We have a new term people - Mamil

AidanR

Middle-Aged Men In Lycra.

I came across this on the BBC News website, and I've got to say, I'm sure it must ring true for some:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-10965608

mikef22

Quite an interesting read - though middlle age is 35, means is only 5 years off quite scary!

Cheshire_Cat

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

Bunneh

Middle-aged is 40 and I'll be damned that I'll be middle aged next March at 35! Mid-life crisis my arse, they saw le Tour, along with half the UK who also went out to buy shiney drop handled bikes!

Le Tour brought out a load of people who thought they could emulate the riders they saw on TV. Give it a few months and a good amount of bikes will start appearing on Fleabay to be snapped up by us. YAY!

ilm_zero7

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

thats me... maybe.... - ! but hey I am out there lovin it, and keeping the LBS in business at the same time. dont knock it, I know I am forever a middle of the pack rider, approaching 50, have a bike or two far better than I will ever be, losing weight and looking more like Borat than Bradley in my bib shorts

but so what? I turn up for the club runs every weekend and sessions on the track every tuesday, and I spent my youth running competatively,not cycling...... so the next time you see a 80kg plus middle aged rider on a flash bit of carbon, consider they might be funding the investment in your next racing machine's development

it takes all sorts, as they say

Aggieboy

Bunneh wrote:

Le Tour brought out a load of people who thought they could emulate the riders they saw on TV. Give it a few months and a good amount of bikes will start appearing on Fleabay to be snapped up by us. YAY!

There's a 'tennis racket mountain' left every year after Wimbledon.

Cheshire_Cat

Felt so Good wrote:

...... so the next time you see a 80kg plus middle aged rider on a flash bit of carbon, consider they might be funding the investment in your next racing machine's development

it takes all sorts, as they say

I'll remember to thank them as I pass them on my 25+ yr old steel road bike

AidanR

Let's face it, it's a lot better (and cheaper) than sitting in a Porsche!

deptfordmarmoset

AidanR wrote:

Let's face it, it's a lot better (and cheaper) than sitting in a Porsche!

Quite, and it's also better than what I did, which was to drink my way through my mid-life crisis. Ah well, I'm older, wiser and slower now...

Mad Roadie

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Felt so Good wrote:

...... so the next time you see a 80kg plus middle aged rider on a flash bit of carbon, consider they might be funding the investment in your next racing machine's development

it takes all sorts, as they say

I'll remember to thank them as I pass them on my 25+ yr old steel road bike

I'd buddy up to them if i were you, then you would be first in line to snaffle the cast offs when they give up or upgrade....

BigG67

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

Jealous are we? I've LOADS of cash and I spend it on a bike that I can't get close to justifying....must make you sick???

AidanR

Cheshire_Cat

BigG67 wrote:

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

Jealous are we? I've LOADS of cash and I spend it on a bike that I can't get close to justifying....must make you sick???

Thank you for proving my point so emphatically

EKIMIKE

I don't mind the someone being a MAMIL as such, but some of them just have to 'shout' about it don't they. Not keen on those types. I can think of a few...

Cleat Eastwood

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

AidanR wrote:

Let's face it, it's a lot better (and cheaper) than sitting in a Porsche!

Quite, and it's also better than what I did, which was to drink my way through my mid-life crisis. Ah well, I'm older, wiser and slower now...

I notice you didnt mention sober though. Good on ya.

irturner

You have to be over 40 to be middle aged. Unless you see it as a state of mind.
Loadsa money is more of a full suspension mountain bike type.
I'm dubious about drawing parallels between the new craze in expensive road bikes and motorbikes and sports cars. Possibly closer to an alternative to the company joining the squash club as it's a bit more diificult to delude yourself that a road bike is a babe magnet.

markos1963

So what are we saying here, chuck out all the middle aged converts to the sport and go back to being a quaint minority pastime. TT's to go back to being in all black clothing and events organised by word of mouth. Road racing to be something the continetals do.

If we ridicule the new blood coming in to the sport then can we be suprised when they all bugger off back to the golf course with their egos damaged. We may scoff at a 40+ guy struggling up a 2% hill on a £5k bike but without them the sport will die. A lot of these chaps will be encouraging their sons and daughters to take it up(and paying for it) and some of these kids will be the next Wiggins or Cooke.

I for one welcome every Mamil who slings a leg over a bike, at least they have the guts to try something new unlike some on here who think cycling is all about living in the past.

Pokerface

Scary. I'm 40 in a few months - and currently at the Paracyling World CHampionships. Sitting here (literally) in my lycra skinsuit about to head off to the course for a dry run of the TT course.


Never thought of myself as middle-aged - especially when competing at the top level of the sport!

Cheshire_Cat

markos1963 wrote:

TT's to go back to being in all black clothing and events organised by word of mouth. Road racing to be something the continetals do.
.

You've just sent a tingle down the spine of all the boys & girls who work at Rapha

bagpusscp

Gawd.52 still wearing it.Not found anything as comfortable whilst riding.Touring shorts are to baggy.There must be money to be made by designing the right pair .Sometimes I feel (look} like a trust up turkey

jgsi

At least the rural police forces arent having to scrape us off the tarmac as they do with
middle aged men in leathers.

tebbit

Journalist writes slightly amusing article about something middle aged blokes have been doing for years, cycling, when I started with a touring club in the eighties there were middle aged blokes cycling then. Nothing has changed, just that the odd journalist has started cycling too, we use the internet to communicate and people are now more aware of us. At least the middle aged bloke on the new bike isn't the idiot I once met at Delamere Forest who told us that dérailleur gears were wrong, drop handle bars were impractical and that we would all be riding flat barred bikes with five speed hub gears like his Puch.

Cheshire_Cat

tebbit wrote:

At least the middle aged bloke on the new bike isn't the idiot I once met at Delamere Forest who told us that dérailleur gears were wrong, drop handle bars were impractical and that we would all be riding flat barred bikes with five speed hub gears like his Puch.

Have we met before?

Moaner

This is a very weird thread

Is it in some way o.k. for a young guy to have a nice new bike but not a middle-aged guy?

As a generalisation the young guy will be able to cycle faster but they're both doing the same thing - enjoying the equipment and trying to maximise their potential.

(speaking as someone who can recall middle age quite clearly and who owns several nice bikes)

BigG67

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

BigG67 wrote:

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

Jealous are we? I've LOADS of cash and I spend it on a bike that I can't get close to justifying....must make you sick???

Thank you for proving my point so emphatically

And you mine!......I don't have that much, don't have a fancy bike but you're really quick at judging.

Now which one was true???

BigG67

None of us have a devine right to arbitrate who should or shouldn't cycle.

Anyone who thinks that they are the definition of "a cyclist" is deluded, even those who say that "we must accept new blood" are taking a stance that they have the right to grant permission.

Sorry boys and girls but none of us have the right to pass judgement.

Or perhaps us Mamils should say that they skinny assed racers should get off our roads. After all according to the article it's us that are funding the whole thing.

Cheshire_Cat

BigG67 wrote:

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

BigG67 wrote:

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

"All the gear and no idea" springs to mind :roll:

Jealous are we? I've LOADS of cash and I spend it on a bike that I can't get close to justifying....must make you sick???

Thank you for proving my point so emphatically

And you mine!......I don't have that much, don't have a fancy bike but you're really quick at judging.

Now which one was true???

Touche

Anonymous

Well, I think it's great!

The more people into road biking the merrier!

I just hope it isn't a flash in the pan.

(And no, I'm not being sarcastic!)

BigG67

Actually taking things right back it's a mode of transport that did a huge amount to release the working classes and increase the catchment areas for work.

So racing is "new on the block". If you want to be a proper cyclist then get the gabardines on, cloth cap and heavy work coat.

I'm with you NapD

louthepoo

i'm 40 this year, have just got into cycling but only managed to muster up £800 for a new merida 903. I dont have pots of gold or a porche, i'm not loaded or even a bit flush. I dont give a rats ass what some kid thinks is funny or tragic, i'm wearing lycra because its comfortable and practical. And if i could afford a top range bike i'd buy one because i love riding now. And so what if some old guy buys some good gear, its his money and only provokes a reaction through jealousy. At least he's spending it on a past time that can get him fit. Plus if you do as well as him maybe you'll buy a bloody good bike when you have the disposable income, i wouldwould

deptfordmarmoset

Maybe I'm in an especially generous mood tonight, but I thought the article was pretty well written by someone happy to be self-mocking about himself as a Mamil. Remember, just before he finishes by giving Ms Mamil the final shopping word, he slips into the first-person:

When you run the slide rule over all of this, flash road bikes definitely look like a midlife crisis.

There's a look to strive for, expensive kit and excuses for weekends away.

I and my band of hill-climbing brothers disagree. It's about becoming a happier and healthier person rather than sliding towards mediocre oblivion at the bottom of a pint glass.