WHY DO BICYCLISTS DRESS LIKE SUPER-HEROES FOR EVERY RIDE? WHAT'S UP WITH THAT???

I have to agree with this post. I'm an injured runner who is cycling and swimming as cross-training and I'm sick of seeing mid-life crisis men with circus suits, beer bellies, and skinny legs on $5K bikes. And by the way, running 5 hours a week is MUCH harder than cycling 10 hrs. I just did a 70 mile ride in 3.5 hours and my 20 mile run in 2 hours is much more difficult

Injured Runner wrote:

I have to agree with this post. I'm an injured runner who is cycling and swimming as cross-training and I'm sick of seeing mid-life crisis men with circus suits, beer bellies, and skinny legs on $5K bikes. And by the way, running 5 hours a week is MUCH harder than cycling 10 hrs. I just did a 70 mile ride in 3.5 hours and my 20 mile run in 2 hours is much more difficult

Like beer bellied middle aged men with WAY to much gear is a soley cycling problem, ever stroll by a running store on a sunday morning?

70 miles in 3.5 hours? if the 20 miles pace is really true should be able to go faster than that on the bike...Maybe you should try a little harder on the bike. 20 mph is the cycling equivlent of 8 minute mile pace.

Not by yourself taking all the headwind it's not. Do some research on triathlete times. I'm obviously a better runner, that's what I do, but my point is valid. You use less muscles cycling than running. Just give the east africans some $3k bikes and they'll destroy us all.

Injured Runner wrote:

Not by yourself taking all the headwind it's not. Do some research on triathlete times. I'm obviously a better runner, that's what I do, but my point is valid. You use less muscles cycling than running. Just give the east africans some $3k bikes and they'll destroy us all.

Yes, Yes, I hate to tell you but it is, headwind or no. Triathletes aren't cyclists. 20 mph is cruising.

I am always amazed by runners who believe their sport is SO much tougher than everything else. Drop down a few 500 mile weeks and then come back and tell me that cycling is so much easier than running. Not that this type of ridiclous arrogance is native to runners, but it seem to very prevelant in this thread.

Also running and cycling are fundementally different sports typical kenyans and ethiopians wouldn't have near the ability to produce the pure power necessary. they might do decently on the moutains but in TT's sorry charlie..or Kip as the case maybe.

Also 20 miles is an extremely long run for training. While 70 miles is a reletively short training ride. 120-50 miles is a much better analogy to a 20 mile run kind of sunday long ride. 70 miles is what you put in on the average day.

The comment is not that running is more hardcore than biking (which of course depends on the athlete), but the attire worn. If you notice, very few runners (even those joggers with fuel belts) wear racing gear for their training run. Even in hot weather, how many times have you seen a runner in a singlet, flats, and short shorts out for a run? With cyclists, this appears to be the norm. Everyone (or..most) feel the need to dress for a race when they go for their weekly 30 miler.

It is obnoxious...but look at the brighter side of it. There are few pleasures greater than blowing past a guy dressed in Lance's jersey with his $7k carbon fiber bike on your roadbike in running shorts and a T shirt, with a backpack on.

Question wrote:

You are telling me you run, I mean really put one foot in front of the other for 1.5 hours a day?

Also the d3 equivelent of cyclist would be at least cat 2 whom I would think spend a good 15-20 hours a week on average. This, of course, like the 10 hour a week number is pure cycling. stretching etc is a whole other affair.

i really hope that you are joking. the average d3 runner would be Cat4. most runners lack the leg power to get it done, sorry. just because someone has the aerobic power to run a 4:20 mile in high school doesn't mean they have strength to ride crits at 30mph, or power up mountains for hours on end. its completely different. i went 51/1:59/4:27 off 30mpw in high school(800m specialty, mainly). i decided to walk on to a D1 track team. did fairly well until i got injured. another guy on the team, who rode competitively, suggested that i pick up cycling to keep up my fitness while my body fixed itself. due to my body type (think christian hesch, but 5' 6", 135), i have become a far superior rider than i was a runner. and to be honest, i would crush 95% or more of the skinnier runners out there should they take up cycling.

\"As far as caring about the activity, pretty much every competitive cyclist I know (even lowly cat 4\'s) spend upwards of 10 hours a week on the bike and most spend quite a bit more. I think it would you would be hard pressed to find any but the most elite spending that much running.\"

This right hear is true in that you do spend more time on the bike but no time that your on the bike ever gets up to the heart rate of a runner. You guys cruise around and coast a lot running is a constant continuous motion our average workout our heart rate is about 175 while yours is like 130. Running is so much more intense then cycling and I think you are stupid to say other wise. My brother is a cat 2 rider and wins many races and what does he do before his morning rides he drinks a soda. He trains fine with that because its such a low intensity sport. Runners can get the same workout as a cyclist can in a shorter time . My brother training rides take him over 6 hours and mine take an hour and a half but when he rides his heart rate is low. Even in your race you will only reach a heart rate of 170 when we race we reach our vo2 max. My brother is a great cyclist but the only reason he started doing it was because he was not a good at running. You guys sit around and talk about how hard your sport is but you don’t even have the best athletes in your sport. There is no where near the amount of competition as there is in running. My brother is going to the espoir national race in Utah. I am not downing cycling in anyway I think its a great sport and i have a lot of respect for the people who compete in it but you cant say your better then us because you spend more time doing your sport then we do. With such a low intensity you should be on the bike longer.

What a joke you guys are!

Most of you guys ran track and XC because you didn't have enough athletic talent to keep the bench warm and didn't have the coordination to march and play an instrument at the same time!

The difference in heart rate is due to the amount of muscles being incorporated into the movements that provide propulsion. Mainly just the legs, buttocks, some back muscles. Running utilizes a lot more, most notably the above muscles and then the arms/shoulders. he level of exertion cannot be calculated solely from heart rate. Just because someone is only at 150bpm when dying up le Alpe d'Huez doesn't mean they aren't busting their ass.

Comparing the 2 wrote:

My brother is a great cyclist but the only reason he started doing it was because he was not a good at running.

And you would get your ass handed to you at basketball, baseball, wrestling, etc. Some people are just built for different sports. I am short, have a barrel chest, small hips, and large quads. Great power/weight ratio. Cycling was a natural progression for me.

*Side note: I still run, and am faster at the mile and up than I was in high school*

yo yo yo wrote:

...

B) they could ride on bike paths more. I have been plenty of places where there are good bike paths, with not many people on them, but the super-hero cylists are too cool for the safe paths, and opt for narrow high speed roads that are right near by. Do these guys have suicide wishes?

...

Many bike paths have speed limits. Ottawa, ON has an extensive bike path system, but has a limit of 20km/hour on it. I got pulled over and got a lecture from a bicycle cop 2 weeks ago. Apparently its a $50 fine, and we aren't allowed on the paths becaues we bother the people walking, running and leisurely biking.

I am not saying your not busting your ass I am saying that you are getting the same benefit you get from the workout. It takes us an hour and a half to get the same workout as you do in an 6 hour training ride. Running is just more efficient then cycling.

Like you said we are using different muscles and your quads is the major muscle that’s doing all the work. Quads are not used very much in running so they would actually slow you down in distance running. You do have the figure for a cyclist and I know people are made for different sports. All I am saying is you guys are stupid for claiming that your sport is so much more difficult then running. I have a lot of respect for cyclist because i would find it hard to sacrifice 6 hours in one day to training. Tell me this is it easier to bike a mile or run a mile? If you’re really a runner you should know that it’s easier to bike a mile even bike 10 to 15 miles. If that’s the case, How can you compare how many miles you did to how many miles we ran. We are both endurance sports and i think its stupid for you cyclist to compare your workout harder with much less intensity to ours with high intensity based on time. We get the same benefits as you do.

Side note i doubt that you run faster now then you did in high school unless you sucked and ran nothing faster than a 5:45. Like you said you use different muscles. It’s different types of training.

why we ripping on cyclists? i think those jerseys are pretty sweet, i wish i could find speedsuits like that, id shell a good buck to race in something like that. most of the population calls runners gay anyway, so i might as well get the last laugh

Well first of all I have found that cyclist shaving their legs is awesome. Girls love guys with shaved legs, silky smooth legs are the best things in the world. They look a hell of alot better than all you runners with your gorilla legs. They show off your muscles and girls are like "hot damn, look at those legs!" and your like yeaahhh. And most of our uniforms, their friggin awesome, see us good cyclists have these things called sponsors that give us a whole bunch of free crap and all they ask us to do is to advertise for them. I never wear a jersey that dosen't have MY sponsors on it. Now I have no defense for those fat fools in Lance jerseys cause their a bunch of tools, but you guys have toolbags in your sport as well, you know those guys who where the hot pink 1990 running shorts, and those little coolmax hat things. Anyway its useless debating this running swimming and cycling are equally hard, why don't we compare our sports to baseball or somthing ridiculous like that.

Peace

Cycling dude

never said that cycling was harder than running. as to the "only if you sucked in high school and ran a 5:45" comment: i ran 5:20 in 8th grade. ran 51/1:59/4:27 as a senior. well, the 51 and 1:59 were leadoff 4x4 and 4x8 splits,f that counts. i had never heard of a tempo run or "high mileage" before i came to college.

however, i still run about 30mpw w/one workout (tempo or long repeats) in addition to 15 or more hours on the bike a week (i work from 6;30am to 3pm, it's summer, i'm single, in college, and live in a rural town, so i have some LONG afternoons to burn).

anyways, ran a 4:26 right after getting out for the summer, getting pulled along (not literally) by a couple of friends who still run in college. lost some baby fat from high school apparently.

another ridiculous post by another bored high schooler. so boring........

If you are "cycling dude" and so in love with cycling and your shaved legs, then WHY ARE YOU ON LETSRUN.com?????

(yeah, I bet you get TONS of positive comments from women checking out your legs......NOT. More like snickers of amusement, like: 'hey, there goes another metrosexual guy this close to being gay.' Don't mistake smiles for flirting. Likely they are laughing AT YOU! )

You know if Nike and the other companies started putting USA and Wisconsin and Stanford and Oregon and the pro uniforms into retail stores that over half the dorks on this board would be all over it and wearing them in training, even if it meant paying twice as much as what plain gear costs. To get that stuff now, you have to earn it through performance or have connections, that's basically the only reason why it isn't widespread like you see with the bike jerseys.

Question wrote:

You are telling me you run, I mean really put one foot in front of the other for 1.5 hours a day?

Also the d3 equivelent of cyclist would be at least cat 2 whom I would think spend a good 15-20 hours a week on average. This, of course, like the 10 hour a week number is pure cycling. stretching etc is a whole other affair.

HAHAHAHAHA so far from true. Having run at both division I and division III schools and been a cyclist (a measely cat IV cyclist) I can assure you that this conversion is awful. And I do put a solid 9-10 hours of actual ride time in a week.