Originally Posted by
hooligancyclist
Skinny runners often end up to be good uphill time trialists if they do solid work on the bike. The muscles are much more complementary than when you are riding the flats. Many runners often train for durations near 20 minutes but I would imagine, lack endurance for 4+ hour rides or have any kind of sprint. A beginner to the bike, yes, but running competitively especially if for Stanford would have the potential to make a good bike rider.
A competitive runner doing 100mi/wk will typically be at a higher aerobic fitness than your average Cat4 racer. Even mile specialists do a long run of 20 or so miles, so runners tend to have plenty of endurance. I am an average runner and an average cyclist, but a half marathon leaves me a lot more tired than a double century.