Daves_Not_Here

I've been riding for about 3 years and improving my speed and endurance. I'd like to continue to improve with the eventual goal of riding a sub 5 hour century (seems completely unattainable to me now). Living next to El Dorado, I find that I'm drawn to racing for the competition and the sheer level of fitness these guys maintain. I'd love to start at Cat 5 and try to get to move up to Cat 3 or Masters. However, at age 53 with a family and a business, I can't afford to be taken out by a crash. I understand I can crash at any time, but I need to minimize the risk.

So I'm looking for intense but relatively crash-free activities and goals that will give me a reason to train besides just doing intervals for the hell of it.

Here's what has already occurred to me:
- Time trials. I am assuming that these races don't involve much crashing (compared to a crit).
- Faster club rides. I still get dropped by the A group.
- Tougher rides like Breathless Agony

Any advice is apprecated.

Gluteus

I share your concerns.
Group rides will keep you motivated.
Strava also helps.

UmneyDurak

After doing some group rides around Irvine area, I'll take racing over them. Have you thought getting in to track? Not sure where you are in SoCal, but there are couple good ones there.

Daves_Not_Here

I'm in Long Beach, close to the velodrome at Dominguez Hills -- I had never considered track, but it kind of makes sense now that you mention it. At least if you go down, you don't get run over by an entire peleton.

I'm curious about the Irvine rides -- did you find they were reckless? I had heard of a Fast Friday ride that tries to drop people, but I hadn't heard they crashed much.

mkadam68

Also in your situation, I completely understand.

This is absolutely correct. Crashes don't always happen directly due to other people. Many of them can be attributed to mechanicals: broken chains, cranks, gear mis-shifts (ask me how I know).

This is where your missing it: there are none.Try to grasp the concept that crashing has nothing to do with the other people. Minimizing the risk has everything to do with how you race and your skills. Do this, and your chance of crashing goes way down. If you rely on others to somehow protect you...

For example, during a fast training ride, I had two guys lean on me, one from the left and another from the right. We were fine, but the one on the left made some mistakes and crashed. On hindsight, it almost came down to him expecting or even trying to crash, like it was inevitable. He stopped pedaling, drifted backwards, hit my legs with his handlebars, and continued leaning as he did so, falling as he moved backward. He didn't seem to try and straighten up, most likely 'cause he was too shocked at making contact.

Don't do all three right away. First comes the group rides, then TT's, and then maybe hard climbing rides (maybe). Check out Botto's "So You Wanna Race?" thread stickied at the front page. Follow it religiously. I found out the hard way that hard climbing slows you down and saps your leg speed. So be cautious with that.

DataJunkie

TTs and Hill Climbs tend to be fairly safe.

jrobe

I am 54 years old and gave up racing largely because of the crashes caused by younger people who watched too many bike races on TV and made bad decisions. A broken collarbone and some broken ribs was enough for me to bag that nonsense.

Now I train, mostly alone, with a Powertap based training system. That alone gives me motivation to stay in peak physical condition. For example, last night was a 1 hour ride with 2 sets of 90 second intervals. When I finished the workout, I downloaded the data into Cycling Peaks software and can monitor my performance and progress. I guess I consider it still racing but now I race against myself. One advantage I found from buying a powermeter and changing my training to that system was that I now ride less in terms of time. I now train much more efficiently and more effectively.

mpath

I'm an auto enthusiast. When a young guy asks me how to make his car faster, as in what/how should he modify/upgrade his ride, I always say, "Go to driving school."

So, OP, doing what you can when you can while prioritizing life to a happy balance, I'd suggest a cycling coach.

deacon mark

At 51 I am in the same boat except I do not want to race. How fast can you ride a solo century now? I too would like to do a 5hr century and on a good day I can do one in 5:19 completely solo. I think I could in a group make the 5 hr mark and maybe not as hard as I think it is. I too avoid crashing it is a huge fear. Recently had a chance to do some serious hills ( I live in the flats) and wonder how anyone can go 50mph. Well around here I can get to 39 mph and after looking at the 9% grade for a mile I had no trouble getting up the grade on my double but going down on a smooth fairly straight path I did not feel comfortable going 35 and picking up speed without pedaling. I hit the brakes and went down at a sane speed. I now see that on a big down hill speed is what you can take and I guess I am just not cut out to do anything too crazy. Wiping out at 30 is probably near death but at 50 you are toast. Maybe we just ride and forget it.

DataJunkie

That seems to be the main reason we have age based categories.

hhnngg1

Your ideas are all the best moves for one who doesn't want to tangle with the fray day in an out.

Unfortunately, if you really want to move up to Cat3 or equivalent masters, you will have to be in the thick of it, and often in the violent final sprint. You can only learn to win if you know the tactics to get to the front and stay there when it counts, and even when bodies are flying all over the place around you.

I used to race crits but also stopped after a big crash in a race that I almost entered but ended up scratching due to a mechanical. My buddy broke his forearm and collarbone and was out for most of the season. With my job and toddler in tow, there's no way I can afford an injury. That's actually why I'm in endurance sports instead of basketball or soccer now - decreased risk of serious injury with age, and I'm not even old yet.

On the bright side, you can definitely be a very strong rider by doing exactly what you had in mind.

mpath

And old guys like us don't heal or recover quite as fast anymore. I'm 47, sprained my wrist last week - non-cycling related - and haven't been able to ride since. I don't know how these guys continue to race the TdF with broken wrists, collarbones, or separated shoulders.

Bob Ross

qft

Juan Foote

I typically try to walk mine up the stairs, or ride the elevator....oh wait, different next level....

carpediemracing 

There's a bump in speed/power that comes from mass start racing that you can't get anywhere else. Even pros that miss out on racing (typically due to injuries or suspensions) take some time to get back up to speed. I don't know why racing helps but it probably has to do with the motivational factor, both from a "I just need to hang on one more time" or "If he can do it so can I".

Racing is probably going to feel easier than a full on century assault. You'll definitely be more tired after a century, but an hour or two of racing won't leave you exhausted the way a century leaves you. There will be times in the race when it is much, much easier than a solo ride. There will also be times when it's incredibly harder. It's those harder bits that go a long way towards making you faster in general. When you realize that 30 mph for a minute is kind of normal then 30 mph doesn't seem like a sprint anymore and 20 mph seems sedentary.

Some random thoughts: my wife and I have a tandem. She isn't comfortable descending at more than about 40 mph on it, but on the flats she's okay going 45+ mph. I've been riding all my life but I'm petrified on a motorized two wheeler (moped, scooter, motorcycle) once I hit about 30 mph. On a bike that's the speed on a normal flat road in a crit, and if I was trying to bridge a small gap 30 mph means I have a flat tire. On descents I'm okay at 50-55 mph (recently), 60+ mph (I haven't hit that in a long time). I bet you'll find that pedaling 35 mph on a flat road is totally comfortable mentally speaking, even if it's a bit nerve wracking right now on a descent.

Re: crashing - I'm about the most risk averse person I know. Seriously. I have second and even third backup drives for my data, multiple computers, even multiple UPSs. I stop at stop signs and stop lights, whether on my bike or driving a car (in a group I follow the group, but if I'm leading the group, we stop). I have fire extinguishers in all my cars as well as in different parts of my house. I have hard wired and battery smoke detectors in the house. I am conscious of stuff around my feet whenever I carry my kid (4 months old) around, I plant my feet securely on things like stairways, and I try and plan what I'll do if I fall while holding him. I have three generators, one that can be plugged into a transfer switch in the house, two others identical to each other. I have a secondary heater that doesn't require more than 400w to run and it heats the whole house. Our three cars have separate wheelsets with snow tires on them because snow tires work better in snow and on ice. I keep 200mi worth of fuel in the garage (5 gal and I regularly use/replenish it to keep it fresh), and I haven't sold our third car, even though we don't use it, because it runs and it would be fine in an emergency (and it has a fire extinguisher in it too, as well as jumpers and some other stuff). Etc etc etc etc. I don't think I'm paranoid, but I definitely try and be prepared for any foreseeable and realistic problems.

In cycling I have two frames that are basically set up the same. Same (custom) geometry, same components, and they share 3 sets of wheels (not two, three - the third is a back up in case I have massive problems with the first two sets). In the household all our bikes are Campy 10s, at least in the shift/brake lever, even the 9s Shimano tandem. This way I have 4 sets of shifters to draw from as well as many derailleurs and such. We have 5 sets of Look Keos so I can use another pedal set if I have a failure. I bring extra cleats to a race, and I have 3-4-5 sets at home. I even have extra helmets, shoes, a backup set of pedals and shoes (3 sets pedals, 1 set shoes, and multiple extra cleats).

I am saying all this to illustrate just how risk averse I am. Because I'm so risk averse I insist on doing criteriums. They are the safest races for people like me.

I have consciously avoided races that hit speeds over 45 mph (except in a sprint) - no major descents for me except on group or solo rides. This leaves only crits (I'm terrible at time trials so I only go to them to help work them).

I really don't like crashing. I know it's bad, even ones where you recover fully. My thoughts on crashing and not crashing:

How I judge if someone is ready or not:
https://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...-crashing.html

Avoiding crashes in general:
https://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...g-crashes.html

Your advantage is that you have a lot of life experience. You have certain priorities. Other things are not priorities. Therefore you won't find yourself well over your head, like diving on the inside of a hairpin on a descent while trying to slow down from 60 mph. You'll be able to enter a crit, spend some time at the front, spend time chasing down breaks (launching them makes for slower efforts than chasing them, and you're in it to build speed, so chase, don't launch), then recover while sitting in at the back.

Get your 10 finishes in, upgrade to Cat 4, and sit on the back of some Masters races. If the San Diego area is any indication the M50+ races will be close to Cat 1-2 level in your area. You'll get plenty of speedwork in. Expect to last a lap or two of your first race unless you feel okay trundling along at 30 mph in a pack (with peaks of 35-38 mph).

Around here some of the best racers are M55+. They can win Cat 3 races, they can place top 20 in P-1-2-3 races. Age is not the limiter here, it's skills, tactics, and experience. Bank on your experience, work on your speed, and you'll be (safely) hooked.

robncircus

I'm only in my 30s but still have a job and responsibilities as well. CDR nailed it as far as crits. Additionally, seek out some masters racing for your age group. I never see crashes in the 45+ races we have. Of course, those tend to be super fast due to the ex-pros and whatnot but they are still safe. Worst case you get shelled and get some good training.

You may also want to try mountain bike racing. Fewer large groups, and if you crash it's not on pavement. You can build a good base on the mtb (see Cadel Evans and several other strong tour riders).

Good luck

Rob

DataJunkie

<-- 37
<-- raced crits, TTs, RR, and HCs this year.
<-- provides the single income for a family of 4, 2 dogs, and a cat.

Hell I can wreck on an organized ride just as easily. If I wanted a sport that is entirely safe I would golf.
That being said I am on the fence in regards to enjoying crits and I may say the heck with them sometime in the future.

bikerjp

Go that way, really fast. If something gets in your way, turn.

UmneyDurak

For a group ride yes. So a bad wreck during Coffee Crew ride, heard of a few. There is another one, forgot the name, that goes through Santiago canyon on Saturdays. Also a mini race, only with varying abilities, so you get a lot of sketchy situations when people try to keep up. Not to mention all the red lights running.

jmX

Como St does it on Sunday, and Canyon Velo does it on Saturday. Not sure if either of those are sketchy or not.

StephenH

Look into long-distance racing, the 24-hour type stuff. There, your speed will do you good, but a lot of the events are non-drafting, so it's not a bunch of mad pack riding necessarily.

Psimet2001 

Fast group rides are more dangerous than racing.

If you don't want to wreck then don't race. Not all racers wreck but you sound competitive - you will end up in a situation where you will hit the deck.

Go do triathlons, tt's where they focus on time and comparison to each other based primarily on age.

Cross is also the best option if you want that crit feel but the ground is softer and the speeds are lower.

Sourpuss Magee

Cyclocross may be your answer. Short season, quick races, and falling on dirt or mud isn't so bad.

Gluteus

By some of the comments here, i'm getting the sense that some of the group rides in SoCal (and perhaps in the Chicago area) are a cluster**ck.

If you know the route and most of the people you're riding with, why would a group ride be more dangerous than a criterium race?
Eliminate sprinting for primes, sharp corners at speed, and people trying at all cost to "get behind a good wheel" or "position themselves in the pack, even if you have to be aggressive"; I would expect that the chances for crashing would be reduced. It sounds that some group rides are just as bad.

patentcad

While 35+ and masters' races tend to be considerably safer than the non-age restricted categories, crashing is part of racing. A fast group ride on the open road tends to be a bit safer (depending on the people that do the ride), but I have been ambulanced off the Nyack Ride, so all bets are off. If you can handle a TT bike, TTs are your best bet, but those aren't the same as mass start racing and fast group rides.

Get over the fear of crashing, accept the danger, learn how to minimize it by riding and racing smarter. If you can't do that, don't bother. If you race, you are going to crash sooner or later. Most crashes do not result in debilitating injury, 90%+ of the time you get up and get back on your bicycle.