This is my question of the day. Is it possible to get faster at cycling when you grow older? Or does turning 30 and becoming Veteran signal the start of the decline? What do you think? Write a comment below...

My latest negativity, which you may have noticed, is based on having to wait until 5 november to learn my fate. On that day I find out if I get money for a 4-year position. I just missed is last year and my gut feeling is that I am going to just miss it again which will probably mean having to move to find a job. So with that background, the answer to my question is that we get slower or stay the same.

To be fast in cycling, you need to be training while you are a teenager so you develop the muscles. As an adult, it is very hard to build up large muscles in any natural, drug-free way. Just look at me. I basically did nothing except sit in school/university until I was 27. And now at 34, despite many attempts, I am not Mr. Muscle or fast on my bike.

What I do believe is that you can train your muscles for function. My muscles are good for long distance MTB but I have no explosivity at all. Some tell me that the best marathon runners are old men but again I think this is a question of mental training. With age you learn to know your limits and push them. But none of this means you are fast. How many Elite-level athletes have done their Classic? Probably not that many since this is more of a 40-årskris thing. Which is probably why I am starting to think about it.

So I really don't know. If I am improving in CX, it is probably very minor and has more to do with making fewer mistakes during the race than actual speed.