Remember that Ned was untouchable as a normal age mtb racer. A rider that peaks as a Cat 4 at 25 years old will be a mediocre Cat 4 at 35 or 45 years old. A world dominating 30 or 40 year old will not suddenly become a mediocre Cat 4 at 50.
Ned's age/performance is a correlation relationship. It's not casual. Age doesn't cause him to ride well. He has incredible genetics that allowed him to dominate the world of mtb for something like a decade. Genetics
erformance, yes. He just happens to be older.