I am considering a switch from running (for 3 years) to cycling, and have several questions:
1. With running, one gets a pretty good idea after a few races about their potential. Obvously, one impoves over time, but in most cases that improvement is about 20-25%. Is it a similar case with cycling? How long does it take to know if you can be any good at cycling?.
2. I am age 23. Is it too late for me to hope to compete at the higher levels of the sport? Have there been any cyclists who began at my age and went on to become pro?
I love cycling as a hobby, but I realize that racing would involve serious injury risk and a large time commitment. In order for me to put in 4-5 hours a day on the bike, I would need to know that I have some chance of becomming successful.
There have been riders that have made late starts to the sport and just so happened to have a nice career in the sport. I believe Tony Rominger started at age 24 or 25..and he went on to challenge Miguel Indurain in the Tour de France...and Rominger also set the world's hour record. Ludo Dierckxsons is currently riding as a pro at age 37 or 38 and he didn't start until his late 20's or early 30's. Kent Bostick is a domestic pro here in the USA still racing in his early 50's. Bostick made the U.S. Olympic team at age 43 in the individual pursuit...beating a reigning world champion in the Olympic trials to earn his spot on the team. Jeanne Longo is a French female cyclist that won a world title in her 40's. At age 23 you have plenty of room to develop your potential to it's max. Why don't you just go out and do it! Proceed without limits. Exhaust your potential! Only then will you really know how far you can go.
Quoted post said:
Originally posted by ebrunner I am considering a switch from running (for 3 years) to cycling, and have several questions:
1. With running, one gets a pretty good idea after a few races about their potential. Obvously, one impoves over time, but in most cases that improvement is about 20-25%. Is it a similar case with cycling? How long does it take to know if you can be any good at cycling?.
2. I am age 23. Is it too late for me to hope to compete at the higher levels of the sport? Have there been any cyclists who began at my age and went on to become pro?
I love cycling as a hobby, but I realize that racing would involve serious injury risk and a large time commitment. In order for me to put in 4-5 hours a day on the bike, I would need to know that I have some chance of becomming successful.
Originally posted by oneradtec There have been riders that have made late starts to the sport and just so happened to have a nice career in the sport. I believe Tony Rominger started at age 24 or 25..and he went on to challenge Miguel Indurain in the Tour de France...and Rominger also set the world's hour record. Ludo Dierckxsons is currently riding as a pro at age 37 or 38 and he didn't start until his late 20's or early 30's. Kent Bostick is a domestic pro here in the USA still racing in his early 50's. Bostick made the U.S. Olympic team at age 43 in the individual pursuit...beating a reigning world champion in the Olympic trials to earn his spot on the team. Jeanne Longo is a French female cyclist that won a world title in her 40's. At age 23 you have plenty of room to develop your potential to it's max. Why don't you just go out and do it! Proceed without limits. Exhaust your potential! Only then will you really know how far you can go.
I suspect that is exactly what I was hoping to hear. Thank you.
