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To me Strava is primarily about motivation and KOM gongs/trophies are a big part of this. As you get older it gets harder to compete for overall KOM/QOM gongs. So it would be good to have age group gongs, i.e. top 10 in age group.
I must say I’m finding this whole process very frustrating. Strava ask for ideas of which many are very good and will improve the experience for the majority of users but then seem to ignore them and instead concentrate on pandering to minority activities and doing stuff like improving the mapping facility- which doesn’t really need doing and no-one asked for.
Time to get priorities sorted Strava or you’re gonna start losing users.
I prefer the KOM/QOM remain what they are...the fastest times regardless of age (I am over 50). Too many versions of KOM/QOM just dilutes their significance. I am a subscriber, so if I want to see how I stack up with those in my age group, I just go to that option. I do wish the age range was still a free option.
I am so excited to discover this has already been proposed to Strava, but discouraged that it has languished for almost a year. I am building a platform to advocate for age and gender-supportive practices in cycling. AG KOM/QOM's are on the list!!
I am very much in favor of age-graded results in all sports where it is possible. The science of aging, and the decline in physiological potential is well established. The curves are built.
It is ageist to only recognize the fastest all-time riders. Age-graded, many of us are way outperforming the youngsters. It is the essence of performance to do our best with what we have. It is totally upside down to deny the joy of recognition to those of us who hang in. And it reinforces the most negative stereotypes about aging, encouraging older people to give up. Society needs just the opposite. The elders have wisdom and knowledge to lend, helping us all to be better and happier. Aside from the super performers, anyone and EVERYONE still riding hard after 50 deserves all the support the community can muster. It is in everyone's best interest to have us keep going. Younger riders need the mentors and exemplars. I am sure, from personal experience, that it can be transformative for a 30 year old to discover that the person, let alone woman, putting some hurt on the group, is a grandmother. Everything changes.
Helping the older population stay fit and feel valued improves, literally, the happiness, wisdom, wellness, empathy and health-care costs for the entire population.Ageism is very expensive and is a terrible burden on the economy, to say nothing of our social fabric.
This isn't an issue relevant just to the Stravistas. Strava has the opportunity to get out in front of a major social opportunity. Why does it matter, in this instance, whether 20 somethings have plugged in to this issue yet, and vote yes? It hasn't mostly occurred to them yet. No fault of theirs, there are so many crazy things to figure out. But this should not be about a plurality of users. This is a matter of core values, policy and mission. Further, it is totally in Strava's commercial interest, in the narrowest sense, to provide more incentives and support to the ever expanding population of older riders/subscribers.
K/QOMs should be by Age Group, NOT divided into senior and juniors. That is essentially the old system of discrimination with a small flutter in the middle of the age curve. Further, because aging accelerates (see the data in the above cited curves), Age Groups should break down to 5 year segments over 55 (or somewhere in there).
Disclaimer: I may appear to be self-interested here as I hold many AG Hill Climbing Cycling Records. In two years I will go after the Mt. Washington 70-75 record if the gods smile on me. I and my teammates also hold the 4-woman 60 year old RAAM record. But I organized that team because no 60 year old women had ever attempted it. Why? Because of policies such as those currently on Strava. I don't think the discrimination is intentional, but it is time to INTENTIONALLY eliminate the huge amount of both Age and Gender bias built into the structure of most sports, cycling being one of the worst. It ought to be a priority. It is certainly more important than the rather manufactured LL distinction that merely rewards people for riding the same route. OK it's good folks are out there but really, all the energy invested in that when we have agism, sexism, racism, economic and sexual preference discrimination deeply embedded in our sport (speaking of cycling here but it is not generally wrong to generalize...). So many "isms" prevail and they all should go. Come on folks, let's get this fixed so we can put more good energy into achieving world peace and preserving the biodiversity and health of planet earth. It is all connected.
So while I appear self-interested, it is the skin I have in the game which has informed and motivated me to be in this fight for the greater good. It has been a lifetime of activism. Can't believe how far we still have to go.
Strava please let us help you help us and the whole industry. Make this a THING!
While you are at it please provide age-graded overall standings. It will help the women and the older men. In 2022, the age and gender adjusted standings placed me and a teammate #1 and #2 overall on Mt. Washington. There is almost no competition left for those of us in our 60's and 70's. So we are competing against ourselves and against the guys. Not complaining. But again, we could help so many people!
Please contact me if you would like to collaborate on my broader platform... I tried to put in my email but that is not allowed. I am easy to find though. My name is Trish Karter. You can find my eponymous website, Or on the Mt. Washington and RAAM records.
You don't have to replace current KOM holders, just display a silver colored KOM crown for the activity when one is set. Everyone knows the silver colored crown is not the overall KOM. Some of us are still competitive in our age group.
I have encountered a "new" problem with the age categories. I recently turned 75 and entered the 75+ category. I was immediately surprised how many people I had never heasrd of who were much faster than m,e yet never appeared in the earlier age ctegories (65-69, 70-74).
What I soon discovered is that many of the these rider wer in the wrong age category. I found one rider who belonged in the 35-44 age group and another belonged in the 25-34 age group.
I now suspect that the 75+ age group is a dumping ground for riders who don't provide an age or simply provide a false age with thought of the consequences.
I can flag the riders that I suspect shoud not be in the 75+ age group, but the numbers I have found is already a bit overwhelming!
I just sent the below note to a couple of my cycling groups and am posting it on my Strava Activities. Please consider doing the same. Thanks!
A year ago an athlete asked Strava to award Age Group KOM/QOMs -- But the suggestion has languished on the Community Hub and Strava has not moved on it. This is about public health and encouraging older people to stay in the game. Physio capabilities decline inexorably with age, the science is very clear. But the ability to perform at the top of one’s age-related limitations never goes away. Age Group QOM/KOM bling can be shown in sliver on the Activity so as not to confuse with the gold overall results. This suggestion should not be about a plurality of votes, it should be a matter of principle for Strava to stand up and take the lead. It also happens to be in Strava’s economic self-interest as the bulge of the population is in this demographic.
Agism is bad for everyone. It is a burden on society and economy. Strava and other industry leaders could make this a THING and have a measurable impact. Let’s stop complaining about getting older and celebrate the MANY JOYS of aging. It can be more fun. Jump in!! People with a positive embrace of aging live 7 years longer on average with better quality of life (see research by Becca Levy, Yale School of Public Health).
Please VOTE YES and also post this message on your activities:
