Originally Posted by Phil_gretz

I guess that I'm simply old fashioned. I learned to ride in the early 1970s. The conventional wisdom was that good riders spun. I learned to spin at about 90 rpms. It became natural, and maybe there was a genetic component to my ability to learn this. I was athletic, slim and very young.

Fast forward a few years and I meet my future wife in college. We ride together in the summers on occasion. I teach her to spin. She had never been exposed to the concept. We marry, move to California, and ride more together.

We move to VA, raise kids, empty the nest and begin riding regularly together. Know what? She still spins. In fact, at 60 years old, her form and technique are really quite good. Drafting behind her is never a worry. She's confident, consistent and efficient.

So, are we genetic freaks? No, we simply didn't debate the issue and learned how. It wasn't hard. I couldn't imagine riding at 70 rpms on the flat, not unless I was suffering from a gunshot wound and was riding myself to the hospital, then I could see the wisdom...

EDIT: I ride fixed, too. There, you've got to deal with a wide range of cadences, from grindingly slow to Cuisinart fast. Up to 135 rpms is okay, generally. Beyond that, it takes real concentration to "weight" the saddle and lighten the pedals. I don't have the coordination for much faster. But I'm old.