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Any road bikers?

#81
machine gewehr said:
I wonder if I'll ever be able to recover from this mess, be athletic and sportive or just be an old man struggling on a bike. :)
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I'm 50, and riding to work every day, about 8 miles round trip. Depending on your age, there are some things that just aren't going to happen. For instance I don't expect to build muscles like an 18 year old could. I don't expect to have the same flexibility or reflexes. Still, I'll bet that daily riding will put you in the top 5% of your age group for general fitness within a year or two.
 
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#82
fdeck said:
I'm 50, and riding to work every day, about 8 miles round trip. Depending on your age, there are some things that just aren't going to happen. For instance I don't expect to build muscles like an 18 year old could. I don't expect to have the same flexibility or reflexes. Still, I'll bet that daily riding will put you in the top 5% of your age group for general fitness within a year or two.
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One of the dominant Cat 2s in my area used to be an overweight smoker. There are still plenty of 50 year olds and 60 year olds who can smoke most riders in my area. Odds of making the Tour de France are basically shot, but still plenty of opportunities to improve fitness. I used to have debilitating asthma and college+a job didn't allow for any consistent training. I'm insanely stronger and faster than I was at age 18-27. My time trial last Saturday with bronchitis was much faster than anything I could have done back then.
 
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#83
Well I'm already showing improvement. Today I did a 30 km ride, 18.1 kmh average speed. Never dropped cademce down, riding back I had to go through a son of a head wind. Last time I did a 30 km ride was a year + some months ago.

I'm really, really tired though. Time for an ice cold beer.:D
 
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#84
I'm hardly a serious road biker, but I ride for a while every night at work (if it isn't raining). Really helps break up the night and it's nice to get some air after 5 hours in a machine shop.

My current road bike is an early 90's Chromoly framed Marin Palisades Trail fixed up just enough to be a fun ride, but still look horrible enough to deter thieves.

ImageUploadedByTalkBass1402799080.784407.jpg


There she is on my Subie getting ready for a trip to some light riding across town with my sister, who's bike is crammed inside of the car. (I was teaching her how to ride a bike with gears)

ImageUploadedByTalkBass1402799194.095157.jpg


And that's ^^ how I got it. $20 from Goodwill.

List of work done so far:

- New cables for the rear brake and rear de-railer
- Got rid of the front de-railer (couldn't get it un-seized) and left the chain on the middle sprocket, which is a Bio-Pace ring.
- lubed all the lube-able bearings
- refinished the forks, bars and stem in black and got rid of the rust
- New gear cluster on the rear
- New chain
- Trued up the wheels
- A proper saddle
- Locking grips (gotta have some BMX style stuff on her ;) )
- Proper lights for visibility at night

Kinda ghetto, but the left brake lever actually controls the rear de-railer. All the way pulled in is 1st gear, all the way out is 7th. I forgot to order a proper cable that would work with the shifter, so I rigged this up and haven't bothered to fix it haha. I actually like it a lot as a single speed in 7th gear, though. I'm an ex-BMXer, so I'm used to single speeds :P .

I'm gonna be selling my mountain bike soon and will hopefully be getting a better road bike so that I can get serious about riding.
 
#85
I love my Madone 4.5. At 56 years of age, I ride about 30 miles per week and oftentimes push it hard. Keeps me in shape.

I did have a crash on the bike a few years ago and fractured my femor. Having since loosened the SPD pedals for easier out.

Nothing like the feeling of being out in the wind.
 
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#86
Been on my TT bike a lot the past week. I've always loved how fast they are. Comfort leaves a little to be desired. My skin suit and TT helmet also make riding in warm temps feel a little hotter.

I lost about 3 weeks of training to bronchitis. I'm basically at the same time trial fitness that I was at last year. Bummer that I could have been slightly stronger if I stayed healthy.
 
#87
spade2you said:
Been on my TT bike a lot the past week. I've always loved how fast they are. Comfort leaves a little to be desired. My skin suit and TT helmet also make riding in warm temps feel a little hotter.

I lost about 3 weeks of training to bronchitis. I'm basically at the same time trial fitness that I was at last year. Bummer that I could have been slightly stronger if I stayed healthy.
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Are you feeling better now? Also, being the same as last year despite the sickness? You could have been worse.;)


2 days ago I realised my front wheel had a problem. It felt like the bike is trying to get me off of it when I go fast.

Last night I went to my LBS and told them about the problem. They checked it out and said it's unusual, there's very little adjustment that could be done, I told them to go with it anyways.

So, I'm on the road, and the bike doesn't want me on it again. Only then I realised it's the wind. What am I supposed to do, grip the handlebar really tight? Change my position? I never realised wind would be such an issue.
 
#88
machine gewehr said:
Are you feeling better now? Also, being the same as last year despite the sickness? You could have been worse.;)


2 days ago I realised my front wheel had a problem. It felt like the bike is trying to get me off of it when I go fast.

Last night I went to my LBS and told them about the problem. They checked it out and said it's unusual, there's very little adjustment that could be done, I told them to go with it anyways.

So, I'm on the road, and the bike doesn't want me on it again. Only then I realised it's the wind. What am I supposed to do, grip the handlebar really tight? Change my position? I never realised wind would be such an issue.
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I'm feeling a lot better. The timing of it was piss poor and I could have theoretically have been a little stronger. I still have about a month to get ready for my next race, a short and punchy time trial.

Sometimes wind makes you want to grip the bars harder. I sometimes have this problem on the rollers. Once you have a feel for handling in a headwind, loosen the grip and be sure to change positions constantly. I make sure to switch hand positions on the rollers every 2 minutes. When dealing with a nasty head wind, you can always try the invisible aero bar position. I did a lot of that this winter because a few local TTs banned all TT bikes and aero helmets. It also adds another hand position and can help in a nasty head wind. It takes a little practice and probably not a good idea to do in a group ride unless you're a pro.

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#89
spade2you said:
I'm feeling a lot better. The timing of it was piss poor and I could have theoretically have been a little stronger. I still have about a month to get ready for my next race, a short and punchy time trial.

Sometimes wind makes you want to grip the bars harder. I sometimes have this problem on the rollers. Once you have a feel for handling in a headwind, loosen the grip and be sure to change positions constantly. I make sure to switch hand positions on the rollers every 2 minutes. When dealing with a nasty head wind, you can always try the invisible aero bar position. I did a lot of that this winter because a few local TTs banned all TT bikes and aero helmets. It also adds another hand position and can help in a nasty head wind. It takes a little practice and probably not a good idea to do in a group ride unless you're a pro.

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Last night I had another head wind. I tried to loosen the grip and changed position constantly. I felt a lot better actually, I was less tired somehow. I probably was gripping really hard at times.

Invisible aero bar position is almost impossible for me as I ride in a rather crowded cycling lane. I have to ride on the hoods or the drops to access breaks. Last night I had to go from the hoods to drops and do an instant stop in a matter of a second. I couldn't stop but I had shouted at the person who jumped into the cycling lane without looking at all so I got away with the skin of my teeth.

One other thing is, I think my saddle is a bit too forward. I'll have to adjust that tonight.
 
#90
machine gewehr said:
Last night I had another head wind. I tried to loosen the grip and changed position constantly. I felt a lot better actually, I was less tired somehow. I probably was gripping really hard at times.

Invisible aero bar position is almost impossible for me as I ride in a rather crowded cycling lane. I have to ride on the hoods or the drops to access breaks. Last night I had to go from the hoods to drops and do an instant stop in a matter of a second. I couldn't stop but I had shouted at the person who jumped into the cycling lane without looking at all so I got away with the skin of my teeth.

One other thing is, I think my saddle is a bit too forward. I'll have to adjust that tonight.
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It's not too hard to hold a line with a lot of practice. I did this during the winter on the rollers and did alright. It's a little challenging in crosswinds. Too hard for me with crosswinds and a deep front wheel.

I can imagine that handling might be a little squirrely if the fit isn't right.
 
#95
spade2you said:
Started feeling good and broke a toe yesterday. Might try a 30 miler since it wasn't my big toe or anything.
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Man, what a shame. Hope you get better soon.

DerHoggz said:
It's always like that.

Me: "Man, I trained so well through the winter, I'm gonna be strong!" (gets hit by a truck)
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Yup, it's always like that.

"Wow my new bike is so awesome I'm going to ride this every single day!". (45 minutes later, lands on his head onto the opposing lane, breaks a wrist)
 
#98
I think Horner is starting the TdF. The team is built for Rui Costa, who is probably more of a stage hunter than a GC rider at this point.

I rode yesterday. Hurt putting my shoe on, but I was ok to pedal. I've been forced to ride indoors lately due to some sketchy t-storm, hail, and tornado potentials. Not a fan.
 
#99
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/534043336

Fun short workout. No wind, which is really rare. Insanely pleasant temps and no humidity. All in all, super rare weather for July. Kinda wish I had more time, but got fillings in the morning and couldn't really eat until 3pm due to numbness. Only gripe was the damn horse flies. Checked my phone and they were on me in less than a minute. Decided to use it as a time trialing/climbing type effort. Broken toe didn't bother me one bit.
 
#100
spade2you said:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/534043336

Fun short workout. No wind, which is really rare. Insanely pleasant temps and no humidity. All in all, super rare weather for July. Kinda wish I had more time, but got fillings in the morning and couldn't really eat until 3pm due to numbness. Only gripe was the damn horse flies. Checked my phone and they were on me in less than a minute. Decided to use it as a time trialing/climbing type effort. Broken toe didn't bother me one bit.
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That's a nice ride, that kind of weather is rare around here too. Any kind of flies is a bugger, I don't know how many I swallowed or puked till now.:vomit:


I've been sick for a week, has been coughing like a horse and can't breath at my lung's full capacity, if I try I start coughing like a horse.

If I have the strenght, I'll go for an easy ride tonight. It's really boring not being able to ride.
 

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