How To Become A Pro Cyclist?

Given the information you are presenting in your question and your Additional Details, I would say your chances of becoming a pro cyclist are about zero.
30 miles a week is nothing. I used to commute farther than that each week. Adding in an extra and I quote "10 or 20 miles a week" will do nothing in terms of the type of training needed to become a competitive bicycle racer. You have no idea the speeds competitive racers can maintain. 100 miles in around 4 hours. My absolute best time for 100 miles was 6 hours in the saddle, 6-3/4 hours total ride time.
Bicycle training for racing will consume 6 days a week. It takes more than just grinding out the miles. Add in weight training in the off season. Add in two hour spinning sessions. Again, you have no idea. That is why I had no aspirations to become a bike racer. Too much time I was unwilling to commit to for training.

You need to ride a lot more, 30 miles a day is more like it. You don't need a new bike to ride more. If you are serious use what you have. Doing 50 miles a week won't get you anywhere close to being a pro.

You need to do a lot more then 50 miles a week. If you are serious , join your local club.

They can help with preparation and such. You should also be racing under 16 races and doing well in them

You're not going to become a pro cyclist doing 30 miles a week and you won't get noticed by a pro team if you don't enter any races.joining a cycle club is an important part of becoming a pro,you have to learn how to ride in a group,know how to draft,how to pace yourself and how to work as a team.you won't get noticed riding on your own.you have to make time and cash if you want to make it in the pro circuit.you need to up your game as far as training goes.you'll need to do at least three 50 mile runs per week and at least one 100 mile run per month.pro cyclists do at least 9000 miles per year in order to compete
"achievement can only be born out of sacrifice,how much are you prepared to sacrifice" lance armstrong,"it's not about the bike".read this book and that will help you on your way!

I hate to throw cold water on your hopes and dreams, but, your genes have as much to say about whether you can make it as a pro as your training does. You need to up your training about 10-fold. And hope that your physiology (red blood and hematocrit count, maximum oxygen uptake, resting heart rate, etc) takes you the rest of the way.

overhellbaitre said:

I would like to become a pro cyclist when I'm older. I do about 30 miles a week. I use a old peugeot road bike at the moment but am hoping to get a new on for Christmas. I would like to join a club but I have not got a lot of time or money to do so. Do you think it is recommended to join a club or should I just keep on cycling at weekend.

A club isn't really necessary but racing is. The only way to become a pro is to progress through the ranks from the lowest category of amateurs to the highest. Ride as much as you can. Go out and have fun. Ride hard.

All you need to race is a bike in good working order, a helmet and a license. If you have the legs and lungs you'll got far even if you have a 25lb bike made from steel - it's pretty much what the greats like Anquetil, Merckx and Hinault had.

Get a license and go race. See how you do. Don't be too disheartened if you get dropped in the first few miles. It happens to more than just a few folk...

I guess the easy way to become a pro is to go where the pros train and let them watch you beat them up the big climbs day after day. That should get their attention.

But you might find out that racing is hard work and the pay is not that great.

Also, there's more to racing than riding fast. Bike handling is even more important. Get to the point where you're comfortable riding in a tightly bunched group of riders at 30 mph, and can corner at speed holding a line, and thread your way to the front for the finish sprint.

I guess you have to cycle a lot in order to get into that mood.

Rise through the ranks, build reputation and most of all you need to build more miles and endurance. 30 miles a week is nothing at all.

Step 1: Ride more - LOTS more
Step 2: Buy a competitive bike and equipment - Be prepared to spend thousands
Step 3: Start training instead of riding. Train, Pick up a copy of "The Cyclists Training Bible" by Joe Friel and read it cover to cover at least 3 times. Start applying what you learn
Step 4: Enter your first CAT 5 race
Step 5: Get dropped on the second lap of your first CAT 5 race
Step 6: Train Harder
Step 7: Repeat steps 4-6 until you are no longer getting dropped from the race and instead are crushing everyone.
Step 8: Earn enough points to move up to CAT 4
Step 9: Repeat step 8 until you are CAT 1/PRO
Step 10: Get on a team
Step 11: Get on a better team
Step 12 Repeat step 11 until you are getting looked at by pro teams

Becoming a pro anything is nearly impossible at best. I know a lot of really good, really fast riders and none of them ever had a shot at being a pro. That being said every now and then an Evelyn Stevens comes along and from out of nowhere is up in the pro ranks.

mpre53 said:

Also, there's more to racing than riding fast. Bike handling is even more important. Get to the point where you're comfortable riding in a tightly bunched group of riders at 30 mph, and can corner at speed holding a line, and thread your way to the front for the finish sprint.

While that is one plan for winning amateur races. Most people are not able to execute that plan.

Pro races often have different endings. For most pros it is about sacrificing yourself for someone else.

overhellbaitre said:

I would like to become a pro cyclist when I'm older. I do about 30 miles a week. I use a old peugeot road bike at the moment but am hoping to get a new on for Christmas. I would like to join a club but I have not got a lot of time or money to do so. Do you think it is recommended to join a club or should I just keep on cycling at weekend.

By all means join a club. You need to make friends and find people to learn from.

ABNPFDR said:

Step 1: Ride more - LOTS more
Step 2: Sleep lots. Dream of cycling during that 9 to 12 hours of shut eye.
Step 3: Start training instead of riding. Train, Pick up a copy of "The Cyclists Training Bible" by Joe Friel and read it cover to cover at least 3 times. Start applying what you learn
Step 4: Enter your first CAT 5 race
Step 5: Wonder why you lapped the field. It's supposed to be hard, right?
Step 6:Move up to CAT 4 and crush everyone again.
Step 7: Repeat step 6 until you are CAT 1/PRO and realize that you really do have to start training properly. Uber natural talent only gets you so far.
Step 8: Get on a better team, ride their expensive bikes or buy one at a massive discount.

Fixed for accuracy.

The advice given here is spot on and I can't add much more to it.

One point worth making is that given the amount of time/effort required to be invested to make it, it's important to try to like what you're doing.

If any part of what has been suggested earlier seems to elicit the feeling that this is a chore, then I'd suggest that you need to think seriously before investing time/effort etc.

It's one thing to invest all of that - but if doing all of that is an ordeal, then it is pointless.

And to compound it, when you invest as much as you do, there is bound to be an opportunity cost (ie "I could have invested all that effort doing something else that I enjoy more, instead of doing this"😉.

Just do your best/better and have fun. That is what matters.

I'd say practice makes perfect. You need to love it and dedicate a lot of time to it.

 

swampy1970 said:

Fixed for accuracy.

 

Exactly.
Takes WORK to even get close to being "pro."
Most people will work 10x harder then you ever will and won't make it.
Hate to say it, but like all sports being "pro" means you had 3 things:
1)Good genes or a genetic predisposition to being an awesome cyclist. Sometimes hard work just doesn't do enough for one to reach the top levels.
2)A head start. If your parents didn't start you on a bike before you hit double digits and you don't have the money/support like many other pro's did, then you will be behind. Life isn't fare, don't believe the Disney movies. If you grew up poor like most of us, then you are already behind.
3) HARD WORK. LOTS of hard work. If you haven't been training (training, not just riding) for at least 10 000 hours you haven't been working hard enough.

As well as the points that everyone else as already raised, I didn't notice how old the OP was, so I'd also think the age would be an important factor also.

I think if someone wants to do something they'll find a way to do it, but at the same time your hearts got to be in it, and from the vibes I get I'm not sure it is.