# Newbie to MTB bikes at age 65



## drcollie (Mar 3, 2019)

My 25-year-old son has a Pivot 429 Trail and is huge into mountain biking, so I decided to join him so we can do the father/son thing. While I should be signing up for Medicare, instead I bought a used Santa Cruz Hightower LT and took it out for the first trail ride yesterday. I used to race competitive motocross and enduros half a lifetime ago on motorcycles so have lots of off-road experience (with an engine for power)

My thoughts on my first day out, did about 6 miles on the trails:

1) Wow, this is harder than it looks going uphill.

2) The ride on the Hightower is very plush, amazing bike

3) I didn't bring enough water, thought two bottles would be enough.

I had a blast, decided I needed to order elbow and knee pads because I can see I will be going down, its going to happen. Looking forward to getting out tomorrow again on it, weather permitting. My son lives 90 minutes south of me so I have to get ramped-up on this before we head to the trails he rides.

Lotta fun, should have started doing this ten years ago.









-Duane C


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## jcd46 (Jul 25, 2012)

Awesome, never too late!

Welcome!


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## MSU Alum (Aug 8, 2009)

Welcome aboard!


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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

You would have been better off getting a nice bike rather than that starter bike.


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## Catmandoo (Dec 20, 2018)

CamelBak or something equivalent is a better choice for hydration. No mud on the bottle, easy to pop the tube into the mouth for drinking, can carry more liquid -70-100 oz.. Gpod place for phone, keys, wallet, etc.... if you don’t want to wear cycling tips with back pockets.


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## Big50 (Feb 10, 2019)

Awesome bike. Awesome that you’re riding. Especially awesome that you have a common activity with your son!!

I managed to get my 15 year old out on a ride this evening. He’s been really resistant to going out since a bad fall shook him up last summer, just as he was starting to get the hang of things. 

I love mountain biking. It’s even better with friends. It’s best with family. 
Congats all around man!


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## JimmyAsheville (Oct 21, 2018)

It’s great that you got a SantaCruz as your first bike, it will serve you well.


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## WHALENARD (Feb 21, 2010)

Nice, that'll help put some life in your years!


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## CarbineSL (Jul 16, 2013)

Don't fret. It's never too late to start. I'm 65 this year, I started riding 6 years ago (58). Out on a day ride with friends, I crashed a few times going down a hill, got some serious bruises continuous from waist to shoulder, but nothing broken. I think if you go look at my mtbr profile, there are probably some pictures of what I looked like. Scary stuff. I had a dropper post on my bike, but hadn't learned how to use it yet. Learning how to use that and put my weight over the back wheel was probably the most important skill I learned to avoid crashes while going downhill. So if you haven't got one on the bike you own, seriously consider putting one on the bike. Your bike is not new, but there are lots of dropper posts out there that will fit it.

I had a Giro Aeon road helmet that was destroyed so I bought a better helmet specifically for MTB. If you knock your head a few times during tumbles, replace the helmet. I decided to buy a Kali Interceptor helmet, basically an enduro helmet, and my first use was on a cross country MTB ride in Mongolia in 2017. I thought it was overkill for Mongolia, but I took it because I had just bought it, it was new and shiny and I wanted to use it ASAP. But... at the 420 kilometer mark on the 7th day, I hit a single rock in the middle of the track I didn't see. It was about the size of a jumbo egg, but it had a sharp edge that put a snakebite puncture (dual puncture from the inner tube getting slammed against the rim edges). My GPS tells me when I went down I was riding at about 15 km/hr (~9MPH), but I landed on my left temple and shoulder and got knocked out. On the way to the hospital, the tour operator showed me where I went down, and you could see the marks in the dirt the deflated tire made as it dug in and tossed me. I brought the rock and some blood covered wet wipes that had been used to clean me up as souvenirs of the trip (I carried a big pack of wet wipes in an easily accessible outer net pouch on my backpack to wipe off sweat and dust and do number two, never anticipated them being used to wipe up my own blood . My brand new Kali cracked, delaminated, and definitely suffered internal damage. Because of a lifetime crash replacement guarantee, Kali sent me a new one after I sent the broken one back to them. Brad Waldron, the owner/engineer of Kali, analyzed the damage and said it had taken a really hard hit, and I was really lucky to have not suffered any lasting issues from the concussion. 

Anyway, live and learn. And don't give up, just figure out what went down, and take the effort to learn to be better next time. One of the guys on my Mongolia trip was 77 YO and another one was 67 YO. The British have done a number of studies showing the benefits that frequent sustained cycling brings to elderly riders in terms of physical wellness and improved health, and strengthening of the immune system which confers better resistance to disease, and that's not something you can get out of a bottle. Being fit and healthy is worth the effort at our advanced ages. 

I am planning to go back to Mongolia for a second effort later this year, riding the north Gobi desert this time. and my newish Kali helmet is going again.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

Way to go -- nice bike! Coincidentally I recently turned 65 as well. Now that you've got the nice bike and the passion to ride it, don't forget to get the Medicare, too. 
=sParty


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## CarbineSL (Jul 16, 2013)

Sorry, I looked at the photo of your bike again, and it has a dropper post installed. Make sure you use it


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Welcome drcollie to the over 50 crew! Some of us started mtb as mature athletes too. Congrats! 

I like to mix up my training because it keeps mtb rides interesting and keeps me fit. I ride year round (prefer trails), I also run (short and long distances trail and road) and lift (heavy  ). I like the variety of different trails, scenery and weather. Snapping pics also helps me reflect and measure my progress. 

Keep posting and share your fun.


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## JimF777 (Sep 23, 2018)

drcollie said:


> My thoughts on my first day out, did about 6 miles on the trails:
> 
> 1) Wow, this is harder than it looks going uphill.
> 
> ...


Welcome. I'm 50+ (still 20 something in the head) and just started late September. I feel ya and if you enjoy it, you'll really enjoy it. I think the motocross experience will help. Lord knows my roadracing experience hasn't as it's all ass-backwards.

As for your list:

1. Yes, yes it is. Definitely my weak link

2. I was looking at the Hightower LT as my next purchase before settling on another. Nice bike. You won't have to upgrade for a long time.

3. Camelback all the way. You can throw some tools and snacks in it ans use the bottle cage to hold a spare tube. ;-)


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## MSU Alum (Aug 8, 2009)

What other sports are you enjoying? Did you go through a period where you had little or no exercise?
My wife turned 65 last summer and had started at age 58....after having, and raising, 3 kids, little exercise, etc. and now is absolutely passionate about mountain biking, so it's definitely not too late to start!


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

Elbow/knee pads are fine, but be aware that at 65 you may very well have some degree of osteoporosis. As a result, you're at risk for injury to bony parts of your body where fracture protection is less effective. Specifically...ribs and collarbones. Also, it's worthwhile to consider some kind of padding over your hips, which are also vulnerable.

Also, you should look at your riding style. In my experience, after years of mountain biking and after a couple of more recent crashes, rib fractures are the cycling gods' way of telling you that "your brain is writing checks that your body can't cash".


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## fredcook (Apr 2, 2009)

drcollie said:


> While I should be signing up for Medicare, instead I bought a used Santa Cruz Hightower LT


And they say old people can't make good decisions. Guess you proved them wrong!


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## JimF777 (Sep 23, 2018)

You just call him old?


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## drcollie (Mar 3, 2019)

Did another outing, this time with the sag set and the suspension well-dialed in. Wow - this Hightower LT is un-stoppable. Rocks / Roots / Logs (small un's) just rolls over them. Feeling good on the bike now, the suspension was set for someone half my weight so it works far better now. 7.3 miles in the trails for 90 minutes (15 min water break). Really having fun on it. Ordered POC helmet / Knee / Elbow pads from Competitive Cycle rather than riding with street kit. Already looking to get out again ASAP.

Ultimately I want to get out to Moab this fall, maybe not Slick Rock or Porcupine Trail, but some of those trails that have the scenic vistas would be my goal to do.

I own a furniture store and load my own sofas in and out of trucks, so in pretty good shape. Sofa-sitter-rounder I am not, come from tough farmer stock <g>


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## Sanchofula (Dec 30, 2007)

Lone Rager said:


> You would have been better off getting a nice bike rather than that starter bike.


Whoa dude, that's off base and just plain wrong!

Not only did he make a good bike choice, that particular bike is quite good looking, custom wheels at the least.


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## jcd46 (Jul 25, 2012)

Nurse Ben said:


> Whoa dude, that's off base and just plain wrong!
> 
> Not only did he make a good bike choice, that particular bike is quite good looking, custom wheels at the least.


Me thinks it was a joke.


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## Gasp4Air (Jun 5, 2009)

Welcome aboard.

Good idea on the pads. I hope you got ones with a hard shell on the outside - much more effective, especially if there's a chance you'll be landing on rocks. 

Also, if you don't already have some, get gloves, preferably with some padding in the heel. Will help with grip, fall protection and most importantly wiping snot and sweat off your face. 

Lovely countryside in your pic. Live long and perspire.

P.S. You carry couches for a living? You're not a couch potato, you're a couch tornado.


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## str8edgMTBMXer (Apr 15, 2015)

welcome to it!!! I will be 50 this year so I am not an "official" member of this thread yet...still on my learners permit.

but riding will be a very invigorating activity to get into, as you already know...and not just from a health standpoint. Though I have ridden all of my life, I was away from it for about 20 years, and "rejoined" about 7 years ago as a "mid-life crisis" thing, and also to help cope with some pretty big depression issues...it has been a true lifesaver. The physical, the social, the mechanical, the outdoors...all have been a sum total of positive for me. I beat the depression with absolutely no chemicals, due to biking (and music, and family etc...)

...biking will allow the inner child to come out for sure...just be careful that some of the bravado of that youth does not t ake you past where your body can go....as JimF777 mentioned, and I agree with him: my brain still thinks I am 20, even if my body isn't

definitely keep us in the loop with pics; we will help you with the inevitable N+1 as it sets in...

for hydration, I recommend an Osprey Hydration pack...I have the Raptor 14 (or it's current equivalent)...if you don't mind having stuff on your back while you ride. Mine carries roughly 3 liters of water, and is set up to be used as a day pack as well. I use it on my bikes, bith MTB and BMX, at work, when hiking, at amusement parks etc....got it at REI about 5 years ago.


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

Find a skills clinic. Learning the basic skill set and moves from a qualified instructor could save you a painful learning curve.


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