Your limitations as a cyclist

[sellsworth]

OK - so what are your key limitations as a cyclist? Here are three of mine:

1. My cardiovascular system is about the size of the Grinch's (when mean) - about two sizes too small.
2. My build is a combination of Gimli and Robin Williams - short legs, long torso, huge head.
3. My penchant for tequila and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (not mixed, but rather used on separate occasions).

Each of these is certainly taking a toll on my cycling career. Is there any hope?

[gasman]

...I chose the wrong parents. :p

[dave thompson]

My limitations? I was born too long ago.

[Sandy]

My limitations? I was born too long ago.

Perhaps. But you sure seem like you have lived that life well and are living it well even now.



Sandy

[jeffg]

Genetics, time, pack skills

"A"s for effort don't make you a real cyclist

[vaxn8r]

I like food too much.

[toaster]

Life is too short.

I thank God for every day on my bike.

[Cary Ford]

My two daughters, ages 4 and 17 months.

Actually, my biggest limitation as a cyclist is that I don't care if I'm not fit enough to race anymore. So I don't 'train' anymore. I do things like drink alcohol and eat sugar. I sleep in on weekends. I don't stretch or weight train. And when I do get out on the bike, I just ride. It's a strange thing to get used to, this 'just riding' instead of 'training.' For instance, I find myself going slower where I used to be able to go faster. I notice that certain things (i.e. 'cliimbing' or 'sprinting' ) are harder to do. I wear larger pants. I spend more money on things besides my bike. I don't find myself thinking about who will win Paris Roubaix next year. (Except that i know it won't be George Hincapie.)

And, overall, I find that I'm not fit enough to race anymore.

But I don't care.

At least not right now...

[swoop]

My two daughters, ages 4 and 17 months.

Actually, my biggest limitation as a cyclist is that I don't care if I'm not fit enough to race anymore. So I don't 'train' anymore. I do things like drink alcohol and eat sugar. I sleep in on weekends. I don't stretch or weight train. And when I do get out on the bike, I just ride. It's a strange thing to get used to, this 'just riding' instead of 'training.' For instance, I find myself going slower where I used to be able to go faster. I notice that certain things (i.e. 'cliimbing' or 'sprinting' ) are harder to do. I wear larger pants. I spend more money on things besides my bike. I don't find myself thinking about who will win Paris Roubaix next year. (Except that i know it won't be George Hincapie.)

And, overall, I find that I'm not fit enough to race anymore.

But I don't care.

At least not right now...

well, sell the kids and lose the wife and get your priorities back. jeeez.

[Ray]

A body that doesn't cope well with being in anything other than the optimal position on the bike. I screwed myself up badly this summer by changing pedals in June and not getting the seat adjusted right to compensate. Left the saddle a few mm too high and effed up my hip and back to the point that I was riding in debilitating pain for about three months before I got everything diagnosed and fixed and took a couple of weeks off the bike to heal up. Some people can hop on someone else's bike and ride 60 miles. I'm a pretzel within five miles.

Otherwise, some people would see it as a limitation that I'm slow and don't care, but since I don't care, I don't see it that way. I've worked at being fast in the past and it only worked a little bit, so I stopped trying and I'm a much happier cyclist now. As long as my position on the bike is PERFECT!

-Ray

[trophyoftexas]

My limitations? I was born too long ago.

Ditto, Dave! Having the lower back operated on and FIXED about 9 years ago sure helped. Five bypasses two years ago helped to restore about 35% of the stamina lost to poor circulation....now I need a "legs and lungs" transplant to finish the deal.

[Fat Robert]

no vo2

no sprint

no aerodynamics

no pack skills

no nous

no sense of humor

no goals

no social skills

no values

[SponsorsWanted]

Since I've began college I've put racing on hold (the wreck helped too). Three months ago I was fast. Now I'm slow. It used to absolutely eat away at me when I would miss a training day, get beat up a climb, get out-sprinted, etc...Now I don't really care. My riding is more exploratory, and I notice alot of things I hadn't noticed before. I actually have gotten to apoint where most of the little time I have to go out, I don't even put on my computer. Riding like this feels great, but guess what? As soon as my body is all healed up and warm weather shows it's face I'm going to stop riding and start training. While I enjoy the pleasures of "riding" I enjoy the rewards of training and racing even more. Nothing comes close to the bittersweet pain of setting PR's on a favorite climb. There are few things I enjoy more than putting my training partners in a world of hurt as they try to keep up. Maybe I'm just a masochist, but sure as hell I'm a happy one.

[SponsorsWanted]

Wait a sec, I just realized how OT that was...lemme see; what are my limitations? Lack of expierience, I have trouble keeping the weight down, and I lack the slow twitch muscle fibers I need to do long climbs with the front group.

[catulle]

All of the above.

[stevep]

all you wankers really need are a bunch of new bikes.

with the proper bike i am told you will:
pedal effortlessly at high speed
climb relentlessly with minimum effort
sprint rapidly and leave others in the dust.

[pale scotsman]

vo2 for me. Had cartiledge removed from my sternum when I was a teen that caused scaring on my middle lobe.

Oh yeah, I don't ride enough either...

[nick0137]

I disagree with age being a problem for a cyclist. With age has come the wisdom to recognise that my limitations are limitless.

[lemondsteel]

After the six blood clots in my lungs in June I am trying to compensate for all the dead spots in my lungs that didn't get the blood supply they needed. Still get pain in those areas. But......... I own a Serotta so I....

pedal effortlessly at LOW speed
climb relentlessly with MAXIMUM effort
sprint rapidly and leave NO ONE in the dust.

[cadence231]

4.5w/kg at FTP.

[Fat Robert]

4.5w/kg at FTP.

which ain't that bad in the cat 3 wars

puts you in the second group in a masters race, though


(i'm a 4.5er myself)

[BillyBear]

...will never be less than 215 lbs...inability to ignore sweets...working for a living

[sellsworth]

With age has come the wisdom to recognise that my limitations are limitless.

Well said!

[FxdGrMind]

Limits?? Oh how to count the ways.....

I was too scared to wreck.... when I was young enough....

I think it was the experience of ski jumping and the wrecks susstained then that held me back the most....

Alas now that I'm too old... I get the urge to play... so I'm headed to the track next spring!!! Woo hooo.

I may not be good, but I will have fun!

[Ginger]

I have no limitations as a cyclist.


Others may argue.

[malcolm]

Stevep, I'm trying. I've been through about 8 this year and still seem no faster the wallet is a bit lighter and I think that might help my climbing except I don't carry my wallet on the bike. I'm thinking it may be the sequence of the purchases maybe they need to be closer together or farther apart or maybe I should buy several one after the other the slow down then speed up and repeat. Fatter and slower seem to be a lock but as of yet I just can't buy speed. Suggestions welcome.

[stevep]

Stevep, I'm trying. I've been through about 8 this year and still seem no faster the wallet is a bit lighter and I think that might help my climbing except I don't carry my wallet on the bike. I'm thinking it may be the sequence of the purchases maybe they need to be closer together or farther apart or maybe I should buy several one after the other the slow down then speed up and repeat. Fatter and slower seem to be a lock but as of yet I just can't buy speed. Suggestions welcome.

malcomb,
you gotta buy the fast bikes. not the slow ones.
keep buying. the industry needs you.
one of these days youll hit it

[taz-t]

no social skills



I thought this was an advantage, not a limitation...

- taz

[Simon Q]

Definitely time (my young family takes priority). 3 x 1 hour before work (5.30 am - 6.30 am) during the week and 1 x 2-3 hour on the weekend (start around 6/6.30 am), plus a bit of gym work some lunchtimes during the week. Not a heap but I train by myself mostly so that I can keep it quite structured and always a fair bit of intensity each session which keeps me ahead of heaps of guys that do twice as many unstructured hours of just riding without a plan. Other than that, I am tall (over 6'4") and therefore heavy (87 kg without carrying much at all) which is not your ideal build for a cyclist but that might be balanced a little by having a naturally highish VO2 max (max uptake of around 6 litres O2/min when tested during my years as a rower. Haven't done any cycling specific tests.).

I would be very interested to hear what training other time poor cyclists manage to fit in.

[saab2000]

My primary limitation is the fact that I like to eat. The secondary is that I have to work. The physical limitations are few, but I am too tall and heavy to climb really fast. No fast twitch either.

1. Like to eat pizza and drink beer. Lots.
2. #1 causes me to not weigh 150 lbs anymore.
3. Time to train on the bike is limited to about 1 ride per week at the moment. Last time I rode a bike was about 2 weeks ago.

Limitations were the ability to really drop the best. Strengths were the ability to avoid being dropped. In a race of attrition with 15 finishers that 14th spot was pretty familiar. That last 1% was the limitation.

[cadence231]

which ain't that bad in the cat 3 wars

puts you in the second group in a masters race, though


(i'm a 4.5er myself)


Yes. :beer: However...
I don't race myself. I find great joy in going at a relatively high wattage for hours and hours on end while travelling great distances. :banana:

[Ginger]

My primary limitation is the fact that I like to eat. The secondary is that I have to work. ...

1. Like to eat
2. #1 causes me to ...weigh 150 lbs.
3. Last time I rode a bike was about 4 months ago.



Funny, that's me!

[DarkStar]

Beer-keg around my waist! :crap:

[obtuse]

my head.

obtuse

[William]

Can't use wheels of less then 28 spokes or..."POP POP SROING!!!!" on out of saddle power bursts. :crap:



William

[fffastfreddie]

Nothing..... Zilch........Zip..........Zero

I'm a perfect beautiful specimen of a human being.

After winning my Grade 1 60m dash, promptly retired from competitive events in order to let others have a taste of the glory :bike:

Plus I'm just too pretty to compete.

[theprep]

I have a 4th gear that is missing a few teeth. Limited ability to Breakaway or follow for long periods at 30 mph. That kind of riding taxes me more than climbing.

In my little fish bowl I can climb ok and sprint (5th gear).

You race your strengths and train your weaknesses, correct? I do 40 minute efforts at threshold in season to work on my 4th gear. Still never last more that 2 miles in a breakaway.

[shoe]

sometimes my shorts are too tight

[swoop]

i'm not patient and i force moves.
i don't have depth perception and misread the distance to the line at times.
i have an inefficient heart, low hematocrit level, and not too good a ratio of watts per kilo.
i think too much.
i get frustrated by negative racing.
i get angry at team mates for making decisions that only function to take them out of the action because they're either scared of winning or scared of getting worked over.
i'm better at turning myself inside out for someone else rather than myself.
i have to talk myself into believing in myself.
the most limiting one is the thinking too much.
............

[manet]

all of what obtuse said + some of what swoop said.

[saab2000]

i'm not patient and i force moves.
i don't have depth perception and misread the distance to the line at times.
i have an inefficient heart, low hematocrit level, and not too good a ratio of watts per kilo.
i think too much.
i get frustrated by negative racing.
i get angry at team mates for making decisions that only function to take them out of the action because they're either scared of winning or scared of getting worked over.
i'm better at turning myself inside out for someone else rather than myself.
i have to talk myself into believing in myself.
the most limiting one is the thinking too much.
............

1. Can't help with the depth perception. Get glasses. Maybe. I'm serious.

2. Train harder. Sorry, this is partly genetic.

3. Don't think too much. "shut up and race" was the best advice I ever heard.

4. Negative racing is good recovery time and time to move to the front.

5. Don't worry about your 'teammates'. There really is no such thing 'til the racing really counts. Or if you work for them enjoy the results and justify your less than 1st place by saying you worked for them. But if they suck, work for yourself.

6. If you are good at working for someone else, find a good one. Don't work for someone who is thankless or no good. Either work for yourself or work for someone who can, knows how to and appreciates what you do for them.

7. You can never believe in yourself too much.

8. Don't think too much. Dream, don't analyze. When the race is over, ride home. Train. Think where you can work on your strengths. Enjoy it, don't worry about it. In the real world of death and destruction and heart ache, we have a pretty nice thing by being able to ride a bike. It should be a joy at ALL TIMES, never a burden.

[Fat Robert]

1) i believe that i will eff up

2) i am nervous

3) i am hyper

4) i think too much

5) i am impatient

6) i am preoccupied with the idea of crashing

7) i am nice

8) i think bike racing is fun, but basically stupid

9) i am obsessed by doing better, but think its basically stupid

10) i have no sprint

11) i can't climb

12) i attack at all the wrong times

13) i follow every move but the one that sticks

14) i scope girls in the crowd when i should be watching what's in front of me

15) i think about what i'm reading lately in any race longer than 45 minutes

16) i'm often too late or too early to races

17) i forget my shorts sometimes

18) i forget my shoes sometimes

19) i am obsessed with perceived failures

20) i am, however, a consistent top-10 in my cat in TTs.

[Steve Hampsten]

what i lack in speed i make up in size...

[zank]

I make the same mistakes week after week. I post the lessons I learn every week in my little race reports. In the middle of races, I even hear my buddies yelling my own advice to me. It's like I have a totally different brain during a race.

[sellsworth]

1) i believe that i will eff up

2) i am nervous

3) i am hyper

4) i think too much

5) i am impatient

6) i am preoccupied with the idea of crashing

7) i am nice

8) i think bike racing is fun, but basically stupid

9) i am obsessed by doing better, but think its basically stupid

10) i have no sprint

11) i can't climb

12) i attack at all the wrong times

13) i follow every move but the one that sticks

14) i scope girls in the crowd when i should be watching what's in front of me

15) i think about what i'm reading lately in any race longer than 45 minutes

16) i'm often too late or too early to races

17) i forget my shorts sometimes

18) i forget my shoes sometimes

19) i am obsessed with perceived failures

20) i am, however, a consistent top-10 in my cat in TTs.


Wow - a major cycling "coming out" party for you. It seems that 1-19 can't be that bad if 20 is true.

[dsimon]

Well at 205lbs of some :bike: muscle and steel legs I look like a fricken line backer in tights" alt, ctrl, delet that picture in my head" :crap:

[bironi]

I have no stinkin limitations! :beer:

[yeehawfactor]

dunno yet, i should find out in the spring when i pretend i'm a collegiate bike racer

i know i can't climb unless it's long and gradual, in which case i can put it in a big gear

i know the doof sux.

[swoop]

1. Can't help with the depth perception. Get glasses. Maybe. I'm serious.

2. Train harder. Sorry, this is partly genetic.

3. Don't think too much. "shut up and race" was the best advice I ever heard.

4. Negative racing is good recovery time and time to move to the front.

5. Don't worry about your 'teammates'. There really is no such thing 'til the racing really counts. Or if you work for them enjoy the results and justify your less than 1st place by saying you worked for them. But if they suck, work for yourself.

6. If you are good at working for someone else, find a good one. Don't work for someone who is thankless or no good. Either work for yourself or work for someone who can, knows how to and appreciates what you do for them.

7. You can never believe in yourself too much.

8. Don't think too much. Dream, don't analyze. When the race is over, ride home. Train. Think where you can work on your strengths. Enjoy it, don't worry about it. In the real world of death and destruction and heart ache, we have a pretty nice thing by being able to ride a bike. It should be a joy at ALL TIMES, never a burden.


hey, i appreciate the offer of help... but knowing my limitations doesn't mean i havent adressed or overcome them! i'm friends with my limitations... but i kick their a** rather than the other way around. cycling is about playing with those limits, after all.

goals met:
podium in a big race
podium from a long 'turn yourself inside out' breakaway
podium in a tt
top ten in a 30+123
win every prime in a race
win a prime in a 123 race
get stronger in spite of getting older
........
goals remaining:
win a hard race (and easy one will do).
........
organizing principles:
don't get seriously hurt or hurt anyone.
this is for fun.
the doing is the better than the result.



that being said.... the best part of this sport is the internal struggle. and that being said... i know my place.. i ride around in circles and play bike racer. i am not the real thing of even a pale approximation of the real thing. its the t-ball version of bike racing. taking on limitations is what makes this whole thing so addictive.
i'm outclassed by most of the guys i race with. seriously outclassed. tons of respect for them, i know how hard they work at it and admire how hard they can suffer.

[stevep]

big positive fat man..i see nowhere that you have forgotten your bike on the way to a race. good job.
the rest is the baggage that directly counters the work and training that allow an athlete to excel. you need to white out your brain in order to race effectively. no joke.
these thoughts and also the swoop comments are the big trouble with a lot of riders. not enough instinct...too much thinking about it.


1) i believe that i will eff up

2) i am nervous

3) i am hyper

4) i think too much

5) i am impatient

6) i am preoccupied with the idea of crashing

7) i am nice

8) i think bike racing is fun, but basically stupid

9) i am obsessed by doing better, but think its basically stupid

10) i have no sprint

11) i can't climb

12) i attack at all the wrong times

13) i follow every move but the one that sticks

14) i scope girls in the crowd when i should be watching what's in front of me

15) i think about what i'm reading lately in any race longer than 45 minutes

16) i'm often too late or too early to races

17) i forget my shorts sometimes

18) i forget my shoes sometimes

19) i am obsessed with perceived failures

20) i am, however, a consistent top-10 in my cat in TTs.

[William]

Warning: Nekkid people on bikes.

http://www.geocities.com/queenturkiye/fatbgirls.jpg



William