● When are you too old to go cycling? 70 or 80 years old? Think again.

I often suggest to people who are getting into their retirement years that they may want to take up cycling as a means of getting around and staying active. Most have done very little cycling in their adult life, and one way or another, almost all of them indicate that they are simply too old to start bicycling. It seems that they honestly believe that people can’t take up cycling after a certain age.

Despite what they may think, it’s very easy to find examples of people who are cycling well into their 70’s and 80’s. In fact, today’s Ottawa Citizen has an interesting article about Bill Hamilton, a 92 year old, who is still going strong on his bicycle (a carbon frame model with drop bars). He cycles 3000 kilometres a year, and he regularly rides a 44 km round trip between his home in Kemptville and his favourite coffee shop in Merrickville.

A few years ago the LA Times ran a story about Octavio Orduño, who was 103 years old, and still cycled regularly in Long Beach in the Greater Los Angeles Area. He rode a two wheeler until he was 100, but then started using a tricycle at the insistence of his wife because he was beginning to lose his balance.

I also happen to know of two bicycle clubs in the Ottawa area with an average age that hovers around 60 years old. That’s the average age, meaning that many of their members are in their late 60’s and early 70’s. And these are serious cyclists, many of which will think nothing about hopping on their bicycle for a 100 km ride.

So there you have it – you’re almost never too old to go cycling, and if you’re in your 60’s, consider yourself a young whippersnapper.

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