I like ladies step through frame design more and more now that my gimpy hip is beginning to bother me. Too many skiing tumbles as well as bike miles are slowly telling me I'm finally growing up. Giggle.

I am 67 and thought I had been accepting getting older with grace. However, the past one and a half years I have really noticed a decline in my visual perception, balance, reflexes, coordination, dexterity and mental acuity; especially memory. I am ok with the aches and pains and I know that I am very fortunate to still be in pretty good health., but some of the above mentioned issues really get to me. I have depended on exceptional coordination and reflexes, and dexterity, and have found it very difficult to accept the degradation of them, even more so than the mental degradation. I just hope that I will get to where I can be OK with it and keep moving through life's stages.

I'm 73 and ditto to all of the above, so thanks for summarizing what I'm pretty sure all of us are experiencing. To that I'd add general loss of strength and endurance, but I'm sure most of us are still in the top 10% of our age group.

Some of this was brought home to me the other day when I happened to take my hybrid-style bike onto a section of single-track to take a look at something. I'm not an MTBer and am not familiar with how to handle typical MTB-specific challenges, but I was surprised how shaky I was on one particular place that required threading a narrow off-camber line and going up a short slope with exposed tree roots. I made it, but wouldn't want to repeat the experience. Contrast this with my younger self who used to rip through the woods on a 250cc Husqvarna enduro bike, jumping logs, going off jumps, etc. at speed and not thinking anything of it!

By the way, age-related degradation of my skills is one reason why I gave up riding motorcycles 10 years ago and have not looked back.

I'm 68 years young and i love riding my n=vintage steel bikes. the only problem I had with them was buying another one because it was something I'd like to have had thirty or forty years ago.

A few years ago I came across a bicycle shop out in the country. They had a lot od NOS stuff from the early to mid 1980s. I bought a number of NOS Uniglide cassettes, Dura Ace AX brake shoes, Shimano 600 pedal cleats, gum rubber hoods for my Shimano 600 Arabesque brake levers, and some other items. I have a pretty good stash of old school Deore components too including a complete Deore Deerhead groupset. I think I'm all set for parts for most of my bicycles until I go to that Great Bicycling Nirvana in the Sky. My gran dad live to be well over 100 years of age and thus I have a lot more years of bicycling ahead of me if I'm as long lived as he was,.

Cheers

And I understand exactly what you said here, but for me, this applies to a lot of different things. :o I too am 68. ;)

We raise our families and dream that when they're grown we can acquire some of the things we'd liked to have got when our children were young or growing.

I think that's a large part of many loving Classic and/or vintage bicycles.

Cheers

I just bought on kijiji ( craiglist in US ) a Revolution Getaway 21 speed mtb. with Zoom 381 forks, 26x1.95 tires on Star circle aluminum rims with black spokes and Mien Join hubs with Shimano changers. It is Made in Canada and the rotary turning shifters and brake levers are all nicely placed on the bars. I paid $25 beaver bucks and it also came with a nice helmet. I am 88 years now and like others in our bike family here I am still out there dreaming of yesteryears. Even if I am a little crazy I am having fun tearing it apart and reassembling again. Perhaps I am ineligable as the threshold is 65-85. Giggle. Regards to one and all. Jim.

88 qualifies you as over the hill, but feel free to sneak in as desired.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWo60XaBq2A
(John Hiatt, Over the Hill)

Yet one more reminder of my age. I have a group of friends who have all known each other since we were at college 50+ years ago and we've all stayed active and in generally good health. Yesterday my wife and I were doing our annual "color hike" through the back trails at a local park when we ran into two of my buddies who are avid MTBers. When we asked where the usual third member of their gang was, they told us that on a ride earlier in the week he kept complaining about "chest tightness" and fatigue whenever they stopped to rest. Right away they told hime to get it checked out ASAP and, sure enough, his doctor sent him straight to a hospital for a stent.

I'm sure he'll be back in action soon, but it seems like we're starting to go from one health scare to the next. And at our occasional evenings out (used to be nights out) for beer and a burger, the conversation has progressed from talking mostly about bikes and other "guy stuff" to talking about our latest medical conditions. :rolleyes:

Thank you JanMM. Now I can just free wheel down the other side.

I just turned 65, successfully signed up for Medicare, and have fewer miles this year on all of my bikes than I've had since 2005. My health is good, no complaints there. My priorities have changed (we accepted a 3rd dog as a re-home in February); we're training and showing all 3 dogs in Obedience/Rally Obedience competitions, my husband retired then took a 20-month consulting job that includes October and November working 6-12 hr. days until Thanksgiving, I've been more politically active, and doing horticulture consulting for folks who don't know what's growing in their yards.

Over the past 4-ish years I've noticed that I'm more tired than I used to be...and my balance has shifted. Since April I've been practicing yoga (after a 13 year hiatus) again, twice a week, and it's helped improve my strength and balance and reminded me to stay curious & give up expectations...very challenging, but rewarding.

Of course the recent winds/fires/power outages in NorCal have altered my cycling habits as well. November looks dry and seasonal, so (fingers crossed) I'll get more road time before the year is up.

Thanks for reading!

I'm 70 and none of that stuff became really apparent to me until age 69. I look and feel OK, but I know all those areas you mentioned have begun to wane a bit. Shoot, this may be the year I let my motorcycles go...but it will be hard. Indeed in this culture getting older isn't easy. Stay moving, eat well, ponder seriously your priorities and for me...it was important that I was able to really sort out my spiritual thoughts and beliefs. And to me; having my first two grandchildren (girls) in the last two years has really blessed me more than I ever could have imagined. :)

Does anyone take Lyrica? I think it has messed up my balance. Very difficult to ride. Bike gathering dust. I'm only 82 and in my prime to enjoy outdoors. I have neuropathy and its driving me up the wall........

Yep...I'm 66 and when I've taken it, I notice a certain imbalance early in the morning. After a good coffee in the morning, I feel OK. I don't take it often, though it's good for neuropathy. I rode my bicycle without any problems, when I took it.

My personal experience is that in my 35 years of riding is the biggest age impact of age has been from 70 years old on. (I'm 73 pushing 74.) The keys have been the amount of loss of power, reduced endurance, (I've had lower my maximum comfortable distance ride), and slower recovery for the next ride. The loss of power, (20 percent), bothers me the most. Regardless I still love road biking. The experience is enhanced by living in West Los Angeles. The ocean or the mountains are just a few miles away. The weather is great all year around.

I'm 68, and I am "not" a Doctor. I do have a few hardcore conspiracy theorists friends, and for the most part, they suggest some Doctors do prescribe a lot of stuff for personal profit. Without going into details, I will say I have seen that. If I recall, Lyrica is advertised on TV? I don't listen to any of that nonesense. Start taking notes of names of Pharmaceuticals advertised on TV, then also note approximatly five years later, they are usually listed in class action lawsuits on that same TV. What's really going on there?
My short answer? I don't take any of that BS! Maybe an Aspirin a couple times a week.

I’m just a couple of years behind you, age wise, and way behind you in years riding but the question for me is to what extent a fitness routine using weights and aerobic and anaerobic exercise can help maintain strength and endurance or at least slow their loss. I’m working on it and hoping to extend my riding life as much as possible in this hilly part of the world.

In terms of working out and good physical health through exercise is wrapped up in three areas, aerobic/cardio, flexibility, and muscle tone and balance. The one thing that you can do daily is stretch. As far as biking and weights you need days of recovery and you may find the cost of time doing one cuts into the other.

IMO aerobic fitness and all-around flexibility are the two most important by far. Muscle tone and strength though important are definitely behind the first two. Biking will give you aerobic and lower body strength. You can add weights for the upper body and supplement the lower body with weights--but not much if any as that may cut into time on the bike.

In direct response to your question doing those three things I mention, especially one and two will dramatically slow the aging process of both body and mind.

Good luck.

Thanks BengalCat. I agree with all of your comments + anaerobic (intervals) training. Here, the riding season is over and won’t start again until April, so it’s easy to find time for the gym. The thing I notice is at my age I lose my conditioning more quickly, and riding alone isn’t enough to maintain strength, endurance, etc. In fact my riding performance drops off as the season goes along, unless I continue an abbreviated gym routine in the summer. We get enough rainy days so I don’t feel I’m losing riding time to do that.

Any 60+ yo mountain bikers here ? .. have been riding 1000+ miles for the last 4 years on the road... and looking for a change.... wondering if you have any tips for a noobie.

Good to read this :)

You've got to decide the type of MTB you need...steel, aluminum, titanium, carbon...XC, trail, enduro, etc. Where will you ride? Singletracks, fire roads, steep climbings, technical descents, and so on. I'm 66.
In my opinion, a good steel MTB with a good front suspension, would be a good bike for you. There are double suspension bikes, but they are heavy, slow climbers...most of them, but riders who like technical descents use them.
Nowadays, there are so many options, it can be hard to decide. I use to compete in MTB in the 90's. I still have my Breezer Jet Stream, and a Norco Team Issue, both with Tange Logic steel tubing, 21 lb and 23 lb. When I go to some mountain trails, the rides are very nice, though I seldom do it these days.
Marco.

I'm 70 this month and for those really feeling their age, there are options. You'll have to pry my bike from my dead cold hands, so it's a matter of finding ways to make biking possible as I continue to age. Right now, I'm good (actually better than good since my torn meniscus has finally healed!). But - I'm aware that pushing too hard has consequences now, where I used to bounce back overnight, too much strain can cause effects that linger for days. So - I recently purchased a teeny tiny electric friction drive for my bike(s). I ride with it turned off or paused 90% of the time, and I flip the pedal assist on if there's a really massive headwind or a hill that will hurt my knee. I'm actually riding further now that I have it, because there's also the mental impact of knowing if I crap out I can use it to get me home, lol. So my mileage is actually climbing back up again, which makes me happy. And I'm able to ride with my adult son again, without him having to wait for me constantly. He rides really fast and even when I was younger (think 50's) I couldn't keep up; with the motor assist I can actually ride WITH him instead a block behind ;-). I didn't want a dedicated or commercial e-bike, they are way too heavy. My little motor is only 4.5Lbs with battery, so my "e-bike" is a whopping 23.75lbs. As a result, it doesn't change the feeling or effort when pedaling with the motor off, it's not different than having a small trunk bag. So, don't stop riding, look at the various e-bike conversion kits out there and find one when you need it and keep rolling!

Bob is 91 now, and he still rides his Bike to Mickey Dee's a couple times a day. Bob is one of my Hero's for his perseverence. Just thought I'd bump to to give some of you folks a bit of incentive. :thumb:

It's good to know there are options, for us as we age.

I'm not a MTBer, but have some general advice. I did similar trail riding years ago, but on dirt bikes, and recall that in my early days of learning all the techniques, I used to crash --- a lot! Of course, I was 50 years younger back then and could pretty much shake it off and climb back on, and many's the time when I showed up at work on Monday morning limping and then was back out at it the next weekend.

Not that long ago, I took my hybrid-style "trail bike" onto some single-track trails that were established by the local MTB riders. I had no trouble with basically negotiating turns, etc., but was a bit unsteady in any place where the trail was off-camber or I had to thread a narrow line. I also wasn't sure what to do about various obstacles, such as a fallen tree across the trail. I remembered on my dirt bikes that I'd just gas it to loft the front wheel over the log and let the back end follow, but how to do it on a bicycle? So I got off and carried it over. Later, I came to where the trail crossed a ditch and I figured I could just go down into it and up the other side, but when the front wheel got to the bottom of the ditch it just stuck there and I went right over the bars! It was something that in my younger days would be something to have a good laugh about, but I've found that any fall at my age now can do some damage. I was lucky in this case, but that was my last serious off-road foray.

My point is that, regardless of your road riding experience, a lot of riding an MTB will be new to you and I'd advise you to be extra cautious with anything that makes you feel uncomfortable along the trails. Good luck and keep us posted on how you're doing!

Being in the same age group, I’m always looking for recovery tips for long days in the saddle.

Ran across this article on the Rapha website written by a woman. Being a man, diet can be overlooked at times [what! I can't have that donut after the ride]. Here’s what she does in preparation and post, for a 100 Km day [62 Miles]. This looks to be a good guide, and I’ve tried to adhere to it lately. It seems to make a difference from the hap hazard approach I’d used in the past, specifically the AFTER.


Before:

The meal you eat the night before the Women’s 100 is a vital ingredient that will help ensure you perform at your best. Contrary to what we used to believe, the evening before a long ride you don’t need to ‘carb load’ and stuff yourself full of pasta or rice. You should eat a balanced meal, not too late, that contains all the food groups - protein, carbohydrate and fat - alongside vegetables, or salad. Hydration is also hugely important in the 24 hours before a big ride, and “to ensure your liver is in top form, avoid alcohol and overly fatty foods”, suggests ex-professional rider Julie Krasniak.


During:

Eating on the bike, or during your ride, is essential for any cyclist attempting a long-distance event. “The food in your jersey pockets should be a small, delicious reward for the work you’re doing on the bike,” says chef, cyclist and Rapha Ambassador Lentine Alexis.

But not only should your jersey pocket-size snacks taste good, they need to contain the right balance of nutrients. Your glycogen stores need to be replenished early on in a ride and pros do this by eating small and frequent amounts of carbohydrates. Half an hour into a ride might seem very early to be consuming your first calories, but you’re not eating for now, you’re eating to feel fresh in 40 kilometres time. Over the course of 100 km [62 miles], a good rule of thumb is to eat every 30 minutes.


After:

“Refuelling your body with nutritionally poor food is like refuelling a finely-tuned sports car with cheap petrol. You just wouldn’t do it, unless you wanted your hard-earned investment to perform badly,” says CANYON//SRAM’s Tiffany Cromwell.

Tiff recommends starting to refuel your body within the first 30 minutes of completing a ride. “I do this with 15-25g of high quality protein such as chicken, yoghurt or cheese, alongside 1-1.2g of carbohydrate per kg of body mass. For example, if you weigh 60kg you’d eat between 60-72g of carbohydrate – that’s around one and half bagels, or a 200g sweet potato,” she adds.

Go to the Rapha site, under stories: Woman’s 100.

There are other stories and advice for longer rides at the same location. All good stuff.


I’d like to hear from others on this subject. Thanks....

My latest recycled ride
 

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1b2fce648.jpeg

Decided to breathe new life into this 2001 Schwinn Homegrown. It has a 27.5 conversion, upgraded to disc brakes with a 1x9 drivetrain I’m thinking about using this as a gravel bike s o I fitted it with a rigid TI fork. I still need to get a smaller front chainring and finish up a couple of other details

Just wanted to chime in on some of the earlier posts. I retired at 66 and finally, could use my time for what I had wanted during all the years of working 50-60 hrs @ week. First, my bad knee developed a stress fracture from upping my mileage( life long runner). Decided to get back into cycling( ortho made clear a replacement was in my immediate future if I stayed with my first love). Broken hearted, I decided to get back into road cycling and mtb. I had both in the mid nineties but, never had the time.

At 68 yrs, my routine is 3-4 days on the bikes( BMW motorcycle in addition to the two man powered models), 2 days in the gym(weights/stretching and core work), and one day running( trails or treadmill). its exhausting but necessary if you want to continue with an active life.

diet, supplements and adequate sleep allow me to maintain my new "work" schedule. I have a great PT, Ortho and PCP when something on me breaks. I appreciate that I can still be this active and accept my limitations which are many. Cataract surgically repaired vision, digital aid assisted hearing loss, the bad knee previously mentioned and the omnipresent cognitive quirks which make google reliance a life necessity.

i plan on maintaining that schedule realizing there will be diminishing returns on strength, agility, flexibility and awareness. it's like they say, the hard part is showing up Doing what you love to do takes care of the rest.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b63a52a31e.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...691af5b9d6.jpg

Having fun at the rest stop
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3dccfb192f.jpg

Take your pick
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...55a270535a.jpg

They also had Cokes.


This is why we luv gravel riding
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...81bcedf88e.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...2550bddff8.jpg

Gravel riding/racing the last 2 years is my new Gig. This is how I roll @ age 68 unPAved @ Lewisburg PA