wallrat

I was mainly mountain biking from 40-43 and found old all the old guys my age road ride. Since my kids are in elementary school I meet a lot of the fathers and if they do ride, it's on road. To be more social, I picked up a road bike. I'd estimate I ride with 50-60 different people over the course of the year and 90% of them are road cyclists.

GravelMN

Because when you stay fit, you live longer and can continue doing what you love. BTW, 40 is not "older" it is "younger". I know many avid cyclists in their 60s, 70s and 80s+. Now get off my lawn

103-year-old Robert Marchand celebrates birthday by climbing the col that bears his name | road.cc

banerjek

Part of it may also be that physical entertainment used to be the only real kind, and now there is a lot more electronic/online stuff. Also, people seem much more risk averse than they used to be.

The other sports I do (ski mountaineering and sea kayaking) are totally dominated by mid 40's and up -- anything under 50 is young. Some of has to do with being able to find time and money, but many people are simply scared to even try. Having said that, those other sports require a certain amount of skill/knowledge to be done safely.

chiggy

Anyone with an internet connection should know that isn't true. Young people do some pretty stupid stuff. It's not electronics either.

Anyway, young guys just have so many more options for exercise since they aren't limited by injuries or age. When you can do practically any sport or exercise program you want why spend $1500 on a bike.

dcsix

"..cycling was more popular with the baby boomers in their younger days than our younger days."

Exactly right. Growing up on the West side of Los Angeles, I had a wealth of cycling input and opportunity, from the old school Raleigh dealer nearby to the first Schwinn store in the area. I rode to school almost all the time, and was there for the start of the BMX craze. We'd ride through UCLA, up Beverly Glen, through Bel Air, across Mulholland Drive and down Sepulveda along the 405. We were like thirteen, all on Sting Rays (that's an old style single speed bike for you youngsters ) doing 20 miles in a day. It was in our blood, and with all the competing things to do (and phone screens) these days, it's no wonder that there seems to be a lot of older riders.

YogaKat

At age 43 I decided last month to try to go ride around the neighborhood on my daughter's bike then realized it was killing my knees so I went to the store and bought a cheap pretty bike. Now I can't stop. I log into work a couple of hours early so I can take a two hour lunch and ride. It takes away all the stress and give me a nice break in my work day, plus I'm in much better shape already. The weekends are the best though. I have time to really get out there and explore.

banerjek

Some of them do truly insane stuff, but they are very few. What's more common is youtube voyeurism of the few who actually do things.

Also, bikes aren't cool. But if they're gravitating to other sports, which ones are attracting such large numbers of people?

dcsix

Good on you, YogaKat!

scott967

Have a million soccer fields near me. I feel sorry for the guys/gals pulling out the folding chairs, coolers, etc as their kid heads out in full soccer kit while I ride by. And this is during the week too, not just Saturday AM.

scott s.
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caloso

Some of us can do both. We just get up and ride a lot earlier.

Leinster

All of these, plus a lot of people get told some time in their late 30s/early 40s that their knees/hips/shoulders will not stand up to running/basketball/soccer/snowboarding much longer. I know quite a few guys who've transitioned to the bike from rugby; it's a lower impact form of exercise without the lateral movement that'll blow your patella out.

Jeremy_S

I'm 37, most are older than me around this area. For me I took it up very recently because my knees are shot and running is no longer an option.

79pmooney

Why are a lot of road cyclists on the older side? I'll make a guess. Because like me they were born a while ago, 2) are still riding and 3) haven't the brains to figure out reversing this aging thing. When the (relative) youngsters out there start running into knee and other issues, they will start riding and will probably fall into those same three traps.

Ben

camphhort

You are absolutely correct!

OldsCOOL

It's an interesting phenomena. No adult in my family rode a bicycle when I was a teen in the '70s. I cant even imagine what it would have been like seeing my grandparents in a kit, riding racing bikes. Not only do I see the majority of riders being 50+ but I am among them.

thump55

We're like Benjamin Button in reverse.

Dan333SP

In my city it seems that there are equal numbers of riders on either side of 35 years old. I would say that a higher percentage of the racing types are below that number compared to the recreational types, but I think that's indicative of older people getting in to it due to injuries in other activities and younger people getting in to it specifically to race.

A lot of it has to be down to culture. Richmond has a much better cycling community that draws in younger people as a fun social and competitive activity, while where I grew up (Miami) there were stereotypes about fat old dentists in pro tour kits on $8,000 bikes and no young people took it seriously.

For any given location to have a younger community of cyclists, having a culture that celebrates bikes and makes it appealing is critical. Look at Belgium/Holland/Demnark for examples of places where kids grow up understanding that it's a perfectly reasonable way to get around and exercise. Lots more young riders there.

Marcus_Ti

Cycling has a high startup cost. Younger folks in addition to playing the career rat race and not having income or time off... Also are getting married and hatching eggs so they have even less than no time and money.

SpikedLemon

I can speak for myself, having young kids, finding time is a matter of opportunity. Planning far enough ahead for something like cycling feels selfish (rather than spending time w/ the fam).

FrenchFit 

The average North American bicycle commuter is a 39-year-old male professional with a household income in excess of $45,000 who rides 10.6 months per year.
Moritz, W., 1997 - Survey of North American bicycle commuters: Design and aggregate results, Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 1578, 91-101



U.S. cyclists who bike frequently have a median income of almost $60,000.
SRDS, 2005 - The Lifestyle Market Analyst

22 percent of the net growth in U.S. bike trips from 1995-2009 is by people ages 60-79. Their biking quadrupled in those 14 years, the fastest growth of any demographic.
Monsere, C., et al., 2014 - Lessons from the Green Lanes (National Institute for Transportation and Communities)

Leinster

This. Our twins are 11 weeks old. I've been on the bike precisely one time since they were born, and I have no clue when the next will be.

SpikedLemon

You need to coordinate nap time with being able to do anything and trade off with your other half as to who's doing stuff outside of the house and inside.

You've got quite the challenge ahead to synchronize both kids which you'll desperately need to do - otherwise not much'll get done.

JohnDThompson 

This. A lot of us started riding during the "bike boom" of the late 60s and early 70s and never stopped.

chiggy

I suppose there are a few questions here:
Why are some young people inactive? Time devoted to other priorities, don't care, youthful metabolism, etc. Whatever it is, it's not "kids these days and their gadgets".


Why are the active ones not biking? Money is and obvious factor. I also think the generational thing has merit. So no, bikes aren't cool, but they aren't uncool either. More like not even on the radar for most.


If not cycling, what are they doing? Anecdotally speaking, practically everything else. It's no single activity. Running and lifting is always number 1 as general exercise. Then there are rec sport leagues if available, or just a game at the local court/field. Martial arts or boxing classes have become common. Bodybuilding and fitness competitions are a thing (yay narcissism). Crossfit seems to be a haven for the 26yo who lost his identity after HS football ended. Then we have the injured ones, like me, who are cycling because they broke something and can't do anything else. Years from now all my peers will also have broken something. They'll start looking for ways to stay active, find their options are limited, and ultimately come join me on the bike.


The real question is, how many older guys would be biking if their bodies could hold up to the harsher activities.

Cyril 

Because with age comes wisdom.
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