err,

not sure how serious the original poster is about this. it seems like it would be a tough, and by tough I mean impossible, nut to crack.

Why not just be a kick-ass amateur? I mean, it's all about winning races and getting chicks right?? You can do that at any level. It doesn't need to be pro. Plus, you can always play the "Yeah, you know I could have been a pro, just got started a little too late..." card.

Unless you're married. Then I'd say go pro.

But... then you'll probably spend so much time on the bike you'll end up ruining your marriage... at which point you'll need to win races to get the chicks...

A vicious cycle I see ahead of you. no pun intended.

socalrider,

I'll pretty much have an open schedule once I move to Nice, I don't work and I don't know anyone down there so I'll have no social commitments. The only thing I have planned is to build a website of all the cols in the surrounding area, with photos I've taken, gradient graphs, reviews, times, etc. Hopefully that will occupy some of my time. Obviously I'd also like to make friends and try to get settled.

Thank you for your words of encouragement.

All the best to you and your son.

:)

27 and never raced.........very slim, imo. But good luck, I'm 39 and planning to turn pro any day.

Well at least you picked a great place to train.. Nice has some pretty tough climbing, the maritime alps can be a little treacherous, so you will need to be careful..

Your keys will be mileage, nutrition and getting some races under your belt.. If you break some of your initial training into morning and afternoon sessions, 6 to 8 hours a day in the saddle will be more tolerable..

Race speed takes time to get used too, you will need to start in lower categories and if you have the desire and genetics you will improve...

What I want to know is how you're 27, moving to Europe, and don't have to work any more. How did you manage that one?

+1

Joop: I wouldn't listen to Ben sounds like his cup is always half empty. But you need to be realistic since it sounds as if you have no commitments, job, wife, kids ect that gives you the time and resources to try. There are a lot of people who think they have the "natural" ability but have never been around someone who actually does. Since you have never raced you should get serious about training start racing in local crits and see what happens. Your young enough to give it a try I would say get racing on a local level you will find out soon enough if you have the ability.
I'm not one to squash anybody's hopes and dream, but I'm not going to blow smoke up your skirt either. See what you can do first before worrying about getting a pro contract.

There's a really excellent book (fiction) that I read about a year ago called "The Rider". It was based on a real person who did some pro racing who started in his late 20's. Granted it was quite a while ago (mentions racing against Anquetil), but you might find it inspiring.

Given your situation, I'd say go for it. I think you will find out soon enough whether it's a realistic goal or not. Maybe I'm just a romantic and you don't have a snowball's chance in hell, but personally, I think you might regret it if you are really passionate about it and don't give it a try. Passion and commitment may not win the TDF, but they can get you a long ways down the road.

Best of luck in whatever you decide.

I'm not too phased by his comments, or any of the negativity for that matter. My initial question was prefixed by "given that you meet the standard". I was enquiring about what age you could go pro if you had the ability, not whether it was possible to reach pro standard at a given age.

Hey jazzy, thanks for the encouragement. I already have regrets that I haven't started racing sooner, but I have done a lot of travelling in the past 7 years that has made it difficult. And I know I would have even more regrets if I didn't go for it now while I have the chance. Maybe I will check out that book you recommened, cheers.

Also, do you have room for a 35 year old teammate? I'll sell my house, quit my job, and cycle in France (or any warm European area) for a year.

Damn, I envy your position. If you really don't have to work, go to school or take care of a family, then I would say you're crazy if you didn't give it a shot. The odds aren't w/ you --- even if you were only 20, but it seems like you know that already. And if things don't look good in a few years, then you're still young enough to try something else that gets your blood moving, instead of shmucking around in a cube farm like me.

Also, do you have room for a 35 year old teammate? I'll sell my house, quit my job, and cycle in France (or any warm European area) for a year.

:lol: Makes PERFECT sense to me!

There's the rub. You'll be on the Cote d'Azur, beaches, sunshine. Undoubtedly, you'll find yourself enjoying the good life too much to put out the effort to become pro. Alternative suggestion -- move to nothern Europe, train with Thor and Magnus, maybe you could win Paris-Roubaix.

I was born in the UK, so living anywhere in the EU is not a problem, Nice just happens to be my favourite place. In regards to work, I have some investments to manage, but that doesn't take much time each week.

You are welcome. I keep hearing people say what you want to do is impossible. Well, I am sure people may have thought Lance was done for when he got cancer. I am sure when he said he was planning on beating cancer that people said, yeah sure, I have heard that before. But Lance did beat cancer, he did win 6 times and I think he will win number 7. My wife has had breast cancer twice but she works every day and never complains. I think what you want to do is possible if you have enough determination. I was reading Men's Journal (latest edition) about Lance but there was some articles on the other bike riders that was inspirational but I was reading about Chris Horner(age 33) in VeloNews (page 20) took a pay cut and sold his house to make it this year. Go for it, if you fail, you can say you tried, if you make it, I will be reading about you in VeloNews.... :)