Bike shortage

[aguycalledsteve]

I do wonder why it's always mountain bikes though, a flat bar road bike or a hybrid type thing would suit most people so much better.

Image. The road bikes, just have a certain image portrayed with them now. Middle Aged Men In Lycra thinking they are Bradley Wiggins, All the gear etc.... Just isn't for me. I can't help but feel like to use one of those you've got to dress yourself like your entering the Tour De france. Where as my mountain bike, I can put regular shorts and trainers on and not feel out of place on it.

I've recently started to cycle to work in the lockdown and tbh I wouldn't consider a road bike. Pot holes and rubbish road conditions just don't lend themselves to them tiny width tyres.

 

[Spark plug]

Image. The road bikes, just have a certain image portrayed with them now. Middle Aged Men In Lycra thinking they are Bradley Wiggins, All the gear etc.... Just isn't for me. I can't help but feel like to use one of those you've got to dress yourself like your entering the Tour De france. Where as my mountain bike, I can put regular shorts and trainers on and not feel out of place on it.

I've recently started to cycle to work in the lockdown and tbh I wouldn't consider a road bike. Pot holes and rubbish road conditions just don't lend themselves to them tiny width tyres.

That’s ware the hybrid comes in, flat bars and 30-35mm tyres apposed to 20-25mm of a road bike.

I did have a road bike some time ago, did get some strange look with BMX pedals on ridding in steel toe caps

 

[Maker]

I did have a road bike some time ago, did get some strange look with BMX pedals on ridding in steel toe caps

I've got big studded platform pedals on my road bike, probably does look a bit weird, especially with the clip on aero bars, but if anyone wants to give me a look they'll have to catch me first.

 

[Stueeee]

Lets be honest, most of them are probably cheap £100 imported "mountain" bikes that have 40-year-old parts standards; rust way to quickly, and have chocolate wheel rims.

Good enough for most people though. My dad cycles about five miles to work and has done for about 25 years, in that time he's had three, £100 bikes.

yes, mine was a £100 "mountain" bike; was ridden down to the shops by my old Mum's partner every day to get his newspaper; Bob was still riding it every day well into his eighties. It came to me after he died, in the unlikely event of me reaching my late eighties, I still hope to be using it. But it will probably be even more of a "Triggers Broom" bicycle by then; Due to all the bits I've fitted from donor bikes, I call this my Frankencycle.

 

[jerrytug]

Image. The road bikes, just have a certain image portrayed with them now. Middle Aged Men In Lycra thinking they are Bradley Wiggins, All the gear etc.... Just isn't for me. I can't help but feel like to use one of those you've got to dress yourself like your entering the Tour De france. Where as my mountain bike, I can put regular shorts and trainers on and not feel out of place on it.

I've recently started to cycle to work in the lockdown and tbh I wouldn't consider a road bike. Pot holes and rubbish road conditions just don't lend themselves to them tiny width tyres.

The marketing concept that you need to buy special, expensive clothes, gloves, shoes and hat to ride a bicycle is a recent invention. In fact thinking about it, that's true for motorbikes as well, in a way.

 

[aguycalledsteve]

View attachment 247955
The marketing concept that you need to buy special, expensive clothes, gloves, shoes and hat to ride a bicycle is a recent invention. In fact thinking about it, that's true for motorbikes as well, in a way.

It's the same everywhere. Bikes, Cars, Computers, Photography whatever you like. If there is an enthusiasts club for something there will always be people that look down on you if you aren't using the best, most expensive kit and manufacturers falling over themselves to sell it to you.

 

[Ashley Burton]

@aguycalledsteve I call them all the gear & no idea!

Usually slowing me down on some trails which they've seen on google

 

[jerrytug]

It's the same everywhere. Bikes, Cars, Computers, Photography whatever you like. If there is an enthusiasts club for something there will always be people that look down on you if you aren't using the best, most expensive kit and manufacturers falling over themselves to sell it to you.

Quite right.. I wonder if it applies to welders, surely not

 

[minimutly]

One observation, from an occasional cyclist.
If I may?
You know all these lycra clad two wheeled masochists - we are on a "cycle route" so we see a lot - not many happy, waving, smiling faces- in fact I'd say most seem to be in some pain?

 

[jerrytug]

...most seem to be in some pain?

Yes those lycra leggings are over-tight where it hurts most.

 

[Maker]

One observation, from an occasional cyclist.
If I may?
You know all these lycra clad two wheeled masochists - we are on a "cycle route" so we see a lot - not many happy, waving, smiling faces- in fact I'd say most seem to be in some pain?

If it doesn't hurt you're not pedalling hard enough. It's exercise more than leisure for some people, they're usually the ones with all the gear, looking like they'd rather be anywhere else . For me it's both so I do tend to smile as I pass pedestrians. It definitely hurts, but it's a good pain . Quite lucky really, if it wasn't fun my portion sizes would soon catch up with me.

EDIT: I remembered the "fun scale" as I was typing that; Type 1 fun is actual fun, cycling down hills, jumping on a bouncy castle, etc. Type 2 fun is only fun in retrospect, hard exercise, or childbirth apparently . Type 3 fun is not fun, ever .

 

[optima21]

Ive head that to combat the shortage of bicycles....they have doubled the production of unicycles....they can make twice as many in the same time

 

[aguycalledsteve]

Quite right.. I wonder if it applies to welders, surely not

I wondered whether to include that in my list.

Dare I mention Silverline tools?

 

[Munkul]

I wondered whether to include that in my list.

Dare I mention Silverline tools?

The S-word should be on the banned swear word list on here

Everyone knows you aren't a real welder unless you have a Lorch or EWM welder, and a Speedglas or Optrel hood. It's just the way it is.

 

[Munkul]

EDIT: I remembered the "fun scale" as I was typing that; Type 1 fun is actual fun, cycling down hills, jumping on a bouncy castle, etc. Type 2 fun is only fun in retrospect, hard exercise, or childbirth apparently . Type 3 fun is not fun, ever .

Never came across that before, but I like it!