Winning the horse shoe pass hill climb and in top gear as normal, Wish i'd been a bit kinder on my knees now i'm middle aged.

Yes i did used to push a big gear most the time i was racing which didn't help. I would also say if you don't race then in most cases you shouldn't wear anything out unless you already have a week or injured knee or hip before you started cycling. However if you put enough stress though any joint in any sport then you will eventually wear it out. With my experience i would never say you won't wear your joints riding a bike, although i might be an extreme case and i would agree i defiantly over did it. Many of the people i used to ride with are today are still riding although some have been lucky and never seen a single injury, some have a few minor problems and I've totally knackered myself.