Radio 5 Cyclists in Mid life Crisis

In an earlier blog post last month I wrote of the rise of the MAMILS (Middle aged men in Lycra)

and the thread seems to rumble on.

This morning on Radio 5 there was yet another report on recent research that found that cycling, and road cycling in particular, is the new sign of a mid-life crisis in men.

This all stems from a report by market research powerhouse Mintel that found that the cycling market is being driven by affluent 35-44 year old men. It went as far as to say that cycling is “the ‘noughties’ version of the midlife crisis”.

Another study carried out by academics at the University of the West of England

Fi Spotswood and Sarah Leonard commissioned YouGov to undertake a UK wide survey that asked: what do British people really think about cycling? Their research investigated the opinions about cycling amongst a representative UK sample of adults. 3,885 people aged 16-64 were interviewed in early summer 2010.

Professor Tapp comments, “We wanted to find out if cycling is still the 'poor man's transport' populated by badly dressed social misfits muttering about gear ratios, or a fashionable activity of good looking people who rock up to the office with the latest carbon frame. We asked questions about how congestion, global warming and ever rising fuel prices might persuade us out of our cars and back onto two wheels.

“Our findings suggest that most people see Jeremy Clarkson-esque critics of cycling as missing the point. An impressive 42% of the British public think that 'cycling has become cool nowadays', and, good news for those forty-something men with mid-life crises, 38% agree that bike technology is much sexier nowadays. Perhaps surprisingly there was also encouragement for government initiatives, with 43% agreeing that 'there's a new push by the government towards getting people to cycle'.

“These pro cycling feelings might be a symptom of traffic jam stress as much as anything. A whopping 43% of us agreed that 'When I'm stuck in a traffic jam I sometimes wish I were cycling'. The success of the likes of Chris Hoy and Mark Cavendish might be rubbing off on us as well: a surprising 18% of us admit that 'The success of British cyclists has encouraged me to think about cycling more myself'.

“But cycling lobbies can't quite break out the champagne just yet. It was quite clear from the study that Britain is still a divided nation over cycling, with a die-hard 28% of people agreeing that 'roads are for cars not bikes'. In fact, only 12% of us cycle quite or very often (once a week or more). What's for sure is that getting over our love of cars isn't going to be easy: 54% say 'I would not support any measure that penalises car use'. Perhaps the divided nation theory is best highlighted by the finding that 39% agree that 'global warming has been exaggerated 'with a similar number, 38%, disagreeing.

“Can things get better for cyclists? Well, we could certainly use our Olympic and Tour de France heroes to help us market cycling as a way of getting about. After all, at the moment, more people recognised David Cameron (picked out by 59%) as a cyclist than Chris Hoy (53%), and Boris Johnson (48%) was a more famous cyclist than Victoria Pendleton (27%).”

“Commuter cyclists not serious career people”

Accepting that the UK is still dominated by a 'car culture', the researchers investigated whether UK cyclists see themselves as a breed apart. How do cyclists see themselves, and what do the motoring majority think of them?

Findings suggest that the way cyclists see themselves isn't always matched by how outsiders see them.

Cyclists see themselves as independent minded and free spirited, environmentally aware, adventurous, and even a bit rebellious. They are also less likely to see themselves as conventional or boring. But a different picture emerges when non-cycling people were asked what they thought of cyclists.

Some descriptions such as fitness conscious and independent minded were not surprising but interestingly the general public thought that cyclists were less happy than they were- perhaps because they see cyclists getting wet and cold.

Professor Tapp concludes, “We were also surprised to find that cyclists were seen as lazy and non-cyclists perceive cyclists as less hard working than they are. Maybe the perception is that if you are a serious career professional in the UK, you don't cycle – you drive a 5 series instead.”

Well observed Mr Tapp.

As a cyclist and a career professional I am the first to arrive at my desk invigorated by my morning ride. I am also the last to leave !!!! I do pass lots of similar professionals in their '5 series' on route stuck in jams. Maybe I'm being lazy by not subjecting myself to life in the slow lane.

Mule or Mamil

Fantastic article by Dominic Casciani of the BBC

He could easily have been writing about me and in fact everybody I cycle with!!!!

Flashy sports cars are out, now no mid-life crisis is complete without a souped-up road bike. Why?

Every weekend, across the nation's rolling countryside, watch out for the Mamils: middle-aged men in lycra.

And ladies, if you have a man at home taking an unusual interest in how you shave your legs, you may have a Mamil in the making too.

Research conducted by the retail analyst Mintel suggests there has been a surge in the number of middle-aged men choosing to get on two wheels.

Given the number of men aged 35-44 who are buying fancy-pants road racing machines, is this a 21st Century mid-life crisis? Has the silence of skinny tyres and carbon fibre framesets replaced the thunderous noise of motorbikes?

Back in the day, when some men with a bit of disposable income reached a certain age, they did some strange things. The grind of the office and home life convinced some that the answer to an expanding midriff lay in a pair of designer jeans and a flashy but cheap Japanese sports car. Teenage daughters ran away screaming. Sons were deprived of the role models seen in adverts for shaving products.

Gents, our womenfolk were right all along. It wasn't a good look. And did it do anything for the beer belly?

But then came a confluence of coincidences that gave a man an option other than looking like a gigolo cruising Italy's glitzy Lake Como.

The past three years have seen the rise of the uber-techno, super-flashy, full-carbon fibre, bobby-dazzler road bike. The market for these bikes has expanded faster than a 45-year-old's waistline, partly thanks to the success of the British cycling stars at the Beijing Olympics. Marketing departments have produced smart advertising messages that encourage a bit of freedom, elite performance and memories of teenage derring-do.

And the result can be seen on Saturday and Sunday mornings as middle-aged blokes polish the rear derailleur, lower the mirrored shades and pedal into the hills. Every couple of weeks, you'll see a girth of Mamils gathering to race a "Sportive", a form of amateur competing that has taken the British cycling world by storm.

While the serious, younger riders are busy getting into the zone of elite competition, we're comparing the latest GPS route-finding cycle computer and pretending that we know how to stretch.

No Mamils life is complete without the Spiritual Journey to the Mountains

'We hit the first hill and suddenly we're a puffing, panting, heaving mass of sweaty humanity that's well past it's sell-by-date. Sounds humiliating? I've never had so much fun in my life - and there are also some unintended benefits of being the older rider'

'First, there's the no-questions-asked fan club. My kids, on the promise of an ice cream, will cheer me over the top of any climb. They're still young enough to think I'm Superman - and you don't get that kind of pick-me-up on the golf course.'

Even better is the Mamil's solution to saddle sores. A teenage shop assistant in a too-posh-to-pedal London shop tried to sell me some balm for £30. What's the point of that, I asked. I've got loads of unused nappy rash cream at home. He thought I was terminally uncool. I know better son, learn from your elders.

Robbie McIntosh is 45 and has spent much of the past year clad in lycra after being talked into cycling from Lands End to John O'Groats.

Ten days of pain, rain and groin strain later, he decided he was ready for Mont Ventoux.

This mountain, the Giant of Provence, is one of the toughest climbs in the world - 23km straight up. British cycling legend Tom Simpson died on its slopes in 1969. With terror in his belly, Robbie began the slow climb up its slopes last month.

"I wanted so much to say I'd climbed the Ventoux. It's an amazing mountain and a serious challenge.

"I was surprised at my nerves but I had a sense that if I could do this on a bike I could do anything and that was a feeling I wanted so much."

And make it he did. He wasn't as balletic as the local, young French riders - but he stood alongside them at the 1,910m summit and surveyed the world.

"Cycling has given me an opportunity to feel sporting achievement of the very highest level," says Robbie. "It doesn't matter that the pros ride up Mont Ventoux at twice the speed or more. I can scale the same sporting heights as the best cyclists on the planet. I can walk with giants."

Flash road bikes definitely look like a midlife crisis”
So a man becomes fitter and happier.
Where's the midlife crisis in that?
Ah. The costs.

Ladies, look away now. Men who seriously cycle typically spend about £3,000 to live that dream. For a time, at least. That sum will cover the set-up and the first year, then about £1,000 a year, at least, on top of that.

The must-have bike of the summer is the Pinarello Dogma, the bike used by the British Team Sky in the Tour de France. Yours for about £7,000. Thankfully, most Mamils don't have that kind of money to burn.

But it hasn't stopped the rapid growth of a suburban money-laundering operation. It goes something like this. Man dribbles while looking at £100 bib shorts on cycling website - they're the kind that make you look like a wrestler. Partner says no, think about the starving children. Man continues to look at bib shorts and decides they will help conceal his 36-inch waist.

Ventoux brings some men close to collapse He calculates that three weeks of hard pedalling will help on the belly front - which is coincidentally the same time it takes to receive a secret new credit card to pay for the shorts. Job done. Platinum status achieved with the online cycling retailer. Discounts on more kit to be sent direct to the office rather than home.

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.

But a message to other cycling widows from my own Mrs Mamil. She's discovered a precise form of retaliation. If your portly husband buys another stupid fluorescent jersey, buy yourself another pair of shoes.

That way, at least one of you can look good.

For original article and other related stuff visit BBC Link http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-10965608