also asked him how soon I could return to pack or mountain bike riding where crashes are more probable. He said eight weeks...which is Thrurday! :banana: (that banana always bugs me...)

I'm leaning towards CX because it looks really interesting and fits my training schedule. It also fits the bike I now own ('05 Poprad) and has more than a bit of dirtbag atmo, which I prefer. I'll also see if I can do some of the local hill TTs and fast group rides.

Caveat: I had a new type of hip replacement surgery called SuperPATH http://www.replacemyhip.com/, performed by a rock star surgeon. YMMV

[Len J]

I'm 57 and have been accused of being overly competitive.

I also don't want to race.

For me, my goals are around specific rides in out of the way places with other riders. As an example, I just scheduled a 2 day ride in central california with the california riding buddies with lots of climbing.....I live in pancake flat Indianapolis, so getting into good enough shape to ride this will be a challange.

I try to do this a few times a year.

Good Luck

Len

[1centaur]

Strava. Spend some time really digging through your local routes. Whether you do it to compete with yourself, your age group, or everybody on there, there's a chance to be competitive when you want to be and not when you don't.

Second choice: Be competitive in some other athletic endeavor and use cycling as one of many exercises to give you rounded form. Not viewing each ride as practice in your targeted sport but sometimes a series of muscle exercises and aerobic experiences to support a separate goal can change the mentality of the ride significantly.

[slidey]

Try beating Strava segments on substantial climbs in your area.

[fuzzalow]

Your self imposed limit to 6-8 hours of training a week will define the upper bound of what you will be capable of doing as far as race fitness & the number of excursions into the red zone (burning matches) you can make.

You must have some degree of talent as any 30 miler done at 20+mph is no fluke unless it was a point A to B all downhill. Impressive.

But it is what it is and there is no getting around age and training time when coming up against those that have less and devote more, respectively. Even with your surfeit of talent.

The adjustment is all to be made in your head. I'd suggest participating in time trials because it gives you a personal best barometer in which to motivate yourself and Granfondos for the fun & camaraderie. IMO at 50+, there isn't much in common with the manic and the mania of the obsessive, win at all cost/be the best crowd at any activity. Too much work and not enough perspective.

[rccardr]

I'm closing in on 62 and WISH I could do 30 miles at an average of 20 mph. Closest I've come to that was a metric century last season at an average of 18.6.

Like you, I'm highly competitive, but I channel my competitive urges into other areas than cycling (see screen name). Still, I like the jittery feeling you get on the starting line, and for that I do one big fast group ride each week, organized by the local club. 25 miles as fast as you can go, and about 50 or so riders in the pack. It's a nice adrenaline hit and leaves nothing on the table.

[chismog]

For me... when I raced I lost my love of the bike, because every ride became a training ride. Sounds like you have your own demons with regard to racing. I do understand the need for motivation and I think you're getting good advice here.... you need a "bucket list" of cycling adventures to check off.

Something like L' etape du Tour would be an awesome, challenging, and worthy goal for any cyclist. On my personal list is also the Maratona di Dolomiti. Do the full Flanders route, or Roubaix. I knocked off Stelvio and Gavia a couple years ago (need to go back for the Mortirolo!) but the legendary climbs of the Tour are waiting and I am certain I will be targeting those goals in the next few years. Point is, there's plenty to keep me riding my bike and looking ahead to epic adventures.

Don't overlook the opportunity to build or improve your friendships. If you get a crew to do your adventures, you will help each other motivate for the shared goals, and you are gonna be better friends after you accomplish them. Good friends like that pay dividends far outside of cycling.

I would also say... look around you (but maybe not here). You are in your 50s and in great shape and good health- thanks to cycling. If for no other reason, seeing what is happening to people around you who do not share your love of cycling should keep you motivated! If you love the new lighter/faster/stronger you, don't forget how you got there.

[tv_vt]

Hillclimbs and time trials seem like one way to go. Timed events, gran fondos or whatever, seem like another.

There's always racing yourself - on courses of your choosing.

I find I don't need as many events to keep me motivated thru the year.

You could race a very, very limited schedule. But if it's going to ruin your cycling by making every ride a 'training' ride that you 'have to do,' then maybe stay away from racing.

Hillclimbs and other events with lots of climbing keep me watching what I eat. Flat time trials don't offer as much motivation in that regard.

There's always the ultra-endurance rides like PacTour Elite cross the country rides, but my sense is that those aren't exactly competitive. They just have tons of miles.

[majorpat]

Find something in which you can compete against yourself not other riders. Long distance rando's (there's one here in central NY called the Quadzilla) are an idea.

[HenryA]

I find it difficult to suppress my tendency to be competitive as well. Being a few years older than the OP and having already been a pretty OK masters racer I find more and more that I am happier when I do things that I think are fun, rather than to compete. I have to label the activity as "not competing" to make this work.

For the OP with the 6 hours/week time limit given I'd just do four 1.5 hour rides a week and have fun, call it good. Take the cyclometer off the bike, don't keep track of anything and just enjoy the scenery. I'm pretty binary about these things, so flipping the switch works for me. Not to say it won't flip back in an instant, but I can deal with that and have to fairly often. It is possible (even if a bit troublesome for some of us) to choose to simply have fun at something and not make it a contest. It does require conscious thought to do so.

[Lewis Moon]

Strava. Spend some time really digging through your local routes. Whether you do it to compete with yourself, your age group, or everybody on there, there's a chance to be competitive when you want to be and not when you don't.

Second choice: Be competitive in some other athletic endeavor and use cycling as one of many exercises to give you rounded form. Not viewing each ride as practice in your targeted sport but sometimes a series of muscle exercises and aerobic experiences to support a separate goal can change the mentality of the ride significantly.

I was wondering when someone would mention the S word. That's a HUGE draw for me, because I've ridden pretty much all my life in the same state and hill climbs like Mt. Lemmon (I got my ass kicked by Bob Cook!) and South Mountain have always been measuring sticks for me. Strava also has age groups so I'll be racing against old guys. I'd have to watch my OCD side though...
"Big rides" is also a cool thought. I have fond, if painful memories of riding the Ironhorse in Colorado. There are a lot of places I'd love to ride. I also love to travel.
I do think I'll at least try 'cross next season. Like I said, there's a draw there too.

[Dave B]

You ate going to laugh, but try racing motorcycles. A lot of the moto gp and superbike racers ride a lot to minimize weight, need to be physically fit with good endurance.


It is different, give you a new reason to ride...and you get to buy a motorcycle.

[Dave B]

I'm 57 and have been accused of being overly competitive.

I also don't want to race.

For me, my goals are around specific rides in out of the way places with other riders. As an example, I just scheduled a 2 day ride in central california with the california riding buddies with lots of climbing.....I live in pancake flat Indianapolis, so getting into good enough shape to ride this will be a challange.

I try to do this a few times a year.

Good Luck

Len


I bet I live so close to you. I m at 146th and 37N

[Len J]

I bet I live so close to you. I m at 146th and 37N

131st and Clay Center.....just west of Spring Mill

Len

[54ny77]

Take up Wii golf?

;)

[Lewis Moon]

You ate going to laugh, but try racing motorcycles. A lot of the moto gp and superbike racers ride a lot to minimize weight, need to be physically fit with good endurance.


It is different, give you a new reason to ride...and you get to buy a motorcycle.

HA! Owned an old Honda Hawk for a while with the intent of racing it locally. I could never get the hang of having to be mentally way out in front of the bike.
Some of my bestest and oldest friends were racers. J Hord was pretty hot before he retired and became a gentleman farmer and Duck wrench. Unfortunately other friends of the same ilk have more metal than bone in their bodies.
Go9

[Dave B]

HA! Owned an old Honda Hawk for a while with the intent of racing it locally. I could never get the hang of having to be mentally way out in front of the bike.
Some of my bestest and oldest friends were racers. J Hord was pretty hot before he retired and became a gentleman farmer and Duck wrench. Unfortunately other friends of the same ilk have more metal than bone in their bodies.
Go9

I took a break from cycling to find, well not sure what the hell I was looking for. Anyway, being away, learning new stuff I found my happy and it brought me back. Maybe you need to figure out if it is cycling you need to change or this stems from something else. We aren't he same, but maye not as far apart too.

Best of luck finding your mojo. When you do...enjoy t...whatever that Jo is.

[shovelhd]

Your self imposed limit to 6-8 hours of training a week will define the upper bound of what you will be capable of doing as far as race fitness & the number of excursions into the red zone (burning matches) you can make.

8 hours/wk is my standard training load once out of base season. One can be competitive at the national level with that.

Strava is not racing.

[Llewellyn]

Dude, sincerely? Just enjoy life... some people is just too competitive but at your age, i'm even younger and my race days are over, left that behind like 20 years ago.

Just ride, have fund with your wife and kids, and forget to be the best in everything. Sincerely ?there is more in life than being the best... work, enjoy riding... no worries... not getting mad for losing a weekend race (if you get mad because you lost a race is clear that something is going on there)... enjoy your family... golf??... to have fun you dont need to be the best... you know that right?


This is the best advice the OP is going to get :)

[mjb266]

Cyclocross will be your friend. It has the feel of a circuit race/time trial as you're not worried every corner that some bonehead will take you out and the laps take 7-8 minutes.

Other than that, I would recommend planning trips with your bike that you're forced to stay in shape for. Take 1-2 weeks in Crested Butte and ride the trails...something like that. Maybe you have 4-5 extended weekends you work towards and your family comes along for the 18 hours you're not riding.

[Tandem Rider]

8 hours/wk is my standard training load once out of base season. One can be competitive at the national level with that.

Strava is not racing.

Same here, 2 years ago I was doing 6 hours/wk and that included racing time. I was able to hold my own in Bend. There were some weeks all I did was race. Maybe I'm a little whacked, (ok a lot) but racing is the fun part, once the base is in and your speed/power is acceptble, then the strategy and your daily attitude is the only difference.

IME Masters RR's are usually less than 2 1/2 hours, doable with that duration.

[fuzzalow]

8 hours/wk is my standard training load once out of base season. One can be competitive at the national level with that.

Same here, 2 years ago I was doing 6 hours/wk and that included racing time. I was able to hold my own in Bend.

Gentlemen, I defer to your greater endowment.

[sam.g]

Just read thru this again, I still can't get over your fast recovery from a total hip replacement! 30 miles at 20+ mph after only 7 weeks!

On Feb 19th, I'm also going under the knife for a total hip replacement only with the more traditional minimally invasive anterior approach. No one appears to be doing the "SuperPath" approach in my area and my doc has 700 anterior procedures under his belt.

What prothesis did your physician use? My doc is recommending the Zimmer with a Ceramic coating on Cobalt steel with Highly Crosslinked PE cup. Although I've had to give up running after 35 years and 11 marathons, I still rode over 4400 miles last year and wish to continue cycling, hiking and weight lifting. I've stopped being competitive 5 years ago when I had to give up running at 58 but now focus more on long distance self-contained touring.

I'd be very interested in hearing about your recovery and what level of pain you were experiencing prior to surgery. I'm still having second thoughts since I'm still very mobile.

Sam in Cincy