Going the Distance
This middle-age cyclist changed his life with two wheels and willpower.
Words by Matt McGuire
Ide, a resident of Monmouth, Ill., didn’t always have this kind of endurance. “I was way overweight, like 265 pounds,” he says. “So my doctor told me to exercise, and I kind of got addicted to the cycling part of it.” Since he started riding four years ago, Ide has lost 80 pounds—he’s as thin and fit as he’s been in his adult life.
It wasn’t hard for Ide to get started. He joined a group of friends who had already taken up cycling and, once he dedicated himself, got into shape. A natural athlete who to this day holds high jump records at his high school and alma mater, Ide was also an intense golfer earlier on in life. “But golf makes you fat,” he says.
Now he schedules his days around cycling. On a typical morning, Ide wakes up before dawn to start riding. After a warm-up on his own, he meets his friends in the town square and does a route through the country before going to work. He then spends his entire lunch hour riding and gets back on the bike again when the workday is done. This adds up to nearly a hundred miles a day. All the activity actually helps his work. “I find if I don’t ride, I become very irritable,” he says.
On weekends, he takes it a step further. He rides longer versions of his weekday routes or travels to participate in long-distance races, like the one in Texas. “I got on this Web site called Ultracycling.com, and found a 200 mile race that was really close,” he says. “Then I just started going down the list and going to all these rides.”
Now Ide participates in the Ultra Cycling Cup, the Web site’s annual racing competition, every year. Cyclists across the country ride designated long-distance events, earning points based on performance and participation. Ide sits on top of the standings. His personal highlight in 2007 was a 24-hour race in Saratoga, N.Y., where he set the race record, reaching 452 miles in that time. “Everything just felt right on that ride,” he says. “The miles just kept coming.”
Ide’s put in a lot of miles—tens of thousands—but he says his devotion to cycling hasn’t caused personal conflicts. “My wife is really good about it. I’ve asked her to go on every ride, and she’s come along on a couple,” he says. “She’s really supportive.” Ide also makes sure to spend more time with his family during the winter, his de facto off-season. Since he can’t ride around town all day, he’s stuck on a stationary bike and doesn’t ride as much. Because he derives so much vitality from his hobby, Ide doesn’t plan on letting his age get the better of him—he insists he’s still improving. The Ultra Cycling Cup is in his sights again for 2008, and he’s training for as many weekend races again this year. “I just feel better when I’m riding than when I’m not,” he says.
Ide doesn’t encourage everyone to ride so hard they puke. “You can go out 20 miles or a half hour a day and that’s plenty,” he says. “There’s no money in long-distance cycling, and there aren’t many other people out there that do it. You ride because you love it. Or ’cause you’re crazy.”
