Return to Cycling

At the start of my Journey one thing became instantly obvious, I needed to move more !!
But How ? Walking - maybe. Running - No chance, my knee wouldn't take it (I have an old injury, I snapped my knee cap clean in two, this injury had troubled me for the last 30 years ). Cycling - I used to cycle, I used to race, I was good, I was stopped by injury.

Cycling it was. I had toyed with the idea in the past and even went as far as buying a bike, so what stopped me before ? well simply put - I did !, I am sure i'm not alone in still being a teenager in my head, the problem lay in the fact that I was not as good or as fit as I remember. This alone was enough to make me give up.

This time I was ready, I knew I was out of shape, I knew I was unskilled (well out of practice anyway, you never forget its like riding a bike as the saying goes) but mentally I was ready for it, I didn't care how bad I was this was it time to get fitter, time to lose weight.

Ride 1, I pulled the bike out of the shed, dusted it off and pumped up the tyres, a quick squirt of lube on the cables and chain and I was good to go.
I had decided that riding to work was the way to go, the ride to work was easy, I could do this I said to myself, downhill all the way, the ride home however was a different story, I think I almost died, my chest was collapsing my legs burnt and wouldn't take my weight, I was dripping with sweat and talking was out of the question.
That was a few months ago, now, on my new bike,  I can do the same journey whilst talking on hands free and wearing several layers to keep warm.

so what's changed in the cycling world and what's the same.

Changes.
Traffic.
The biggest change for me is how inconsiderate motor vehicle users are! my commute to work is a little over a mile, in 6 months I have been hit by cars 4 times, not seriously just being clipped by a wing mirror as they squeeze past instead of waiting. I have even had one lady, who was sat at a side turning, make eye contact, smile at me then pull out anyway! I caught up with her and when I questioned her the response was " yes I saw you, but my car is bigger you should have stopped! " What ? I was on the main road she was pulling out of a side turning.
Due to this, I decided that off road riding was the way to go, no traffic !!!

Technology.
Not as much as I would have thought, sure materials are better, build is better, but design is very similar, my racing bmx had a custom frame hand made out of titanium (thanks Dad, my dad worked in an aircraft factory and following an incident which involved a bunny hop over a hand rail and a 30ft drop the other side resulting in a broken frame, Dad said don't worry I can weld that, the guys at his work decided a new titanium frame would be a better idea ) in 1983.
tyres are stickier, brakes on the other hand are light years ahead - Hydraulic disc brakes with the stopping power to rival any car are on a different level to the side pull cantilever rim brakes I had in the 80's.

The Rider.
Back in the 80's the rider was a lean fit racer, who has very little fear and didn't even think about the consequences of hurting himself, when he returned, he was a fat unfit very out of shape couch potato, who is a coward who hates pain and thinks twice all the time.

So What's the same ?

The Bike.
 You never forget how the basic skills, after the first couple of rides you will be amazed at how familiar things feel, even after 30 years off the bike it feels like nothing has changed, this is what stopped me the first time, it felt the same and that lured me into thinking I was still as fit as I was as a teen.
Competitiveness.
By nature we are all competitive that doesn't change as you get older or out of shape, in a way it will be this competitiveness that will get you back into shape, remembering how you used to be will drive you harder than any thing else.

Experience.
One of the advantages to returning to cycling after a 30yr break is that your experience is still there, you start again as a born again cyclist with more experience than a complete beginner, you know to expect the unexpected and ride defensively as a result.
When you do get your fitness back, you’ll find you can beat the youngsters quite easily. Why? Because experience is what counts.
Passion:
Once a cyclist always a cyclist, as we get older our view point changes, when I was younger I was only concerned with being the fastest and winning (in my final race I came second WITH a broken knee - if I had listened to my body and the doctor instead of being so competitive I might have still been racing). Since I have returned I have found that my passion for the sport I once loved so much has returned very quickly, I still race my kids up the hills but I also appreciate the views in my new playground. My driving force as I get fitter is to finish every ride with a smile from ear to ear.


Final words:
Coming back to cycling after years off can be a shock to the system. For this reason, adjust to your new limits and keep positive.  Enjoy starting over again physically and using all your experience to guide you forward.
Most importantly Enjoy every turn of the pedals !!!