The Old Guy Bicycle Blog

Last Updated: February 25, 2026 There’s a version of me from years ago I think about sometimes. He didn’t know what a cadence sensor was. He didn’t track calories. He didn’t understand recovery. He didn’t look like a cyclist. He weighed over 275 pounds. He was just trying not to quit. Now I’m 70 years old. Over 155,000 lifetime miles . 187 pounds. Still riding into West Texas wind. Still stacking miles. Still learning. If that man could see me now… Would he be proud? Quick Answer If you stayed consistent, kept learning, embraced safety, and adapted instead of aging out — yes. The person you were when you started cycling would likely be proud. Back Then, I Thought Cycling Was About Fitness I thought it was about getting lean. About keeping up. About looking like I belonged. I didn’t realize it was about becoming someone dif...

Losing Weight Is Really Quite Simple If You Ride a Bicycle Quick Take: The “simple” part isn’t magic — it’s math. Ride your bike most days, track what you eat, and weigh yourself daily. Keep a small, steady calorie deficit and let the miles do their work. People ask how I lost weight and expect a secret. Here it is: I ride my bike, I track what I eat, and I don’t lie to myself about the numbers. No detox teas, no 30-day gimmicks. Just honest math and miles. If you’re over 60 and want results you can actually keep, this is the straightforward way. The Method (No Hype, Just What Works) Ride 5–6 days per week. Mix easy spins with a couple of longer or hillier rides. Consistency beats hero days. Maintain a small, steady deficit. Rough target: 300–500 kcal/day. Big deficits backfire for older riders. Weigh in daily. Daily data, weekly average. Don’t let a single spike mess with your head. Track food honestly. Eyeballing servings is how progress stalls. Measure,...

Last updated: February 2026 Quick Take: I personally ride a Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT and love it — but a lot of riders don’t want to spend $350 on a bike computer. This post explains why I keep getting asked about a $100 alternative, and why the COOSPO CS600 is the one that comes up most often. I’ve been riding long enough to know two things can be true at the same time: Some gear is absolutely worth paying premium prices for. Not everyone wants — or needs — to spend that kind of money. I fall firmly into the first camp. I personally ride a Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT . It’s about $350, and for me, it’s worth every dollar. It’s simple, reliable, easy to read, and it has never let me down. But here’s the reality. Why I’m Writing About This at All A lot of people contact me. Emails. Comments. Messages. And the question usually sounds something like this: “I want a real bike computer — with navigation — but I just can’t justify spending $350.” That’s a fair concern. N...

Last updated February 2026 💡 Quick Take: A fluke accident ended my bicycle tour just 34 miles in. Instead of quitting, I adjusted the plan, changed how I trained, and finished the year stronger than I started it. This is what adaptation actually looks like on the bike — and why setbacks don’t have to define the season. Last summer, I was riding high on anticipation. I had trained for a full year to complete a self-supported bicycle tour from San Diego to Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was meant to be the next-to-last chapter in my coast-to-coast cycling journey — one more long stretch of road before the final piece fell into place. Thirty-four miles into the ride, it was over. A microfiber towel caught in my derailleur. A fluke. One of those things you never plan for and still struggle to explain afterward. The bike was destroyed, and the tour I had spent a year preparing for ended before it ever truly began. That part hurt more than the crash itself...

Last Updated:  January 19, 2026 Most people picture “athletes” as 20-something pros with perfect VO 2 max scores and bulletproof knees. But if you ask me who the toughest riders on the road really are, I’ll point to the men and women who are still turning pedals in their seventies and beyond. I’m a 70-year-old long-distance cyclist with more than 155,000 miles in my legs. I’ve ridden through injuries, bad weather, surgeries, and plenty of people who thought I’d “age out” of cycling years ago. Quick Take: If you’re still riding a bike at 70+, you’re already performing at a level most people will never reach. Older cyclists train through pain, adapt to aging bodies, and show up week after week. That combination of grit, consistency, and heart makes 70+ riders the real super-athletes nobody talks about. Why “Super-Athlete” Actually Fits When you’re 70+, cycling isn’t just “going for a ride.” It’s strength training, cardio, balance work, mental therapy, a...

Published: February 7, 2026 Quick Take: At 70 years old, I’m riding stronger than ever—not because I’m chasing speed records, but because I’ve leaned into organized events, smart training, and a few key gear upgrades. If you’re a senior cyclist (or want to be one), this is what’s working for me and how you can build your own cycling life after 60. There’s something poetic about flipping a calendar page. The calendar turns, but the road remains the same. The asphalt doesn’t care how old I am, what month it is, or whether the wind favors me or tries to break me—it just waits. Looking back on 2025, I can see just how much this past year shifted the way I ride. For decades, I was a solo tour guy. I’d pack up the bike, head out alone, and let the days unfold one mile at a time. But 2025 was different. This was a year of single-day events, multi-day rides, and shared roads with other cyclists chasing their own stories. And honestly? It was one of the most rewarding...

Before my San Diego to Las Cruces tour, I was seriously thinking about getting a new bike. My Specialized Diverge had served me well for over 20,000 miles—maybe closer to 25,000—but it was never designed as a pure touring bike. I’d been eyeing a Surly, the kind of bike built from the frame up for long, loaded journeys. A real workhorse. Something that could haul gear, chew up the miles, and shrug off the punishment of the road. But then came the mishap. A rag got pulled into my derailleur. One small mistake, and suddenly my tour plans were sitting on the shoulder with me—a ride-ending breakdown in San Diego . The kind that makes your stomach drop, because you can feel a dream slipping away in real time. Standing there beside my disabled bike, I called my wife. She didn’t hesitate. “Keep going,” she said. “If you have to buy a new bike in San Diego, then buy a new bike.” It would’ve been the perfect excuse. A dream justified. I could’ve walked into a bike shop...

Last Updated: December 2025 Cycling “Nuts and Bolts” Books: Repair, Training, Fit, and Touring (Commonly Recommended) If you want the practical side of cycling — fixing things, training smarter, riding pain-free, and doing longer rides with fewer surprises — books can beat random videos. They’re slower, clearer, and they don’t disappear when a platform changes. Important note (honest + simple): I’m sharing these as well-regarded, widely recommended cycling reference books — not as personal “I used this exact one” endorsements. Use this list as a strong starting point, then pick the one that matches what you’re trying to learn. 1) The Park Tool Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair A classic home-workshop repair guide. This is one of the most commonly recommended “start here” repair references because it’s structured, visual, and step-by-step. 2) Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance Frequently recommended for road cyclists who want a deeper, more detailed maintenance...

Last Updated:  May 2026 Quick Take: Cycling isn’t my escape—it’s my confessional. The road knows the version of me no one else sees, and every mile strips away everything but the truth. Cycling Is My Mistress Some people chase hobbies. Some chase goals. I chase the road. I always have. Not because I’m running from anyone—and not because I’m unhappy. My wife knows me better than anyone alive. She knows I love her. She also knows there’s a part of me she can’t compete with, and I don’t say that lightly. Cycling is my mistress. Not in the way people whisper behind closed doors. In the way something calls your name, long after you should’ve outgrown it. In the way a quiet obsession becomes a second pulse. She’s the one who wakes me before sunrise. She’s the one who pulls me out the door when logic says “not today.” She’s the one who knows the version of me no one else sees—the tired, hurting, stubborn, grateful, alive version. My wife sees the man. The bik...

Last Updated: December 2025 These 10 cycling books have stood the test of time. Whether you're a new rider or a 70-year-old cyclist like me who has spent decades on the road, these books offer the best mix of stories, adventure, history, humor, and hard-earned wisdom you'll find anywhere. 10 Timeless Cycling Books Every Rider Should Read I've ridden more than 150,000 miles in my lifetime, and these are the books that have stayed with me. They’re the ones cyclists still talk about decades later — because the writing, the stories, and the truth inside them never wear out. The Rider — Tim Krabbé The greatest cycling book ever written. A deep dive into the mental game of a single race, told minute by minute. Every cyclist eventually finds this book — and it changes how you see the sport. French Revolutions — Tim Moore A hilarious, brutally honest attempt to ride the entire Tour de France route. He suffers. He laughs. You laugh. It’s cycling mis...

Last Updated: June 15, 2026 As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This doesn’t affect your price. Quick Take: Cycling is fantastic for fitness, but it won’t magically melt fat. I once rode 5,000 miles in a year and still weighed 230 pounds. The real key to losing serious weight wasn’t more miles — it was understanding my daily calorie needs, tracking what I ate, and using a few simple tools that kept me honest. Here’s exactly how I finally dropped the weight and kept it off. A lot of riders secretly believe this: “If I just ride my bike enough, the weight will fall off.” I used to believe it too. I was a 5,000-mile-a-year cyclist who still stepped on the scale and saw 230 pounds staring back at me. That was the year I finally had to admit the uncomfortable truth: riding more miles wasn’t my problem. My eating was. Once I stopped treating cycling like a magic fat-burning machine and started treating my body like a real math problem, ev...