Just saying hi from the Gulf Coast area of MS!

I've owned various cheap road and mountain bikes since high school. Never really rode more than I had to.

I've been riding stationary bikes in the gym for several years, but in my mid 50s now and looking to do more road riding.

Currently on an early 2010's Fuji Sportif 1.1 (new tires, tubes and chain - of course) trying to get comfortable and learn the bike. Have a Garmin bike computer to keep track of distances and times. No power meters, heart rate monitors or other electronics.

I'm riding a 6.5 mile loop three times a week to get started. The elevation is from 49 ft to 153 ft (325 ft total ascent/331 ft total descent - according to Garmin) that I'm completing in about 28 minutes. One "measured" climb, .4 mile with 56 ft of ascent (just over 2.5%).

My short term goal is to be able to complete a 50 mile ride in the next 6 months.

Welcome to Bike Forums!

Slow and steady to start is a smart way to go.

Welcome.

The fitness guys will chime in with the data, nutrition and bicycle advice, in several forums. Including 50+, with personal experiences.


2nd on recommendation for slow & steady at first. Listen to your body rather than driving the body to a goal or schedule. Should be doable, , but who knows the course, conditions, your fitness+dedication. Smooth tires and aero position make it easier.

Have fun. We like pictures.
Ole Miss '73

Is this one like yours?
2014 Fuji Sportif 1.1 from BikeRadar.
Fuji Sportif 1.1 – in brief

Welcome (50+ here too) - my recommendation would be to just try beating your previous best by a little bit each time. Won’t always be possible. Wind, energy levels etc but having a target will push your fitness a little bit.

And you will tire of the same loop so do it backwards or mix it up a bit.

Hello here

Im also new and im glad welcoming new members

No - mine is a rim brake.

I can't post urls/upload pictures, so you'll have to use your imagination....

Groupset Rear Derailleur
Shimano Tiagra, 10-speed
Front Derailleur
Shimano Tiagra, band-type 34.9mm
Crank
Oval 730 forged alloy, 50/34T
Shifters
Shimano Tiagra STI shifter/brake combo, Flight Deck-compatible, 20-speed
Cassette
SunRace, 12-32T, 10-speed
Chain
KMC X10, 10-speed
Brakes
Alloy dual pivot, 47mm-57mm reach
Type: Rim
Brake Levers
Shimano Tiagra STI

I may get tired of it, but right now it's still a challenge (to me) with the elevation changes.

Weather for the last two weeks, and not having proper gear for it, has kept me off the bike.

Obligations kept me off the bike today but I I hope to ride tomorrow.

Welcome to the forum.

Welcome Rick, from SE Wisconsin!

With your goals, my advice is to find and join your local bike club. I would set some intermediate goals, too. Riding with a group, you'll learn a lot very quickly and the miles just fly by. You'll soon find that 20 miles doesn't feel like a long ride any more. For me, the biggest challenge to attain the higher mileage was getting comfortable on the bike. Fitting it properly to myself, getting a good saddle, good shorts, etc.

Enjoy your stay!

Thank you.
Unfortunately, there are no groups closer than about 40 miles. Work has me getting home right now with just over an hour of daylight.
I'm not having any problems with my current 6.5 mile route. I'm averaging right at 29 minutes over 15 rides. I think it's time to start doing two loops (once my thermal bibs get here).
I would like to get with a group for the advice on bike fit and cadence. I don't have power meters or any other way to keep up with power or cadence.
Maybe next summer.

Power, I can't comment on. That seems like a pro thing, and for them, it is power:weight ratio.

I think heart rate is more important for regular guys like us, and pretty easy to get a Bluetooth heart rate monitor chest strap and pair it with your GPS.

For cadence, you want to not be mashing the pedals, but spinning them by pedaling in a circular motion. Not so fast that you're winded from spinning so fast, but fast enough that you're using the gearing to make progress, not just brute force.

I appreciate the advice.

The problem I'm having re: cadence, is maintaining a constant cadence with the elevation changes I have. Looking at my post ride metrics, I'm averaging 9 mph going up my toughest climb (where I am in really spinning the crank using my 50:32 gears) and hitting 30 mph going down the longest/steepest descent. I am not able to keep up with the pedals on this descent. Honestly I'm not comfortable trying to go any faster at this time.

I received a FitBit for this Christmas and have started wearing it to keep up with my steps, heart rate and sleep. I know it's not the best for the bike, but it's what I'm starting with.

In my 40s, I was an occasional rider, often doing 5 or 8 miles. The epic ride for me was 10 or 12 miles, with a 250 foot climb in the middle.
Now I'm over 70 and typically do 35-45 mile rides with a group. And usually more than 2000 feet of climbing. (This would have been unbelievable to my 48 year old self!)

Group rides did 4 things for me:
1. a scheduled start time, to get me out of the house.
2. a group for visibility to drivers, and to handle the occasional mechanical failure.
3. The miles go by fast with a group, still a bit surprising to me.
4. The clubs and groups know a lot of good routes! Around here, it appears to be boring farmland when driving on the main roads. The riders know routes that have been refined for years, on scenic, quiet back roads. So many good routes!

I'm roughly the same age, similar deal with the bikes. I want to do 50 as well! I hope we both make it. 👍

Youre welcome

These last two weeks have not been good for my riding.

Between the rain, the cold, and the lack of light past 5:00 PM.

I wish we would do away with daylight saving time...

Not that I'll have time to ride until next week due to work, but I did receive my thermal tights today. Of course, daytime highs are forecast to be in the low to mid 70s next week.

Question - why do I receive (presumably automated) Private Messages saying my post has been approved by moderators, but I can't open my private messages?

Thank you.

Welcome to the forum.

All your equipment concerns mean nothing at the moment. My 7-year-old just did a 25 mile pre-Thanksgiving "turkey ride" in street clothes on a kids bike. He wasn't last. Keep the perspective of having fun and just riding. Improvement will come whether you have electronics or fancy gear or not. The heart and legs are very trainable after 50.

I would invest in safety and cold weather gear to ride through the dark and winter if you want to get to 50 miles in 6 months. At your likely speed, 50 miles is about a 4-hour ride.

Nothing wrong with being scared of going 30mph. Nothing good can come of going faster than you are comfortable, except shaving a couple of seconds off your loop.

Thanks for the welcome.

Thermal tights just arrived. While not bike specific, I have UnderArmor Cold Gear thermal tops and decent gloves to wear. I have a few different vests, again, not biking specific gear.

Front and rear lights will be the next equipment to be purchased..

Should I be concentrate more on distance or speed as a beginner?

Keep it real - go enough distance to get you home safely and enough speed to get home at the time you need to be home.

After that, I would say distance. Speed will come.

Have fun. Learn to handle the bike. Learn to shift. Keep the pedals turning. Learn what your comfortable pace is. Can you turn 6 minute miles? 5? 4? Learn when wind resistance starts to slow you down.

Learn how your body works. Notice how your different energy systems ramp up and down as evidenced by things like heart rate, breathing, and cramping. Learn how fast you recover.

Have more fun. Wear out some bike parts - grips, a chain, tires. Learn to replace them. Calibrate your calorie intake to your riding.

The number one thing at this level is simply racking up a couple of thousand miles - however you get it done.

I went for a longer ride this week - 13.1 miles. Took me 1 hour 5 minutes.

That was two laps of my regular route. First lap was 30:44 and second lap was 33:59.

The second lap was definitely more difficult than the first for me.

I like this route because of the climbs; 315 ft total ascent, 322 ft total descent with a .4 mile climb (2.49% avg grade, 6% max grade, 52 ft ascent). This climb is also ~5 miles into my ~6.5 mile route.

It's making learn how to use the gearing to my advantage.

The first lap felt normal. The second lap, my left hand started feeling some numbness and my butt started to get really uncomfortable.

I feel like I'm still leaning too far forward but I've got the seat as far forward as possible and I recently replaced the stem with a higher rise and shorter reach.

Appreciate you taking the time to respond.

Well done!

I would try to forget one lap rides and make two laps your new minimum. Where you are now, however, two sounds like a bit much - I would consider something in-between for awhile.

Your time is on track - not sure if you are stopping for red lights and such. One goal might be to get that under an hour for a 13.1mph average speed. To get there, I would focus on the ratio of time you are spending in various gears. Try to save the easier gears for hills and get used to spinning a good solid gear almost all the time. To me, being a "fifth gear" rider (or whatever) makes more sense intuitively than focusing on time. The nice thing about having a route like that is that you can really track your results if you want.

You live in a flat area. I think most riders would agree that six percent is a legitimate climb but two percent not so much. By the way, in real numbers you total up and total down should match because you got back to where you started.

The pain thing is common to new riders. Bike seats are inherently uncomfortable until your butt adapts to it. Hand numbness is also a very common complaint.