I got a Miata in late 2020, then raced it in autocross summer of 2022. That rekindled my old real & sim auto racing juices.
I dusted off the PS3 in winter of 2022 with various racing & driving games since I wanted the rush but decide I didn’t want to beat up my Miata that often. I kept at it with an eye towards the bigger jump back to PC racing but held off a bit since the PS is dead simple and I was hesitant to go full bore into PC.
November 2023 my friend who was a partner in sim racing rejoined iRacing, which was the final straw to push me into the full PC sim jump. He and I have done the sim thing together since 1999.
My issues with cycling training & pending race motivation didn’t really hit until Feb or March 2024 this year. I was ripping workouts from Nov thru then just as I have done for all the prior years. Looking ahead to the events I typically did the past 3 years was no longer positive and felt like a drag effort vs something desired. I had achieved the results in events I aimed for in those years and didn’t see much remaining in them that warrants the pain they require before & during.
Sim racing is definitely a part of the picture since it is “easy” in many ways & extremely fun. It may be some of the contrast between what sim racing is (mentally stressful but not that demanding physically) vs bike racing (high level of suffering mind & body). I get much of the same rush and more from sim that bikes provide, but without the “suffer” baggage. However, I still enjoy my weekly structure on the trainer and hit random cycling rides solo or groups when I actually want to vs some of the obligation I felt in prior years.
I agree that I’d keep clear of that particular ride.
I also wonder if indoor training is having an effect that more riders are spending time indoors and getting fitter, but not practising their bike handling skills ( even the basic ones like pothole avoidance)
Another reason why I ride solo and hate, and wave off, anyone who tries to jump on my wheel for a “free pull” if I go by them. Besides being poor etiquette and they never pull in return, if I don’t know you, I can’t trust you a few inches from my wheel. Also, if you jump on and I don’t know (or want) you there, I’m also not looking out for you.
Same boat as OP. I’ve only done 1 solo outdoor ride this year and 3 club races. I just have no motivation for outdoor riding this year. Getting on the trainer is easier and is easier to balance with family life.
I’ve had the itch for a new bike but I just can’t justify it given how little I have riden outdoors. The new Madone and Aeroad have seriously tested me though!
My issue sometimes riding outside is unless I have a plan I’ll be happy to noodle along and just enjoy being outside. That can be okay but sometimes if I’m training for something it’s not the best. But indoors I’m typically loading up a workout. Noodling along inside is super boring
In the last two years I’ve mostly turned into an indoor rider.
I WANT to ride outside but we moved 2 years ago from a relative cycling paradise to a cycling arm pit. No ride around here without 20-30 minutes of traffic to get out of town. I see people on Strava driving to lots of cool rides but I’ve always hated to pack up a car just to do a bike ride.
I definitely have to change my mindset. I need do the occasional drive to the ride ride. I also need to dust off my mountain bike. It’s still in the box since we moved. I’m mostly a roadie. We don’t really have “gravel” that can be ridden from the house.
Also, the bike club here fell apart during covid and never started again until a couple of months ago. I have to check out what they are doing but the don’t even have a Sat or Sun group ride.
And I do appreciate it: extended warmup/cooldown, “free” additional ~3h Z2 weekly volume. But of course, it depends what kind of cycling infrastructure is in your city and/or whether you are time crunched.
I also get tired of riding the same roads over and over again. And it takes some time to get to the better roads. I therefore prioritize longer rides in the weekends where I can explore/see new areas as well as get a decent zone 2 or 3 training effect. And use the trainer during the week.
Have you tried exploring new areas with apps like Komoot?
It’s nicer to do that cool down on lightly traveled country roads or gravel trails. There’s nothing free of having devote an hour of your ride through city traffic.
We lived in Las Cruces, NM and I could be on a gravel trail in 30 seconds out of my front door and then never have to touch pavement for hundreds of miles if didn’t want to. Road riding was great too and the people and drivers were friendly.
After that we lived in Knoxville and the road riding was epic though it also took 20-30 minutes each way to get in and out of town.
This has been a great topic for me to keep up with. The last two Winters I trained a lot inside as an effort to be ready to try to ride with some local groups and try to keep up with them. Last year I contracted covid (3rd time) and it put me off the bike about 6 weeks. After that, and I can’t explain why, I had an uneasiness about riding outside so stuck to the trainer. This past Winter, I held well to a medium volume plan and only tapered off for the few weeks towards the end. Then, out of the blue, found out I had a significant health issue that kept me off the bike again for 6-8 weeks. I ended up losing a lot of fitness on that one. So, I stuck with riding indoors and will until Spring. I thought I was the only one and felt guilty about staying mostly indoors. I’m thankful for all of you sharing your indoor riding stories.
Super interesting thread, and helpful for me too. I have been feeling like there’s something wrong with me, and occasional comments to that effect from other cyclists (in person, not on the forum here) don’t help.
When outdoor season arrived for me this year, about three months ago, rather than the usual urgency to move to 100% outdoor riding, I felt ambivalent and even felt uneasy about it. I’m still not sure what’s behind this, but as I’ve continued to ride mostly indoors (3x indoors during the week, 1x outdoors on the weekend), I have fully embraced the advantages: time efficiency (allowing me to squeeze in an extra 90 minutes of riding a week), ease of following structured workouts, multitudes of entertainment options, and being free from the risks of riding around traffic.
I have made some improvements to my indoor setup over the past year, which makes the experience more enjoyable, but emotionally it’s more about the outdoors not calling to me than it is loving indoor riding that much more.
I’ve got a couple routes that are 15-20min low traffic loops with all right turns so you don’t have to necessarily stop at the end of the roads (in US). Usually I have to ride 10 min one way to access them. I just ride laps. I wouldn’t do this for 2.5hr ride, but it’s fun for 1-1.5hr, which is all I do on weekdays.
After getting dropped so much on local and group rides, I started riding more indoors, and switched a year or so pre-pandemic: didn’t look back. I probably did 3, maybe 4 outdoor rides during the entire pandemic, and since then (It’s still here BTW) possibly 8 or 9.
I just got so frustrated and overjoyed at being dropped and left for dead, so at least riding from home, I know where I am when I quit.
The cartoonish Zwift worked well for me, and with Trainerroad too, have it all covered. With the weather being to abusive lately, riding indoors seems the only way. 100 degrees and 100% humidity, glaring sun? Hard pass…
AND I have also transferred a few outside rides into Zwift routes.
Do I miss riding outside all the time? Not really… I prefer the indoor experience. I mean, I lift weights indoors, so riding indoors isn’t that bizarre. But riding inside is different than riding outdoors, but it’s far more comfortable.
I once did a ride with the local bike club while visiting some relatives in Plano, TX. We did a 50 mile loop and never got out of the 'burbs. It was almost entirely 4 and 6 lane “stroads”.
It was pretty big group and I honestly don’t know how those folks get motivated enough to go out and ride on Saturday mornings. If I had to live there, I’d just buy a Kickr Bike and never leave the house.
.