I was expecting something with a little more substance.. The whole article is just about how people stop in front of the author at red lights which the author believes is because they are showing off.
I was expecting something with a little more substance..
The whole article is just about how people stop in front of the author at red lights which the author believes is because they are showing off.
Doesn't really seem like a showing off thing either. If you're a serious male cyclist, the number of female cyclists who will cycle faster than you is pretty small. They're out there, but on...
Doesn't really seem like a showing off thing either. If you're a serious male cyclist, the number of female cyclists who will cycle faster than you is pretty small. They're out there, but on average, virtually all of the women will cycle at a slower pace than you. That's not anyone's fault, our bodies are just built differently.
You can either get in front of them at a red light, or pass them while riding, which is a lot more dangerous.
It sounds like the author may have some inferiority issues she may have to work through, because she's taking an innocent and practical routine procedure personally.
I'm a serious cyclist, faster than most both off and on the road. I never pass someone stopped at a sign or light. Serious cyclists (or cars) are not somehow more entitled to the road, or more...
I'm a serious cyclist, faster than most both off and on the road. I never pass someone stopped at a sign or light.
Serious cyclists (or cars) are not somehow more entitled to the road, or more entitled to go fast without regard to who is around (or in front of) them.
Nah, fuck that. Pulling in front of someone at a red light is rude, but passing someone slower than you is expected and normal. No amount of "our bodies are different so it's okay" macho bullshit...
You can either get in front of them at a red light, or pass them while riding, which is a lot more dangerous.
Nah, fuck that. Pulling in front of someone at a red light is rude, but passing someone slower than you is expected and normal. No amount of "our bodies are different so it's okay" macho bullshit will change that.
Yes, doing something very normal that everyone already does and expects you to do is safer and nicer than pulling in front of someone and then stopping, which is pretty much universally an asshole...
passing during traffic is somehow safer than passing when everyone is stopped
Yes, doing something very normal that everyone already does and expects you to do is safer and nicer than pulling in front of someone and then stopping, which is pretty much universally an asshole move
male and female bodies are not different?
Never said that. I simply refuse to take biological differences as justification for bullshit behaviour.
How is pulling in front of someone while stopped that you know you're about to pass not safer than passing them in the midst of traffic? Passing is one of the most dangerous things you do in...
How is pulling in front of someone while stopped that you know you're about to pass not safer than passing them in the midst of traffic? Passing is one of the most dangerous things you do in traffic. I can't possibly see how doing it at 20mph with auto traffic moving 40-50+ mph is somehow safer than doing it when everyone is stopped.
Even if we were to accept the premise that it is an "asshole move", which is conjecture (I don't think it's an asshole move at all), if it's safer, who cares?
I don't think he's suggesting that it's not safer, but rather that it's much ruder. If I'm stopped in traffic, and then someone squeezes in right in front of me, I'd be wondering why they assumed...
I don't think he's suggesting that it's not safer, but rather that it's much ruder. If I'm stopped in traffic, and then someone squeezes in right in front of me, I'd be wondering why they assumed that they would be faster than me when we haven't been in motion to determine who should take the lead yet. And if they wind up being slower than me, then I'd be wondering if they did this on purpose, or if they are so self-absorbed that they don't realize their impact on the people around them.
Dear editors, please do your job. This is literally 80% about this person spitting hipster stereotypes while narrating how they dress up and leave their apartment. The remaining part contains an...
Dear editors, please do your job.
This is literally 80% about this person spitting hipster stereotypes while narrating how they dress up and leave their apartment. The remaining part contains an absurd call to action based on some absolutely pathetic (and totally devoid of any trace of proof) bullshit. And then the title is a nasty clickbait based upon the absurd and sexist generalisation.
It's worrying (and disgusting) to imagine that this came before some editor and got a pass.
And 42 is middle aged. Except maybe it's young for early biblical figures. Middle aged is not a bad thing.
ITT: tildes demographic revealing itself. It's plain rude to ride in front of a stopped cyclist at a light, whether you are another cyclist or a car. Beside is fine, if there's room, otherwise...
ITT: tildes demographic revealing itself.
It's plain rude to ride in front of a stopped cyclist at a light, whether you are another cyclist or a car. Beside is fine, if there's room, otherwise behind.
If you're faster, you pass when safe, and until then, you wait your turn.
I think it's very different in different places. I don't think people in germany really care if you pass them at a red light. Unless you're someone that is driving so slow that you'll just be...
I think it's very different in different places. I don't think people in germany really care if you pass them at a red light. Unless you're someone that is driving so slow that you'll just be overtaken in a minute again, I don't see any issues with it.
ITT: you. You are tildes' demographic. I ride a motorbike, and you can be damn sure I position myself ahead of the pushies whether it's rude or not, because I am very likely to be faster than they...
ITT: you. You are tildes' demographic.
I ride a motorbike, and you can be damn sure I position myself ahead of the pushies whether it's rude or not, because I am very likely to be faster than they are off the mark. Bikes filter in front of cars, faster bikes (yes, men are faster, deal) filter in front of other bikes. If cars could fit between trucks and buses they would filter too.
No, more a basic observation of the average sexual dimorphism which is the unfeeling reality of our species. Outliers exist, sure, but you shouldn't build your life around them.
No, more a basic observation of the average sexual dimorphism which is the unfeeling reality of our species. Outliers exist, sure, but you shouldn't build your life around them.
I guess technically the same is true of motorbikes and sports cars. I generally drive small Japanese cars favoured by old retired people, if you see a 2004 Toyota yaris (echo for Americans) on the...
I guess technically the same is true of motorbikes and sports cars.
I generally drive small Japanese cars favoured by old retired people, if you see a 2004 Toyota yaris (echo for Americans) on the motorway your general assumption my general assumption is that it will struggle to do 90mph (144kph) and probably the driver doesn't want to anyway.
I've extracted a huge amount of perverse joy over the years from tootling along at 90 when a car merges on behind me, sees it's stuck behind a yaris and zooms past. This is shortly followed by their realization that they're now doing 100mph risking instant license loss and no doubt burning fuel like a tank in their shiny SUV. Generally they'd adjust back to their normal cursing speed and I'd tootle past on my merry way.
At the time I had a 1.4l Diesel version which is somewhat happier at high speeds than the normal 1.1l petrol.
Are these drivers of large engined SUVs arrogant? bigots? I don't know, it never occurred to me that someone would take the time to write about them though.
I can bet anything that not a single person on a bike that filtered through to take up a free place while waiting to cross the road gave a single thought about whether or not they were faster or...
I can bet anything that not a single person on a bike that filtered through to take up a free place while waiting to cross the road gave a single thought about whether or not they were faster or not than some other person behind or in front of them, and whether or not these people were so because they were males or females, except the author of this article (!). They just spotted a free spot and went there.
Cyclists, in general, are far more pretentious than other athletic hobbies.. It's something I warn new riders of when they hit the trails for the first time. If you don't have a perfectly-tuned...
Cyclists, in general, are far more pretentious than other athletic hobbies.. It's something I warn new riders of when they hit the trails for the first time. If you don't have a perfectly-tuned $1k bike and matching riding shirts, gloves, and helmet, then you're treated like newbie trash.
The gender disparity this article mentions most likely exists in all similar hobbies, but the added judgmental culture of biking just adds to the "attitude".
My friends and I all ride pretty casually, and no one cares what type of bike anyone rides. Then again, I don't participate in "bike culture" so who knows. I've always found all cultures that...
My friends and I all ride pretty casually, and no one cares what type of bike anyone rides. Then again, I don't participate in "bike culture" so who knows. I've always found all cultures that isolate themselves with gatekeepers like that are more trouble than they're worth. It's one thing to wear cycling uniforms if you're serious into racing, but it's silly if you think it somehow makes you better at riding a bike. I guess for some people it's a comfort thing. They feel the need to wear the costume to play the part.
This tendency to make a "culture" out of everything is really lame and ridiculous, and the article is a nice caricature of them. In places where people really use bikes, like Netherlands or...
This tendency to make a "culture" out of everything is really lame and ridiculous, and the article is a nice caricature of them. In places where people really use bikes, like Netherlands or Denmark, you see people in casual clothing using their bikes to go from point a to b. But then there are "bikers", that are totally different people, they put on these suits and ride their bikes for the sake of it, not for actual commute, and have these airs to them. It is a "lifestyle". It is really absurd this huge drive people have to belong to some sort of tribe and carry symbols and brag and brag about that and make every day casual items like bikes or coffee gadgets or this or that into idols.
Also, making using a bike into this absurd ritualistic fraterny/sorority thing is detrimental to making bikes a popular alternative to motor transport it more places because people will be reluctant to it when what you offer them is associated with high brow weirdos that can't just use things without setting themselves apart and looking down upon everyone else while they themselves are ridiculous instead.
You could say that about literally anything. Some people cycle as a hobby, some people ride bikes to commute. One is not any less valid than the other. Do you also think that people that program,...
You could say that about literally anything.
Some people cycle as a hobby, some people ride bikes to commute. One is not any less valid than the other.
Do you also think that people that program, garden, read books, or sail for fun instead of out of necessity are also absurd?
Absurd when made into a form of tribal identity like this, yeah. I guess I would count as a hobbyist programmer, and I want to start gardening for things like mint and dill and whatnot, but that's...
Absurd when made into a form of tribal identity like this, yeah. I guess I would count as a hobbyist programmer, and I want to start gardening for things like mint and dill and whatnot, but that's different from what is at play here, which is more resemblant of a cult than a hobby.
If someone dressed up in a programming costume when they sat down at a computer because it helps them get in the zone, then yes I would ridicule that. The point is it becomes about looking like...
If someone dressed up in a programming costume when they sat down at a computer because it helps them get in the zone, then yes I would ridicule that. The point is it becomes about looking like you're into a hobby, rather than just being into a hobby.
That seems hypocritical to me. You don't like the gatekeepy people who ridicule others for how they choose to perform their hobby, so your response is to ridicule anyone who wears specific types...
That seems hypocritical to me. You don't like the gatekeepy people who ridicule others for how they choose to perform their hobby, so your response is to ridicule anyone who wears specific types of things to perform their hobby.
Wearing bike shorts and other clothes is not about joining a tribe, it's about having the right gear for the sport. There are a-holes everywhere, from cars and motorcycles with loud pipes, dudes...
Wearing bike shorts and other clothes is not about joining a tribe, it's about having the right gear for the sport.
There are a-holes everywhere, from cars and motorcycles with loud pipes, dudes wearing too much body spray, middle aged moms yelling into their earpieces on the bus, the list goes on and on...
Could you imagine if people wore Nascar or F1 suits to get in their car and rive to work. They'd be laughed at, and rightfully so. Like another poster pointed out, people in cycling heavy...
Could you imagine if people wore Nascar or F1 suits to get in their car and rive to work. They'd be laughed at, and rightfully so. Like another poster pointed out, people in cycling heavy countries like the Netherlands wear normal clothes to ride their bikes.
For anyone who rides more than 10km at a time it is genuinely so much better. I have cycling specific clothes and when I ride home in normal clothes it can be very uncomfortable when it rubs on...
I guess for some people it's a comfort thing.
For anyone who rides more than 10km at a time it is genuinely so much better. I have cycling specific clothes and when I ride home in normal clothes it can be very uncomfortable when it rubs on your legs or gets soaked in sweat.
Yup, totally agree. When I bought a bike a while ago after 15 years of not having one, I had nothing to ride it in. You can't ride in jeans, even for short distances, that's chafe city, and jeans...
Yup, totally agree. When I bought a bike a while ago after 15 years of not having one, I had nothing to ride it in. You can't ride in jeans, even for short distances, that's chafe city, and jeans is basically all I own. So I bought cycling clothing. It's comfortable (no chafing!) and convenient - once I've been out (either riding for transport or for fun), I just throw it in the wash and it's dry for the next day. I wear mitts for comfort because I don't get on well with vibrations from the bars, I wear a helmet because I don't have a death wish, I wear cleats because it's faster and safer, I wear cycle-specific weather gear because have you tried riding at any speed in a hiking jacket? It's like dragging a parachute around. Although I do wear running shirts rather than cycling one because they equally don't hold on to sweat and because I'm currently in the kind of shape where nobody needs to see my belly in lycra...
It has nothing to do with wearing a 'costume' to feel like I'm part of a particular tribe and everything to do with practicality.
I have never noticed this. I have been riding on $300 to $8000 bikes and I have always been treated the same. Could just be that Australians are nicer than wherever you have experienced this.
I have never noticed this. I have been riding on $300 to $8000 bikes and I have always been treated the same. Could just be that Australians are nicer than wherever you have experienced this.
I feel like you can often judge how bonkers another cyclist is going to be based on how much "cycling gear" they're wearing. If they're in a full suit of matching spandies and they have some kind...
I feel like you can often judge how bonkers another cyclist is going to be based on how much "cycling gear" they're wearing. If they're in a full suit of matching spandies and they have some kind of speedy glasses on their face, they're probably gonna budge in front of me. If they are wearing a CatLike helmet, they're gonna budge in front of me.
It doesn't seem to be male or female split to me, though most cyclists in my city are male, and an even higher percentage of "serious cyclists" are male, so maybe it just seems like that?
This spring I had to replace my brake pads on my summer bike before switching to it, so I was still riding my winter bike with studded tires (which are loud and conspicuous) after the snow had been gone for a week or so, and some road biker guy in his full spandex was like "TIME TO SWITCH OFF YOUR STUDS, GIRLIE"
I was expecting something with a little more substance..
The whole article is just about how people stop in front of the author at red lights which the author believes is because they are showing off.
Doesn't really seem like a showing off thing either. If you're a serious male cyclist, the number of female cyclists who will cycle faster than you is pretty small. They're out there, but on average, virtually all of the women will cycle at a slower pace than you. That's not anyone's fault, our bodies are just built differently.
You can either get in front of them at a red light, or pass them while riding, which is a lot more dangerous.
It sounds like the author may have some inferiority issues she may have to work through, because she's taking an innocent and practical routine procedure personally.
I'm a serious cyclist, faster than most both off and on the road. I never pass someone stopped at a sign or light.
Serious cyclists (or cars) are not somehow more entitled to the road, or more entitled to go fast without regard to who is around (or in front of) them.
Nah, fuck that. Pulling in front of someone at a red light is rude, but passing someone slower than you is expected and normal. No amount of "our bodies are different so it's okay" macho bullshit will change that.
Your argument is that
Yes, doing something very normal that everyone already does and expects you to do is safer and nicer than pulling in front of someone and then stopping, which is pretty much universally an asshole move
Never said that. I simply refuse to take biological differences as justification for bullshit behaviour.
How is pulling in front of someone while stopped that you know you're about to pass not safer than passing them in the midst of traffic? Passing is one of the most dangerous things you do in traffic. I can't possibly see how doing it at 20mph with auto traffic moving 40-50+ mph is somehow safer than doing it when everyone is stopped.
Even if we were to accept the premise that it is an "asshole move", which is conjecture (I don't think it's an asshole move at all), if it's safer, who cares?
I don't think he's suggesting that it's not safer, but rather that it's much ruder. If I'm stopped in traffic, and then someone squeezes in right in front of me, I'd be wondering why they assumed that they would be faster than me when we haven't been in motion to determine who should take the lead yet. And if they wind up being slower than me, then I'd be wondering if they did this on purpose, or if they are so self-absorbed that they don't realize their impact on the people around them.
Dear editors, please do your job.
This is literally 80% about this person spitting hipster stereotypes while narrating how they dress up and leave their apartment. The remaining part contains an absurd call to action based on some absolutely pathetic (and totally devoid of any trace of proof) bullshit. And then the title is a nasty clickbait based upon the absurd and sexist generalisation.
It's worrying (and disgusting) to imagine that this came before some editor and got a pass.
And 42 is middle aged. Except maybe it's young for early biblical figures. Middle aged is not a bad thing.
ITT: tildes demographic revealing itself.
It's plain rude to ride in front of a stopped cyclist at a light, whether you are another cyclist or a car. Beside is fine, if there's room, otherwise behind.
If you're faster, you pass when safe, and until then, you wait your turn.
Totally unnecessary generalisation. Nobody's forced to participate here.
I think it's very different in different places. I don't think people in germany really care if you pass them at a red light. Unless you're someone that is driving so slow that you'll just be overtaken in a minute again, I don't see any issues with it.
No one cares if someone stops in front of them unless they think that riding on the road is some kind of race.
ITT: you. You are tildes' demographic.
I ride a motorbike, and you can be damn sure I position myself ahead of the pushies whether it's rude or not, because I am very likely to be faster than they are off the mark. Bikes filter in front of cars, faster bikes (yes, men are faster, deal) filter in front of other bikes. If cars could fit between trucks and buses they would filter too.
Except men are not quicker, they just assume they are because arrogance and sexism.
No, more a basic observation of the average sexual dimorphism which is the unfeeling reality of our species. Outliers exist, sure, but you shouldn't build your life around them.
I guess technically the same is true of motorbikes and sports cars.
I generally drive small Japanese cars favoured by old retired people, if you see a 2004 Toyota yaris (echo for Americans) on the motorway your general assumption my general assumption is that it will struggle to do 90mph (144kph) and probably the driver doesn't want to anyway.
I've extracted a huge amount of perverse joy over the years from tootling along at 90 when a car merges on behind me, sees it's stuck behind a yaris and zooms past. This is shortly followed by their realization that they're now doing 100mph risking instant license loss and no doubt burning fuel like a tank in their shiny SUV. Generally they'd adjust back to their normal cursing speed and I'd tootle past on my merry way.
At the time I had a 1.4l Diesel version which is somewhat happier at high speeds than the normal 1.1l petrol.
Are these drivers of large engined SUVs arrogant? bigots? I don't know, it never occurred to me that someone would take the time to write about them though.
I can bet anything that not a single person on a bike that filtered through to take up a free place while waiting to cross the road gave a single thought about whether or not they were faster or not than some other person behind or in front of them, and whether or not these people were so because they were males or females, except the author of this article (!). They just spotted a free spot and went there.
Cyclists, in general, are far more pretentious than other athletic hobbies.. It's something I warn new riders of when they hit the trails for the first time. If you don't have a perfectly-tuned $1k bike and matching riding shirts, gloves, and helmet, then you're treated like newbie trash.
The gender disparity this article mentions most likely exists in all similar hobbies, but the added judgmental culture of biking just adds to the "attitude".
My friends and I all ride pretty casually, and no one cares what type of bike anyone rides. Then again, I don't participate in "bike culture" so who knows. I've always found all cultures that isolate themselves with gatekeepers like that are more trouble than they're worth. It's one thing to wear cycling uniforms if you're serious into racing, but it's silly if you think it somehow makes you better at riding a bike. I guess for some people it's a comfort thing. They feel the need to wear the costume to play the part.
This tendency to make a "culture" out of everything is really lame and ridiculous, and the article is a nice caricature of them. In places where people really use bikes, like Netherlands or Denmark, you see people in casual clothing using their bikes to go from point a to b. But then there are "bikers", that are totally different people, they put on these suits and ride their bikes for the sake of it, not for actual commute, and have these airs to them. It is a "lifestyle". It is really absurd this huge drive people have to belong to some sort of tribe and carry symbols and brag and brag about that and make every day casual items like bikes or coffee gadgets or this or that into idols.
Also, making using a bike into this absurd ritualistic fraterny/sorority thing is detrimental to making bikes a popular alternative to motor transport it more places because people will be reluctant to it when what you offer them is associated with high brow weirdos that can't just use things without setting themselves apart and looking down upon everyone else while they themselves are ridiculous instead.
You could say that about literally anything.
Some people cycle as a hobby, some people ride bikes to commute. One is not any less valid than the other.
Do you also think that people that program, garden, read books, or sail for fun instead of out of necessity are also absurd?
Absurd when made into a form of tribal identity like this, yeah. I guess I would count as a hobbyist programmer, and I want to start gardening for things like mint and dill and whatnot, but that's different from what is at play here, which is more resemblant of a cult than a hobby.
If someone dressed up in a programming costume when they sat down at a computer because it helps them get in the zone, then yes I would ridicule that. The point is it becomes about looking like you're into a hobby, rather than just being into a hobby.
That seems hypocritical to me. You don't like the gatekeepy people who ridicule others for how they choose to perform their hobby, so your response is to ridicule anyone who wears specific types of things to perform their hobby.
Wearing bike shorts and other clothes is not about joining a tribe, it's about having the right gear for the sport.
There are a-holes everywhere, from cars and motorcycles with loud pipes, dudes wearing too much body spray, middle aged moms yelling into their earpieces on the bus, the list goes on and on...
Could you imagine if people wore Nascar or F1 suits to get in their car and rive to work. They'd be laughed at, and rightfully so. Like another poster pointed out, people in cycling heavy countries like the Netherlands wear normal clothes to ride their bikes.
For anyone who rides more than 10km at a time it is genuinely so much better. I have cycling specific clothes and when I ride home in normal clothes it can be very uncomfortable when it rubs on your legs or gets soaked in sweat.
Yup, totally agree. When I bought a bike a while ago after 15 years of not having one, I had nothing to ride it in. You can't ride in jeans, even for short distances, that's chafe city, and jeans is basically all I own. So I bought cycling clothing. It's comfortable (no chafing!) and convenient - once I've been out (either riding for transport or for fun), I just throw it in the wash and it's dry for the next day. I wear mitts for comfort because I don't get on well with vibrations from the bars, I wear a helmet because I don't have a death wish, I wear cleats because it's faster and safer, I wear cycle-specific weather gear because have you tried riding at any speed in a hiking jacket? It's like dragging a parachute around. Although I do wear running shirts rather than cycling one because they equally don't hold on to sweat and because I'm currently in the kind of shape where nobody needs to see my belly in lycra...
It has nothing to do with wearing a 'costume' to feel like I'm part of a particular tribe and everything to do with practicality.
Where is this? This seems very location-specific.
Southeast US. Both in Virginia and Georgia. It's specific to mountain bikers. Not so much street riders.
I'd ride a rusty fixed gear bike in jeans due to curiosity to see how I'm treated. That "setup" would clearly claim independent stance.
I have never noticed this. I have been riding on $300 to $8000 bikes and I have always been treated the same. Could just be that Australians are nicer than wherever you have experienced this.
Southeast US. People tend to be more judgemental around here in the first place
I feel like you can often judge how bonkers another cyclist is going to be based on how much "cycling gear" they're wearing. If they're in a full suit of matching spandies and they have some kind of speedy glasses on their face, they're probably gonna budge in front of me. If they are wearing a CatLike helmet, they're gonna budge in front of me.
It doesn't seem to be male or female split to me, though most cyclists in my city are male, and an even higher percentage of "serious cyclists" are male, so maybe it just seems like that?
This spring I had to replace my brake pads on my summer bike before switching to it, so I was still riding my winter bike with studded tires (which are loud and conspicuous) after the snow had been gone for a week or so, and some road biker guy in his full spandex was like "TIME TO SWITCH OFF YOUR STUDS, GIRLIE"
I'm thirty two! Girlie!
Is a CatLike helmet is a brand thing or the amusing cat ears some people stick on?
It's a brand. My wife wears one and she won't even ride past static cars at traffic lights, let alone other cyclists.