Article: Slow Down! And Four Other Ways to Make People Love Cyclists

I started out as a Cyclist with a capital “C”. I still train for the occasional race, but most of my riding now fits more into the 2nd category of mainstream cycling or “The Rest of Us.”

I think the list makes sense. Bike commuting, casual riding and slower riding for errands are what will expand the number of people who bike. That means more demand for better transportation infrastructure and more dollars for such infrastructure. Athletic cycling is fun, but that will always be a limited group. I also find that many athletic cyclists don’t care about urban transportation infrastructure that much, because people usually don’t do tough training rides in busy city centers. (East Potomac Park is an exception, but it’s not really in central DC and it certainly isn’t a business or retail center.) When I post about bike infrastructure issues and projects on triathlon sites, I get very little response. A few people are interested in the topic, but only because they also have an interest in bike commutes and transportation safety. I don’t hear the athletic types talk about this too much at meetings either. So if the goal is to improve transportation infrastructure and encourage more people to bike, the focus should be on the 2nd group.

I guess there are people who fit into both categories. That kind of applies to me, but most of the time I’m basically in the 2nd group. I ride CaBi a lot, with the upright riding position and the slower speeds.

Yup. When they released a tweet about an hour ago, I responded

“Just as there r 2 Americas, there are two types of cyclists.” …. and you already lost me…

There are not two Americas. That is a really cold thing to say given what has happened in the last few days. Likewise there are anything but two types of cyclists.

@Crickey7 118496 wrote:

Could’ve made the points without the trite and tired caricatures of “Cyclists”. Advocacy is never served by gratuitously alienating anyone. If I like to go fast, and to have a bike and wear clothing appropriate for that, how does that take away from increasing acceptance of cycling? This basically says I’m doing it wrong, and if there’s anything I believe about cycling advocacy, it’s that there is no one right way to be a cyclist.

I give this a C for condescension.

I agree with you. I found the article pretty offensive. I didn’t even really want to read past the first few paragraphs. Like it or not, going fast and wearing bike clothing has it’s advantages, especially for those of us that use bicycling as a form or exercise. I improve my strength and cardio by going faster, which are more comfortable on a road bike, in bike clothing, with a helmet on. I love my upright bike and use it for commuting, but the fun really starts during my weekend rides on the road bike.

I actually think MORE women wearing lycra and riding road bikes would be better, and increase the acceptance for other women that biking fast and hard is fun, and not just something for dudes. Maybe we could advocate for that and other inclusive forms of biking, and not just alienate a bunch of cyclists.

@TwoWheelsDC 118502 wrote:

1. Enjoy the journey…or not…who cares?
2. The best bike for the job is whichever one you’ll actually ride.
3. The best clothes to wear are whichever ones you’ll ride in.
4. Wear a helmet if it makes you feel safe. Let others worry about their own brains.
5. You’re under no obligation to be an example or a leader…but choosing to be one never hurts.

I like your list better.

@urbanish 118500 wrote:

Take a chill pill

Strike two.

Is it wrong that I feel a little guilty pleasure when I see the lycra-nauts getting poked with a metaphoric pointy stick?:rolleyes:

The author could have been more respectful. But I have noticed a difference between those who are more sports-focused and those who look more toward bike commuting and errands. On trails, one of my biggest gripes and safety concerns is the high-speed training that some people seem to be doing on very crowded trails like the Mt. Vernon Trail, during peak commute times. When these specific individuals are racing past everyone, weaving in and out of the lane, crossing the center line to pass, even though it nearly forces others on the other side of the line to veer off to the side of the trail, I think it’s an issue. Even if there isn’t any contact, it raises the heartrates of everyone else on the trail, at least if they’re paying attention. I know not every performance-oriented cyclist does this. But this is highly visible behavior and it only takes a couple people to create a big negative impression on many other people on the trails. I don’t enjoy having to rush suddenly to the side of the trail to avoid a 20 mph cyclist who is passing on his side and crossing the center line to do so. At other times, I’ve gotten cussed out because I didn’t stop to let some of these riders cross the line and ride, in the wrong direction, so they could pass traffic on their side of the line.

At the same time, I would agree that we don’t need to emphasize the differences so much. Just focus on positives, such as better routes and safer streets for everyone, regardless of whether they are a bike commuter, a pedestrian, a runner, a performance-minded cyclist or a driver.

As for the divisiveness in the news, I’ll agree that division is not good in general. But on this one, I’m not quite as sensitive about. I see aggressive behavior on streets and trails, whether I’m on a triathlon bike or on CaBi. I’ve been called much worse things in life than a “bike commuter” or a “Lycra-clad racer” and yes, I’m referring to the recent event in the news.

First off, Hi urbanish! Welcome to the forum. I’m happy that you’re here and that you brought your ideas and writing.

My work involves a lot of time watching people’s transportation behavior and trying to get people to think about making it safer.

People tend to ride the way they do not because they’re part of a category of cyclists. They behave that way because of how they think of the law and the rules of the road. It is the same way with drivers and pedestrians.

I’m certainly not perfect in ANY of my modes of transportation. I constantly work to be a little better though.

1) Enjoy the journey without being too focused on the destination. Smart way to live both on and off the bike.
2) I love that cruiser bikes exist. I find them completely useless for every kind of cycling that I do.
3) I generally find that dressing like a rodeo clown makes me the happiest. I cannot begin to express my happiness that I’ve been able to live in a way that allows me to do that every day to some degree.
4) There are good and bad ways to feel naked. For me, riding without a helmet is a bad way of feeling naked. If you feel differently, I’m good with that.
5) It doesn’t matter if you want to be a leader or not. How you live says a lot about you and people are watching, making judgements and basing their behavior on yours. If you behave like a concussed baboon when you ride a bike, in a car or while walking, people will treat you like a concussed baboon. If you behave lawfully and courteously while riding, driving or walking, people are still going to treat you like a concussed baboon because there are just too dang many people out there behaving like concussed baboons . D’OH!

Just kidding about that last part. I’ve found that being happy, courteous and behaving well makes it easy, more often than not, for people to be courteous and polite back. I also find that generally being mellow and accepting makes it so that people who behave like stinkers are less likely to annoy me.

Sorry for going on so long. That’s probably my longest post in a year. Obviously a topic that is near and dear to me.

Rock on!