Is Twelve Too Young
12-15-09, 04:24 PM
#27
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12-15-09, 04:53 PM
#28
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My little brother was often in the same race as Sarah Hammer. Lucky for him (and all the other boys), she was scored seperately. Lucky for me, I was 3 years older than her and rarely in the same bunched start.
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12-15-09, 07:22 PM
#29
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I wish i had known what a road bike was at the age of 12.Do it! The kids at his school will be jealous to see a "pro" biker, it will make him feel good about himself too.I'll be jealous of him though, i wish i had started at an earlier age.
12-15-09, 08:52 PM
#30
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Man, I wish I'd been a little sportier as a kid. My dad owned a bike shop and got me a sweet road bike when I was 13 or 14. I had only ridden a single-speed with pegs and stuff around the neighborhood before. The speed, combined with being in the drops, scared the hell out of me and I never got into it. Now that I've got a few years of cycling under my belt at age 22, I'm kicking myself. I'd be so much faster now!
12-15-09, 09:43 PM
#31
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I'm curious - is there any effect on the child's growth if they're intensely getting involved in the sport? Like becoming more compact, etc? I know some athletes (Michael Phelps) didn't touch a weight until they were out of high school, and just did a lot of cardio. Obviously there aren't weights here, but there is machinery involved, it's not like just running or swimming.
12-15-09, 09:50 PM
#32
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well, im 14 now and i wish my dad would have gotten me into road cycling even sooner. When i was really young we went on family rides, but at this point I am much, much faster than anyone in my family. All year i have been riding on my dads old 70's bike that we brought to the LBS and got fixed up with new wheels and a general tune up. In my opinion I really appreciate that bike and riding it is special to my dad. Now I am getting a new carbon felt bike that was from last year that the owner of the LBS gave me a great deal on. I think that its a good idea to try and get in as cheap as possible and make sure he really likes it. Grades are also a great way to get a bike.
12-16-09, 03:09 AM
#33
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I'm curious - is there any effect on the child's growth if they're intensely getting involved in the sport? Like becoming more compact, etc? I know some athletes (Michael Phelps) didn't touch a weight until they were out of high school, and just did a lot of cardio. Obviously there aren't weights here, but there is machinery involved, it's not like just running or swimming.
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12-16-09, 09:12 AM
#34
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There are 12-year-olds and there are 12-year-olds. When I was 12 I was riding all over by myself on a Raleigh with a 3-speed Sturmey Archer hub. I was pretty independent, and pretty capable of taking care of myself. I was careful and responsible.
I was riding with a small group of 12-year-olds on a bike path last year. There was a steel post sticking up in the middle of the path to keep cars off. Sure enough, one of the kids ran head-on into the post, even though there was plenty of room on either side. He "just wasn't paying attention." The kid was nice, but a ditz, a dingbat, etc. I would never let him ride on the street alone if he was mine.
I was riding with a small group of 12-year-olds on a bike path last year. There was a steel post sticking up in the middle of the path to keep cars off. Sure enough, one of the kids ran head-on into the post, even though there was plenty of room on either side. He "just wasn't paying attention." The kid was nice, but a ditz, a dingbat, etc. I would never let him ride on the street alone if he was mine.
12-16-09, 06:22 PM
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My daughter started triathlons at 6 and now at 7 rides around 18 miles with me on a Sunday LBS ride. Kids can sure surprise you sometimes on what they can do.
12-16-09, 07:09 PM
#36
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I rode Grand Mesa (essentially a 30 mile, killer climb in the middle of a 90 mile ride) on RtR a while back. Very few people climbed at my pace back then. I would stop and enjoy the sights every once in a while and I noticed that every time I stopped this damn kid in a Fassa kit would always ride by when I stopped. Pretty much nobody else that rode by would ride by at more than one stop. Towards the last 5 miles or so I happened to be getting back on as he caught me and I rode with him. He had dropped his dad at like mile 3 of the climb - and he was 12. Pretty much nobody was riding a faster pace than this kid... I guess because some of the faster adults like me were stopping to enjoy the scenery and this kid didn't let up the whole time!
I was pretty amazed. He's probably a national level junior or something now, 5ish years later.
I was pretty amazed. He's probably a national level junior or something now, 5ish years later.
12-16-09, 07:52 PM
#38
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Well, according to the people in charge of bike racing, pushing too hard of a gear can stunt growth or cause major injury to the young one's body. Hence, the junior gearing restrictions, a 52X14 is the biggest gear under 18 year olds can ride in road races.
12-16-09, 08:00 PM
#39
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My son and I started riding when he was 13. At age 14, he saved up half the money for a Trek Pilot, we started riding Bike Ride Across Georgia and we rode several century rides that year. Just finished another century with him last month at age 16. If he's willing, go for it.
