is cycling the hardest sport in the world ?

[Fixed]

bro i think so
racing around the world
or next door
it is a hard game
imho
cheers

[rugbysecondrow]

Rugby. The combination of aerobic, anaerobic, strength, power,physical and mental toughness, the ability to do it all while taking a beating.

Triathlons are pretty tough too.

Cycling is somewhere behind long distance runners and water polo.

[Fixed]

bro crash at 40 and tell me it is not painful
yeah i played other sports too
but not many that can kill you in an instant
.come on bro triathlons are for girls
cheers :)
imho
ride 4 hours on the rivet
and jockey for position the whole time
work with your team
and try to win a sprint
don't get dropped
get in a breakaway
or chase it down ....now do it everyday for a month
man that is some tough stuff

[nahtnoj]

Define "hardest" bro.

Roy Halladay isn't going to win the TdF, and Contador ain't no Cy Young contender.

[Fixed]

in the words of (your friend )
bike racing is a boxing match at 30 miles an hour
cheers
i didn't say they are the best athletes i said it was hard

[CaptStash]

Nah. It's hard, but no way is it the hardest.

The most technically difficult: Golf (I suspect)
The most physically demanding: Rowing (greatest caloric output by an order of magnitude) But of course I am biased that way.

Just my opinion.

CaptStash....

[rice rocket]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sportSkills

Too much time on their hands. But I guess they're ESPN, that's their job.

[thegunner]

i'll throw another vote for rowing. but like captstash, i'm biased ;)

[Louis]

The most physically demanding: Rowing

Only the last 500m :crap:

[PacNW2Ford]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sportSkills

Too much time on their hands. But I guess they're ESPN, that's their job.
I would have voted ice hockey too. Amazing combination of skating and hockey skills, and sometimes they "box" too.

[Fixed]

rock climbing ,motorcycle racing iceman,s dog sled race ,free diving
cheers

[Beeb]

Is "Death Race" a sport? If so, it gets my vote.

Death Race! (http://www.youmaydie.com/)

[ckamp]

bro
this is the climb
hardest sport
it the my opinion
no other contest
its the tough
imho
cheers

..... :rolleyes:

"Alex Honnold tightened his shoes at the base of Half Dome, dipped both hands into his chalk bag, and began climbing—with no rope and no belayer.
The practice, known as free soloing, is the sport's most dangerous discipline, with falls usually being fatal.
When Honnold finished the route's 2,000 feet of glacier-polished granite with a delicate 5.12 crux move,
the climbing blogosphere went into frenzied speculation about what might come next."


I watched the full film at the Banff film festival last year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdb_eZKxIpI

[rockdude]

Cycling is not the hardest sport but CYCLOCROSS is :beer:

Ultra-running has to be in there somewhere also. If you every participated in a 100 mile run you will see some real pain.

Climbing can be very mentally challenging. FYI, I proposed to my wife half-way up Half Dome. Man, that made it twice as mentally hard.

[xjoex]

Long distance running is harder than cycling will ever be. The people who finish ultra marathons are putting in really fast times, no coasting while running.

-Joe

[gauvink]

Nice link thanks. i will agree with Rockdude that climbing is challenging but more a mental state that you put yourself in.

Motorcross especially indoor enduro races. I'm going to say a name and if you have done a 35+ masters verge race you likely have been beat by him.Kevin Hines.

[Bob Loblaw]

Lots of hard sports out there, but I am pretty sure cycling's hardest event is the hardest sporting event in the world. RAAM, followed by the Tour.

BL

[rockdude]

Lots of hard sports out there, but I am pretty sure cycling's hardest event is the hardest sporting event in the world. RAAM, followed by the Tour.

BL

1+

I was just going to mention RAAM.

[Ken Robb]

It's hard to interpret "hardest". One way is the which demands the most power output and mental toughness over various time periods. I think cycling would rank high.

Another way is how much strength,coordination and learned skills are required. Gymnastics would be ranked high.

Speed, power, endurance, dexterity are required to play basketball at a high level.

I mention these three as examples in three categories and don't mean to exclude any other sports from contention.

[craptacular]

As someone who has done all of the sports listed, except rowing (but I did compete in the national championships for paddleboarding). I would say wrestling is harder than any of these. It is more grueling than a cross race, and more painful than a lot of crashes. You also have the added benefit of making weight.

[djg]

in the words of (your friend )
bike racing is a boxing match at 30 miles an hour
cheers
i didn't say they are the best athletes i said it was hard

Well, sure it's hard. Brutal, sometimes. A boxing match? I'd rather take elbows and shoulders from the entire pro peloton than a single punch from an aging and out-of-shape Mike Tyson. But maybe that's just me.

All sports require specialized training and skills development if they're to be done at a high level. Maybe just about any level. Cycling, obviously, makes heavy demands on the engine and fitness level that the rider brings to the table (or start line). More so than other endurance sports? I dunno. At some level, I'm not sure I care. I've found cycling captivating for a long time. It's not the only sport that interests me, however, or the only one in which I've competed.

[Ti Designs]

I don't know how you could answer this one with a global perspective. How tough a sport is depends on how hard you can push yourself within that sport. I've pushed myself to the very limit in a number of sports. I only feel that cycling is the toughest of them because it's the sport I'm best at and I invest the most time and effort in.

[sg8357]

Rugby is hard, but Buzkashi is even harder.

Buzkashi is Rugby with horses and way fewer rules.

[rockdude]

Boxing is a lot tougher than it looks and I am not talking about being hit, the cardio is up there with Cyclocross. I competitively Box for about 5 years and three 1 minute rounds is the toughest 3 minutes of your life.

[nahtnoj]

Meh, RAAM is nothing compared to the Great Divide Race.

Mike C. "won" in 16 days and a few minutes. Over 2,000 miles, no support, on an MTB. Nothing else comes close.

[rugbysecondrow]

I think picking the hardest race or event from a particular sport is not fair in defining the sport as a whole. RAAM is wicked hard (from what I have read) but is that indicative of "cycling"?

[mandasol]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sportSkills

Too much time on their hands. But I guess they're ESPN, that's their job.


I must have too much time on my hands too. If you notice you can sort by skill required, so for endurance they do rate cycling as the hardest.

[shorelocal]

I would say skateboarding is one of the hardest sports, technically.

[spacemen3]

I find swimming mentally and physically brutal.

[Charles M]

Of course...


Cyclists are the elitest of elite. Much more elite-er than people doing anything else. And of course among cyclists you (as an individual among a group of other cyclists) are more "est"-er than all your riding buddies.

Your bike material is better-er than other materials (even if the other material is the same as yours because your welds / bonds and or fiber lay up are both simpler and more complex than other metal or carbon or wood bikes...

Your tire choice is either lighter-er, more comfortable-er and both more practical and exclusive-est-er depending on if you're a hipster or a racer or a weight weenie (all of which are more "est" than the other)


And your clothes...

[Dekonick]

As someone who has done all of the sports listed, except rowing (but I did compete in the national championships for paddleboarding). I would say wrestling is harder than any of these. It is more grueling than a cross race, and more painful than a lot of crashes. You also have the added benefit of making weight.

You beat me to it - Wrestling is 6 minutes of hell. I would guess that MMA is right up there...

Honestly, any sport at a high level is hard.

[MassBiker]

Having played most of the sports mentioned, cycling, hockey, rugby, golf, I would have to say full contact hockey is a very tough sport to play.
Unlike football, you can't run out of bounds or slide and you play 3-4 times a week with practice in between.
Watch HBO 24/7 at the Winter Classic and you will see the beating those guys take.......+ it was a great show!
Cycling is tough but in a more drawn out mental toughness, golf is tough skill wise, so to peg one as tougher is pretty hard.
:beer:

[Ti Designs]

When did golf become tough?

[MassBiker]

Okay........tough to learn the skill.

[Fixed]

i did some sports and for me bike racing is harder
kanpei

[Wilkinson4]

Competitive eating sure looks tough to me. Or maybe I am just hungry right now but I can't compete with those guys, even after a long ride:)

http://www.ifoce.com/

Plus they have cool nicknames.

mIKE

[Climb01742]

the decathlon. since jim thorpe, can rightly, i think, be called the world's greatest athlete.

[wc1934]

Boxing is a lot tougher than it looks and I am not talking about being hit, the cardio is up there with Cyclocross. I competitively Box for about 5 years and three 1 minute rounds is the toughest 3 minutes of your life.

Totally agree - boxing is tough - go to a gym and hit the heavy bag for 3 minutes (time of 1 round) - most will find this difficult

And there is no one punching back

[BobC]

Water Polo.

Cause if you aren't swimming, you are treading (usually with a guy leaning all over you or grabbing/pulling).

Beat the carp out of your opponent for 4 quarters then go drink a beer with him afterwards.

Best sport ever.

[krhea]

Anaerobic and aerobic...elite level/world championship nordic skiiing is a tough sport.

[Johny]

Spelling bee

[climbgdh]

Anaerobic and aerobic...elite level/world championship nordic skiiing is a tough sport.

+1 on this. These guys are regularly considered the fittest athletes in the world plus it's an incredibly tough sport. The highly decorated Bjorn Daehlie apparently had the highest VO2 max ever recorded @ 94. After seeing several Olympic nordic races last February I was blown away at the fitness of these guys & how tough skiing 50 km (or any distance) is when going as fast as these guys go. Maybe I'm biased since I've been skiing since I could walk.... :)

[Bradford]

When did golf become tough?
Start today...let me know when you break par.

[BigDaddySmooth]

+1 on this. These guys are regularly considered the fittest athletes in the world plus it's an incredibly tough sport. The highly decorated Bjorn Daehlie apparently had the highest VO2 max ever recorded @ 94. After seeing several Olympic nordic races last February I was blown away at the fitness of these guys & how tough skiing 50 km (or any distance) is when going as fast as these guys go. Maybe I'm biased since I've been skiing since I could walk.... :)

+1 on this sport too...the numbers don't lie. When cyclists, runners, rugby players, soccer players, water poloists, MMA, rowers (2nd hardest IMHO) or step aerobics can top the VO2 max of Daehlie, Svan, Ulvang, the Norwegian and Swedish National Teams, then I'll admit I was wrong. Plus, it's fun watching the snot and drool freeze to their faces... :banana:

[bobswire]

+1 on this sport too...the numbers don't lie. When cyclists, runners, rugby players, soccer players, water poloists, MMA, rowers (2nd hardest IMHO) or step aerobics can top the VO2 max of Daehlie, Svan, Ulvang, the Norwegian and Swedish National Teams, then I'll admit I was wrong. Plus, it's fun watching the snot and drool freeze to their faces... :banana:

Biathlon for difficulty since it requires two skills, endurance (VOmax) and concentration (mental). I'm an expert ranked marksman in both pistol and rifle but I don't think I could hit the side of a barn if I had to within seconds after doing a brutal climb.

[zap]

The hardest sport I ever trained for and competed in is Biathlon. I had zero shooting skills when I started and little competitive training in xc-sking. Practicing in an indoor range after running intervals outside is one thing, skiing in a race and shooting outside is another.

Cycling does not involve as much of the body as xc-skiing nor does it have the snipper skill aspect. Just try moving along with your heart beating at 160, stop and lower your heart rate then sight the scope on that wee little black dot down the range

But cycling does have it's crashes.

[BigDaddySmooth]

But cycling does have it's crashes.[/QUOTE]


I watched the '98 Giro last night and Pantani was coming down a steep Col, in the rain, going like 50 when the tires slipped out and the Pirate hit the deck and slid into a ditch with Zulle just missing him. Both got right up and off they went. Not sure if cyclists are tough or just stupid... :beer:

[Onno]

Of the sports I've tried, nordic ski racing is by far the hardest. In addition to being a total body exhaustion fest, it also requires insane technical skills. (And you have to get the wax right!).

I imagine decathlon really is the hardest, though.

[jvp]

One aspect of bouldering and rockclimbing is establishing the "hardest" climbs. Hard boulder problems tend to be more difficult than hard roped climbs, due partly because endurance isn't as much of a factor, and it's usually easier to try boulder problems repeatedly. Some boulder problems have only been "sent" once, dispite many trying over the years. So that is another aspect of the "hardest" sport.
http://www.climbing.com/news/hotflashes/DaveGraham-TheIsland-Rumont.jpg

[bicyclego]

The most physically demanding: Rowing (greatest caloric output by an order of magnitude)
CaptStash....

I agree. Much harder. Take the precision of golf repeated in explosive fashion with eight others 200 times in a 6 minute interval.

Rock climbing too is difficult (but not in the same way), certainly dangerous.

my 1/2 cent.

[jvp]

Actually rock climbing doesn't have to be dangerous, like many other "dangerous" sports or activities. Risks can be managed. Some "easy" climbs are more dangerous than some "hard" ones, etc.

[craptacular]

Just remember, "sport climbing is neither." ;)