Featured Photo: cyclist waiting to start the 10K time trial in the women’s 90+ age group.
Waiting my turn, I size up my competitors: the 70 to 74 year olds. This is July 30 and the first day of the 2025 National Senior Games Cycling Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. We are competing in the 5K time trial: you against the clock as fast as you can ride. The men are whippet slim and strong. Some of the bikes more expensive than a nice used car. My turn. The starting judge counts down to one and I go. The small crowd cheers in cool damp air of an Iowa morning. I ramp up my effort to full threshold power. With heart pounding and legs screaming, I cross the finish. My computer reads an average speed of 24.6 mph. Making my way back to the start, I find the results board. There is my name followed by 16th place out of 33 riders. I can’t believe it. I thought with that speed I would make the top ten. These guys are fast! The winner averaged 28 miles an hour over the 3 mile course—70+ years old. This is not normal.
Photo: Just a normal 70 year old.
The National Senior Games are held every other year in various U.S. cities. For the individual events, you have to qualify in a state senior games the prior year by finishing in the top 4 places. I qualified for all four cycling events in the 2024 Minnesota Senior Games. There are 12,000 athletes in Des Moines from age 50 to over 90 representing all 50 states, 10 foreign countries and competing in 21 different sports from archery to volleyball. Everywhere I go I meet interesting people. They are alert, fit, healthy and happy. I watched the 65+ men’s and women’s volleyball. They were crushing it. The athletes here are anything but normal.
Photo: lining up for the 10K time trial
The next day was the 10K time trial. A strong tailwind going out became a brutal headwind on the return. I gave it my all and managed 14th place. Happy. After the race I stayed and watched the older age groups, men and women. They went off in 20 second intervals; 80+, then 85+ and finally the 90+. There was one woman and three men in the 90+ group. Respect. I thought to myself if I keep this up for another twenty years then maybe I could be on the podium… maybe.
There were at least a hundred riders lined up for the start of the 20K road race. The race judge sent the groups, starting with the 50 to 54 year olds, out every three minutes. I took the time to look around my group of age 70 to 74. They didn’t look 70. Off we went. What a thrill riding shoulder to shoulder at over 20 miles per hour in a pack of over thirty riders. The course was two laps and included a long climb and then three short hills. At the big hill, it got serious. The group split. Sticking with the lead riders, I pounded on the pedals pushing 300 watts. My heart rate jumped to over 150 bpm. The climb, only a half mile, seemed to last forever. Up over the top, a short fast descent, a hard right turn and another hill. Shifting gears I heard a dreaded sound and my pedals just spun: my chain dropped.
I pulled over to the side and put the chain back on. The lead riders were gone and I was being passed by everyone else. Crestfallen, I mounted my bike, picked up speed, and mentally changed gears. My goal now is to catch as many riders as I can. After passing a number of riders, I found myself with a group of four on the second lap of the big hill. They jumped on my wheel as I passed. We worked together for a mile, but they were too slow. Accelerating, I left them behind. I finished in 16th place after being in 30th place after my chain fell off.
Photo: Ready for the 40K road race. They don’t look 70 to me.
The last day we lined up for the 40K road race: 4 laps of 6 miles and 1000 feet of total elevation gain. I am dreading this distance, but after yesterday I am focusing on leaving everything on the course. You can feel the tension in the air. Everyone is tired and knows this is going to take maximum effort. This time I hang with the lead group. Every lap we climb the big hill. My legs are screaming in pain by the 4th lap. I think of the great German cyclist and 17 time Tour de France rider Jens Voight who would say, “Shut up Legs!” Going into the last mile, the lead group is down to 12 of us. I don’t have the legs to keep up on the final sprint. I finish in 12th place 15 seconds behind the winner. There is no shame or disappointment with that effort.
Conclusion
The Senior Games for me were never about winning a medal. I have medals hanging off my bike rack in the basement— I never look at them. This is the first time I have ever raced at the national level. I wanted to see where I stood versus some of the best cyclists in the United States. I wanted to be in the top twenty. I wanted to see improvement in power and speed with four months of serious training. I wanted to taper and come into the games at peak condition. I accomplished all that. Most importantly, I came away with tremendous respect for all 12,000 athletes who challenged themselves to be the best they could be. I am a part of that group. We are not normal and that feels good.
Photo: Me happy with my results, grateful for the opportunity to race and thrilled to be done.
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