William McConnell regularly cycles from Torquay to Ocean Grove to have coffee with friends at the Mint Cafe.
He is 78 and recently won a bronze medal at the World Masters Cycling Classic at St Johann, Austria, in the 75 to 79 age group time trial.
He estimates that he rides around 16,000km per year, more than most people drive.
McConnell only took up the sport 10 years ago at the age of 68.
“It gets the blood pumping and the heart beating and you can sustain it for longer than, say, running,” he said.
“It’s also a wonderful sport menatlly – it clears your mind and keeps you active.”
The Classic was always on McConnell’s bucketlist.
His medal came out of the blue.
“It was unexpected given the strength of European cycling,” he said.
“St Johann was completely awash with cyclists.”
McConnell will keep riding to Ocean Grove several days a week, but when the Voice caught up with him, he was enjoying a nice piece of cheesecake.
“I’ve been looking forward to this for a while now,” he said with a grin.
