DaveLeeNC

Over age 65 guy who was a 'serious runner' (call it Cat 2 or 3) in a previous life. Cycling now works much better for this aging body.

I've been cycling regularly for 18 months now (cycled a couple years in the 90's and that is it for cycling in my life). But I still have a "runner's mentality" toward the sport. When I was running I would 'point to' a couple of races each year and my training was kind of built around that. And I measured myself in absolute time which is natural for the sport. In fact among the running groups you were characterized as "he is a 34 minute 10K guy" or he is a 2:45 marathoner. For the most part cycling doesn't fit that perspective particularly well as course (hills/surfaces) and conditions (mostly a wind thing) are a much bigger factor in the sport (leaving drafting vs. no drafting considerations and the fact that most cycling is just not an individual thing).

Additionally I ride a road bike that I like and is comfortable (plus I have mucked around with the fit such that my knees, for the most part, don't argue with anything that I do on it). From a runner's perspective a TT bike would seem to be the more natural fit, but somehow a real road bike is what I want to ride.

So the occasional Merckx style TT would appear to be the best fit competition thing. I'm just curious as to how other 'former semi-serious runners' view cycling and personal satisfaction. Just setting my own goals on my own courses is the path that I am on for now - plus the occasional Strava segment just for variety/grins.

Thanks.

dave

Seattle Forrest

I was never a serious runner, but I tend to have cycling goals every year and look forward to them. This past year I wanted to do Washington Pass from the Methow Valley floor, some mountain riding, and a few others. Next year I want to do Hurricane Ridge (5,240 feet elevation gain in 17 miles) and Angels Staircase (7,000? feet elevation gain over 20 to 25 dirt miles). For me there isn't an element of competition, I just like challenging myself, especially in nice scenery.

StanSeven

I'm like you although I made the switch back much further. I went from running to tri's first mainly because I got bored with just running. The mindset was still the same with a focus on concentrating on a few races a year and measuring/comparing absolute times. I did a few road races but never quite liked them the same. You are more a victim of luck and what others do rather than having complete control of your destiny.

That's probably why I like tt's so much. I'm also at the age now where road races and particularly crits are out. I don't bounce back from the falls like I used to.

datlas 

Ride a road bike and join a local club. You will figure it out soon enough. One difference between running and cycling is that you will be going into the red zone at times, and recovering at other times on the bike, eg. up/down hills.

DonBjr

Get a power meter and you can be known as the XXw/kg FTP guy.

datlas 

BTW in our club we have specific rides based on ability. So most folks will say they are an "A" rider or a "B-" rider or a "C" rider. Obviously this only works locally and is non-transferable.

Shuffleman

This cracks me up. I ride with the "A" group in my club as well. I was on a Century ride with many other riders from other clubs a few months ago. I found out quickly that some "A" riders are better than others and I was in the other crowd. I am used to fast starts as that happens in every race. As a runner, I am prepared for that and know exactly how to start and finish. I figured it was the same for the bike races. I lined up with the faster guys, where I thought that I belonged. We started at about 23mph and after roughly 10 miles it got up to about 27mph. I knew enough to know that I am not that guy so I slowed down to my normal range. After a few minutes, I could see nobody in front of me and nobody behind me. I guess that makes me a tweener. I am sure that the pack slowed down and broke off at some point because at the first stop I found myself riding with others again.
Anyway, OP. I still like running much better and live by the Garmin. I do not find myself in that same boat with riding though. I care about my cadence and distance. I try to be very cognizant of my speed but there are variables like wind and hills that matter more than in running. There are recreational riders, talkers and etc. just like with running. I despise running with others but I like biking with others. I am not sure why but that is just the way that it goes. I am not fond of riding slowly and chatting though. That bores me to no end.
The sports are similar but different. If you take the same mind set into biking you can find many of the same pleasures. I personally do not care about racing bikes and I do not have the time to prepare even if I did. I love biking but it is to supplement my running, not the other way around.

Carbonfiberboy 

Besides TTs, there are at least a couple other interesting competitive things. Of course there are group rides. This is the usual outlet for those who want to compete against others on a road bike without getting hurt. However a much more interesting sport is randonneuring. On these events, every rider is timed and the results published. Of course these are not races. Right. They are however, extremely interesting: they are all-weather events, they are rule-based, and they are all about problem-solving in real time.
See RUSA: Randonneurs USA
This club is in your area: Bicycle for LIfe: 2015 Calendar

Most participants are over 40. They are attractive to the older, more endurance based crowd.

the_freewheeler

Cycling, like running, is a suffer fest. It's a matter of setting goals, as other have said, and aiming to achieve them.

I personally got into cycling through running. Developed several leg and knee issues, and started cycling to keep fitness. I wound up really liking it and started doing tri's, but now I just stick to cycling.

DaveLeeNC

Randonneuring - never considered that and had no idea that there was an active group near me. Have to think about that - thanks.

dave

DaveLeeNC

What is 'interesting' about cycling (vs. running) is how much the course affects what matters. If it is uphill then watts/kg is kind of the #1 parameter. On the flats it is mostly just pure power. Then downhill, if you got your Watts/kg up by losing a bunch of weight, you are at something of a disadvantage (within limits, of course).

All I know is that if the key measurement was absolute max power over like 10 seconds, I'd never make it out of the starting gate.

dave

Brian Ratliff

Because of the mechanical advantage and the effects of drafting and weight, cycling is an incredibly democratized sport. Almost every athletic type can find a niche in cycling, which is why you are struggling with this question. Most successful competitive (both "successful" and "competitive" mean different things to different people; not just talking about pros) cyclists divide themselves into a few categories:

• Sprinter - two types here: "top end" (heavy, high absolute power in the sprint range; think Cipollini, or, in the extreme, Chris Hoy), or "punchy" (smaller, high power/weight in the sprint range with lots of acceleration; think McEwen or Cavendish). These people are usually over 1300W for 5sec.
• Time Trialist - high absolute power for long durations (also called "Rouleur" due to their versatility)
• Climber - high power/weight ratio for long durations

DaveLeeNC

It is different. You would never see a world class sprinter (running/track) in the same race as a world class marathoner. But in cycling ....

dave

ColaJacket

Since the OP lives in NC, the NCBC has a series of Brevets. Here's a list from 2015. Things like this may give you something to shoot for.

GH

StanSeven

But there are people from outdoor track and short races that are successful as marathoners. Years ago Alberto Salazar finished second at New York in his first marathon after a longest run ever of 12 miles. His training focused mostly on 5k and 10k events.

StanSeven

But then he has to get a Brooks saddle, those lights with the hub generator, and racks on his bike

DaveLeeNC

I don't recall Salazar ever competing below 5K (13 to 14 minutes). That might be short by distance standards, but not like Cippolini winning a 12km flat time trial. Liquori was very effective at 1.5K to 5K distances, but much less so above that. I vaguely recall a marathon try or two, but not sure about that.

Tough to be world class for 10 seconds as well as for 10 minutes (or much longer).

dave

joejack951

Riding in the same race is different than being an actual contender. Do you ever see Greipel challenging Froome or vice versa?

DaveLeeNC

But you will see that, although unlikely WRT Froome due to peloton strategies. But a "Froome like" rider (in a breakaway) who is not a threat for the GC might easily be mis-timed by the peloton and be racing neck and neck w/Greipel over the last 50 meters.

dave

TCR Rider

I was primarily a runner for over 25 years, started competing at 30 yrs old. The only time I cycled was when I was rehabbing a running injury. Due to several orthopedic issues, the clincher was a fractured hip that required a hip replacement, I transitioned to cycling full time. I feel like I got to the party a little late to start racing, I'm 63, but I do like to train and push myself.
I more or less applied workouts I did while running into a cycling program. I do shorter intervals once a week and threshold intervals once a week as well as a long ride (3 plus hrs) on the weekend. The rest of the week I just do endurance (zone 2) rides. Not the most scientific approach but it does scratch my itch. I would like to hook up with a group to do an occasional ride with but mostly I ride solo or with one or two buds. There's a group of guys that are my age that I see out there all the time and they seem like nice guys but they ride painfully slow. Not that I'm particularly fast but that soft pedaling bores me to tears.

robert schlatte

I was a pretty good runner for about 25 years. Not as good as you but I was a sub 3 hour marathoner and sub 37 min 10k guy. I took up cycling seriously in my late 40's as I developed a hip issue and thought I should quit running but still needed my aerobic fix. I started out thinking I had to be a serious roadie. Over several years I figured out I did not care about riding in pace lines and being competitive. Gradually I transformed into more of an adventure type cyclist going on long self-supported trips putting in up to 100 miles a day, camping etc. This type of riding fits my temperament. With running, I was always interested in the practical side of the activity- ie, running places, back and forth to work, etc. There is all types of bicycling to explore- you don't have to pigeon hole yourself into one type.

joejack951

I have never seen that. I have seen the sprinters rapidly closing in on a breakaway group during the last few hundred meters, though. If and when they do catch the breakaway, the sprinters blow by them like they are standing still. I wouldn't call that neck and neck even if it does come down to a photo finish.

Ice41000

You can, and should, pretty much forget that "average speed" mentality. Cycling is very different. Cycling alone is great, but cycling with a group is better. Join a group or club and you will learn a lot of new things, improve as a rider, and have a lot of fun while at it.

milkbaby

I enjoy both running and cycling, but they're totally different to me. I have races and goal times that I train for in running, but in cycling I just want to be in shape enough to stay at the pointy end of any group rides and organized centuries that I participate in.

So I'm serious about picking certain goal running races and then figuring out the buildup in training needed to meet my goals. But for cycling, I just ride with friends and do some solo riding whenever nobody's available. If I couldn't run any more, I don't think I'd change what I'm doing cycling-wise. There's a lot more that's out of your control in a cycling race especially wrt crashing, so I don't dig that.

Brian Ratliff

Many times a sprinter will get into a break with other rider types, especially during the classics... at the finish, if they stay away, they are racing head to head.