Is 38 too old to race for very first time?

daddymac

I am 38, been back on the bike for about a year. Myself and few mates are training to do stuff liek the Orwell Randonee and the Wicklow 200. However I have a bit of a grá to give racing a go.

As a complete clueless novice what is the best way to give racing a go?

I see there is the Lucan GP in two weeks. Is this doable for a newbie? Help!!

cdaly_

To go racing, you need to be CI licensed so I suspect the Lucan GP is not an option for you this time.

Best way to start racing is to join your local club, get licensed for club racing and head out with them.

And no, 38 is not too old...

buffalo

No.

sbs2010

One-day licences can be taken out for races until the end of March. They cost €10. Just check with the organisers of the race to be sure.

As for whether is do-able for you, there's a few threads on this but bascially they are faster than your ordinary sportive/casual rider would be used to (maybe around 38-40kmph). Hopefully you'll be in the bunch and protected from the wind so that speed is easier to maintain than if doing it on you own but the problem is there's no chance to take it easy like you might otherwise.

And when you're gone, you're gone!

endacl

sbs2010 wrote: »

And when you're gone, you're gone!

Like.... proper gone?!?

daragh_

38 isn't old.

What cdaly_ said. Join a club, maybe give a club league a go first so you get the hang of it.

I'm 43 and I just started in A4. I'm incredibly brutal but there are riders my age and older hammering around

kuro_man

Another option is enter duathlons - no drafting makes it safer, tri license is €50 or €5 for 1 day, no swim. There are short distance ones, so the run is not too long.

The Big Lebowsky

I know a guy in his mid fifties who rides A3 races, so if you are capable of riding these 200k sportif events you obviously have your base miles done...
All you need to do now is some interval training, to sharpen up your ability to follow those constant changes of pace that happen in a race.

Good bike handling skills are ultra important...Ive personally seen some very fit racing newbies do some incredibly stupid things.
So work on those bike handling skills, because you will be very unpopular if you cause a big crash in the opening kilometres of your first race..

Beasty

Too old!! 38?

I started when I was 49. I know one guy who is in his 80s and racing, together with a number in their 70s who will hammer me in a sprint finish.

2011abc

Id say many/most of the best cyclists in the country are older than you!Havent ya heard twenty somethings are all soft!?40 is definitely NOT any kind of physical barrier .I did once hear a few say 45 hits harder but that was ten years ago.Its probably 50 now!

killalanerr

i certain 50yo won the vets class in Navan last weekend so at 38 your in your prime,you will get loads of good info here. just go for it

wav1

killalanerr wrote: »

i certain 50yo won the vets class in Navan last weekend so at 38 your in your prime,you will get loads of good info here. just go for it

You kept that party very Quiet.
Seriously though as a previous poster said some of the top guys are over 40.
Heard it said one time by a guy who rode the ras as a way of celebrating his
50th birthday.''You're never too old mate.you just get too bloody lazy''
Just go for it and enjoy

greenmat

killalanerr wrote: »

i certain 50yo won the vets class in Navan last weekend so at 38 your in your prime,you will get loads of good info here. just go for it

I'll vouch for Killalanerr, he over 50 but looks older. First race last year myself at 43, all those wasted years. Join a club and take it from there.

manwithaplan

I was 39 when I first raced. I was surprised to find I was good enough to be competitive straight away. Give it a lash.

C3PO

Beasty wrote: »

Too old!! 38?

I started when I was 49. I know one guy who is in his 80s and racing, together with a number in their 70s who will hammer me in a sprint finish.

Like Beasty I only started cycling in my late 40's and racing a couple of years later ..... I'm still hopeless (unlike some of my A4 brethren!) but knock great craic out of it! Learning to ride in a tight bunch is the most important skill you need - if you're not fit/fast enough you just get dropped .... no problem! I would definitely recommend giving it a go!

531

C3PO wrote: »

Like Beasty I only started cycling in my late 40's and racing a couple of years later ..... I'm still hopeless (unlike some of my A4 brethren!) but knock great craic out of it! Learning to ride in a tight bunch is the most important skill you need - if you're not fit/fast enough you just get dropped .... no problem! I would definitely recommend giving it a go!

I can relate to this. I keep coming back for more.

chakattack

I think 100 km out and back solo on rolling roads > 30kph average is a good indicator that you won't get dropped.

Age is irrelevant.

1750W

daddymac wrote: »

I am 38, been back on the bike for about a year. Myself and few mates are training to do stuff liek the Orwell Randonee and the Wicklow 200. However I have a bit of a grá to give racing a go.

As a complete clueless novice what is the best way to give racing a go?

I see there is the Lucan GP in two weeks. Is this doable for a newbie? Help!!

The Lucan Grand Prix is mostly a flat affair so it should be quite doable as a novice. I returned to racing after an absence of 15 yrs of the bike and did the St Patricks day race the week before and got dropped on dorys forge only to regain contact and finish 2nd.

The following week I rode the lucan GP and won it. (took up training the previous July at a weight of 105KG)

Give it a try take out a one day license.
The only thing standing in your way of doing it is your thought process.

Pablo Rubio

daddymac wrote: »

I am 38, been back on the bike for about a year. Myself and few mates are training to do stuff liek the Orwell Randonee and the Wicklow 200. However I have a bit of a grá to give racing a go.

As a complete clueless novice what is the best way to give racing a go?

I see there is the Lucan GP in two weeks. Is this doable for a newbie? Help!!

Yer only a whippersnapper, You've two years to get yourself ready for the IVCA Vets league (40+);)

sy

Oh to be 38 again! Go for it and enjoy. I would say that riding in a bunch at speed is the part you will find most difficult. You might be better join a club as cdaly said earlier and ride some club/league races first. It takes time to acquire those necessary skills and you'll pick up lots of tips from club members.

FreezeUp

Mind over body and all that.

Hungrycol

Yeah OP 38 is a bit too old to start racing. You should probably just stick to the sportives.

On another matter, anyone think that if less people turned up at races the more chances it gives others at a placing

Beasty

greenmat wrote: »

I'll vouch for Killalanerr, he over 50 but looks older.

TBH, he even looks older than me ...

Pablo Rubio wrote: »

Yer only a whippersnapper, You've two years to get yourself ready for the IVCA Vets league (40+);)

Actually if you are 40 at any time during 2014 you can start racing next year

High Nellie

A lot will depend on how seriously you want to take it. If you train seriously and have some bit of class you can be competitive at that age at Cat 1 level - obviously not in the short term though.
At that age you can easily be at the business end of Cat 4 races IF you train seriously - and you have at least another 20 years to look forward to. After that you might have to start looking for more age-suitable events if you want to be competitive.

yop

Your cycling the bike not riding it Age doesn't matter, its in the legs