# Non cyclists look upon cyclists as weird



## johnnyb47 (12 Nov 2017)

Hi. 
Do you ever experience people who don't cycle, judge you as a strange character for cycling. I find it really funny sometimes when talking to non cyclist friends about some of the goals I've managed ,and then to see there attitudes and expression on there faces. 
Being proud this year of managing to cycle across wales in a day ,I tell them about it when the subject of cycling crops up. Some of the comments you get back are hilarious."You must be mental" or " you've got to much spare time and need to get out more and get a life mate".
To a non cyclist some look upon you as if you've got some sort of disease or mid life crisis going on ,and hope one day it can be cured with therapy lol.
Just tonight a friend of mine has been doing a spot of matchmaking for me and told the "other party" I enjoy cycling but don't worry he's not obsessive with it , as if it could be some sort of potential disease i could be harbouring for the future. They often look at it as "what's the point of cycling there just to stop for a drink and bite to eat only to come back home" 
As hard as I try to explain why, they just don't get it. 
It is funny though watching there reactions of thinking I'm one bulb short of a pack :-) :-)


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## classic33 (12 Nov 2017)

I got similar cycling to work, either in Leeds city centre or doing the four day weekend on split shifts.

Classed as completly mad for doing Dublin to Ennis in the one go/day.


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## BSOh (13 Nov 2017)

I get smirks at times from the grown-ups in my family. As if they think its somehow childish to own a bike. But they play computer games. Go figure.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

It's this time of year that the comments about being completly nuts for cycling come to the fore. Moreso if its wet & windy or there's snow on the ground.


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## johnnyb47 (13 Nov 2017)

BSOh said:


> I get smirks at times from the grown-ups in my family. As if they think its somehow childish to own a bike. But they play computer games. Go figure.


I couldn't of put those words better my myself.


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## MichaelW2 (13 Nov 2017)

Acceptable obsessions for adults include men in shorts kicking a ball around a field, cars, beer. If you include Radio 4 listeners, add political party leadership challenges. Everthing else is trainspotting.


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## screenman (13 Nov 2017)

I will be swimming up and down a 25 metre swimming pool a 100 times starting at 7am, I bet you think I am a bit odd. I do.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

MichaelW2 said:


> Acceptable obsessions for adults include men in shorts kicking a ball around a field, cars, beer. If you include Radio 4 listeners, add political party leadership challenges. *Everthing else is trainspotting.*


What's wrong with trainspotting?


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## Profpointy (13 Nov 2017)

MichaelW2 said:


> Acceptable obsessions for adults include *watching* men in shorts kicking a ball around a field, cars, beer. If you include Radio 4 listeners, add political party leadership challenges. Everthing else is trainspotting.



FTFY


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I will be swimming up and down a 25 metre swimming pool a 100 times starting at 7am, I bet you think I am a bit odd. I do.


Not that strange, early morning swims.


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## Jason (13 Nov 2017)

It can get obsessive though. My neighbour can't have a conversation about anything but cycling,watts, and zzzz
I no longer cycle with him.


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## flake99please (13 Nov 2017)

Apart from my most immediate family, I dont care what anyone else thinks of me.


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## screenman (13 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> Not that strange, early morning swims.



Not that strange to us maybe, but some do not understand why and think it is an odd thing to do.


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## Drago (13 Nov 2017)

'Weird' in this case means 'not bone idle lazy'.


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## gavroche (13 Nov 2017)

Only in the UK you get this type of reasoning. On the continent, cycling is well respected and valued.


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## sheddy (13 Nov 2017)

Maybe mention to them feelings of wellbeing (rather than health)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29175088


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## MontyVeda (13 Nov 2017)

Normal people cycle. Nobbers don't.


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## smutchin (13 Nov 2017)

johnnyb47 said:


> need to get out more



Need to stay in more, surely?


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## SpokeyDokey (13 Nov 2017)

Can't say I've come across anyone who has regarded me strangely for being a cyclist.

Most people I know and meet these days are into some sort of health related activity and don't seem to judge unkindly about what I do.


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## SkipdiverJohn (13 Nov 2017)

> Only in the UK you get this type of reasoning. On the continent, cycling is well respected and valued.



Cycling in the UK has traditionally been regarded first and foremost as a utilitarian transport activity, mostly participated in by those too young to drive and the working classes who were not wealthy enough to be able to afford to run a car. For the factory workers and people like window cleaners riding with their ladder balanced on their shoulder, cycling was simply a means to an end; it enabled them to get to the place where they earned their living. I doubt many of those riders would have chosen to go out on a bike in their spare time, just for the sake of cycling itself.
OK, there have always been _some _enthusiast cyclists, but they will have been vastly outnumbered by the utility ones. Most of those gave up cycling and took to cars as soon as they were able to afford NOT to have to cycle in all weathers, hence many drivers regard cyclists as "weird". Even I regard cycling in foul weather as weird, if the rider owns a car. For my, cycling should be both enjoyable and serve a purpose, and being rained heavily on, blown about all over the road, and slipping and sliding in snow & slush is not something I'd choose to do unless it was totally unavoidable. I would sooner walk a short journey in foul weather than cycle, no more pleasant, but a lot less dangerous.


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## Cronorider (13 Nov 2017)

johnnyb47 said:


> Hi.
> Do you ever experience people who don't cycle, judge you as a strange character for cycling. I find it really funny sometimes when talking to non cyclist friends about some of the goals I've managed



You can get that attitude right here on this forum


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## iateyoubutler (13 Nov 2017)

Touchy subject with me too...........

Coming from a cyclist hating family doesn`t help matters, I always get bombarded with "they do this " "why do they do that?" etc etc etc. So I`m pretty much alone.

Then, when you tell anybody about something big that you are doing (I had this when doing LEJOG a few years ago), all you get is "YOU MUST BE MAD"

FFS, how about some encouragement instead?!!

Finally I do love it when it`s pouring with rain and I arrive at work, all my kit on and looking like a drowned rat, only to get asked "have you cycled in??"

I give up.........................


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## LCpl Boiled Egg (13 Nov 2017)

Yet a lot of them will happily drive to the gym and sit on a bike that doesn't go anywhere!


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## mikeymustard (13 Nov 2017)

If you think people see cycling as weird, try flying kites as a hobby! 
In my six years of kite buggying I managed 50mph on newgale beach, got lifted 20ft by a particularly large (9 square metres) kite in barely 5mph wind and broke more bones than rugby and cycling combined!
And they still thought it was childish...


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## Levo-Lon (13 Nov 2017)

People look at me gone out at work when I say it' only 7 miles to work on the bike and 10 in the van.
They just don' get the freedom and fresh air bit.

They get even more wide eyed when I say I'll do a 20 mile ride on the way home if it' a nice day..


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## SkipdiverJohn (13 Nov 2017)

> Yet a lot of them will happily drive to the gym and sit on a bike that doesn't go anywhere!



Yes that IS weird, but I do have to say I think going to the gym in general is weird, no matter what means of transport got you there I can't think of anything more boring or more pointless.. It always strikes me as ironic that people will buy things like cars with power-assisted everything, to reduce physical effort, then they go to the gym to lift weights etc because they do virtually no physical activity in their everyday routine.. Why not just generally do more physical activity during the course of the day, then you won't need to waste time and money down the gym!


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## MontyVeda (13 Nov 2017)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> Yes that IS weird, but I do have to say I think going to the gym in general is weird, no matter what means of transport got you there I can't think of anything more boring or more pointless.. It always strikes me as ironic that people will buy things like cars with power-assisted everything, to reduce physical effort, then they go to the gym to lift weights etc because they do virtually no physical activity in their everyday routine.. Why not just generally do more physical activity during the course of the day, then you won't need to waste time and money down the gym!


Weirder still... loads of my work mates go to the gym. When i joined Aldi i reckoned it was like joining a gym but with a wage rather than fees... yet they go to the gym aswell!


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## steveindenmark (13 Nov 2017)

I live in Denmark. Everyone either owns a bike or knows dozens of friends and family members who own bikes. 50% of schoolchildren cycle to school in Denmark.

We dont get smirked at.


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## Drago (13 Nov 2017)

mikeymustard said:


> If you think people see cycling as weird, try flying kites as a hobby!
> In my six years of kite buggying I managed 50mph on newgale beach, got lifted 20ft by a particularly large (9 square metres) kite in barely 5mph wind and broke more bones than rugby and cycling combined!
> And they still thought it was childish...



That sounds dodgy, really dangerous.



I want a go!


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## Gary E (13 Nov 2017)

When you think about it cycling is a bit odd.
For example - what possesses anyone to get on a bike, pedal for 5-6 hours and then get off in exactly the same spot they started?
I freely admit to being a bit weird


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## Nigel-YZ1 (13 Nov 2017)

I get a more positive form of weird. They think the distance is mad but they admire me for the commitment in doing it.


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## roadrash (13 Nov 2017)

Gary E said:


> When you think about it cycling is a bit odd.
> For example - what possesses anyone to get on a bike, pedal for 5-6 hours and then get off in exactly the same spot they started?
> I freely admit to being a bit weird




just like them golfists, they spend ages whacking a ball round a field to to get it in a hole, then they take it out and start again, and they also end up back where they started.


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## roadrash (13 Nov 2017)

I once heard course fishing described as .... ah fishing,.. a stick with a lower life form at each end..


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## Profpointy (13 Nov 2017)

roadrash said:


> just like them golfists, they spend ages whacking a ball round a field to to get it in a hole, then they take it out and start again, and they also end up back where they started.



But golf's a great game. I love the hole where you have to send the ball up a ramp into a clown's mouth


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## mjr (13 Nov 2017)

Dogtrousers said:


> The weirdest bit for me is getting up at stupid o clock to go out for a ride. This Sunday it was hammering down with rain outside at 6am and the voice in my head was yelling Stop it! Go back to bed! This is not normal!


There's good reasons why our group's rides start at 10... although on Saturday we started from some of Norfolk's WW1 trenches after 11.

Riding for transport makes sense to me: it's about as quick, journey times are more consistent, parking is closer and easier, plus it gets you exercise - not sure why you wouldn't. Even in bad weather, you're gonna have to deal with that on the walk from the car park anyway or your destinations are going to be severely restricted aka no fun.

I don't get riding in circles without stopping at the fine drinking opportunities or sights along the way. You lot are odd


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## Lonestar (13 Nov 2017)

Not now but probably in the 1980's I felt a bit eccentric as to not having a car (ever) and cycling virtually everywhere.

At work I have less bother than I used to have in the past.If there is a bit if the cyclist slagging off thing again I don't get involved with the half-wits.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

Drago said:


> That sounds dodgy, really dangerous.
> 
> 
> 
> I want a go!


You'd damage your one good shoulder.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

Once told I should consider a bit of exercise. Said when having my colestorol tested(My blood was too thick!)

At the time I was doing 250 miles a weekend, and I'd stopped off at at supermarket between shifts to do a bit of shopping.

Nowt odd about cycling.


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## Oldbloke (13 Nov 2017)

Some (English) friends of ours were dumbfounded after seeing me on my bike 40 kms from home, said they think twice before driving that far. 

As for my commuting days, 6 miles each way in the '90s, well some people I worked with thought I'd lost the plot completely. Even when I pointed out that my ride was quicker than the same distance in a car, they didn't get it.


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## Markymark (13 Nov 2017)

Can we just clear something up here. Most of you lot _are_ weird.


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## Widge (13 Nov 2017)

I get this a lot-and mostly laugh it off.......my hobby (if you can call it that!) is riding my road-bike from pub to pub around hilly South Devon. All the locals and land-lords think I am eccentric/mad/bonkers and don't hesitate to take the piz out of me...but I wear the chiding but good natured insults like a badge of honour. I am a RUBBISH roady however...mainly because of all the beer and my laborious progress up hills, so 'real' roadies 40 years my junior DO take the mickey out of me-and that stings (hic!)

Best
w


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## Lonestar (13 Nov 2017)

Gary E said:


> When you think about it cycling is a bit odd.
> For example - what possesses anyone to get on a bike, pedal for 5-6 hours and then get off in exactly the same spot they started?
> I freely admit to being a bit weird



No more than whacking a ball around a golf course and trying to get it into a hole.(ooer)

....or that F1 where they whizz around a circuit all day trying to go as fast as they can.


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## Widge (13 Nov 2017)

In 1905 Wilson used the expression directly in his novel titled “The Boss of Little Arcady”:

This new game of *golf* that the summer folks play seems to have* too much walking for a good game and just enough game to spoil a good walk.*


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## crazyjoe101 (13 Nov 2017)

I very rarely get this, but I am fairly young so maybe people think I have more time without family life etc.
I used to get the odd 'ohh that's too dangerous, you must be mad' from people at work but most people are quite supportive or impressed etc. if I tell them how far I end up riding on audaxes and the like. In London most people have experienced enough traffic to recognise cycling as a sensible way to commute.


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## Edwardoka (13 Nov 2017)

People think I'm odd, and they're quite right to do so. What they don't realise is that I'm even more odd when I don't cycle. 

One of the reasons I loved my previous job is that out of a team of 7, 5 of us were regular riders and therefore there was no judgement for, e.g. riding up a mountain for the sake of it. It's the only place I've ever worked where being a rider was the norm, compared to the current place where they think I'm some kind of alien for not driving 5 miles, yet every morning the whatsapp chat is full of "omg i can't believe this traffic"

One of my favourite things ever was the looks of blank incomprehension mixed with loathing I got from truck drivers during a mid-ride lunch in a truck stop in February.


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## crazyjoe101 (13 Nov 2017)

Funny the different experiences people have, I normally end up chatting to lorry drivers, motorcyclists etc. if I end up on roadside stops and I'm not even that much of a sociable person, I suppose I've just been lucky.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

Markymark said:


> Can we just clear something up here. Most of you lot _are_ weird.


No weirder than anyone else one here.


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## Winnershsaint (13 Nov 2017)

BSOh said:


> I get smirks at times from the grown-ups in my family. As if they think its somehow childish to own a bike. But they play computer games. Go figure.


I've got three bikes. a Playstation 4 and I'm sixty in a couple of weeks!


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## mustang1 (13 Nov 2017)

Just tell them you're going to appear on strictly come dancing or bake off or any other similar program. When they get excited tell them how weird they are and that you'd rather ride your bike.


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## mustang1 (13 Nov 2017)

MichaelW2 said:


> Acceptable obsessions for adults include men in shorts kicking a ball around a field, cars, beer. If you include Radio 4 listeners, add political party leadership challenges. Everthing else is trainspotting.



+1


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## screenman (13 Nov 2017)

I am just about to go out of a nice warm house to a cold garage and spend 40 minutes cycling nowhere on the turbo, even I think that is weird. I'll be back.


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## Lonestar (13 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I am just about to go out of a nice warm house to a cold garage and spend 40 minutes cycling nowhere on the turbo, even I think that is weird. I'll be back.



I felt like crap earlier but 30 mins on the turbo has made me feel better so I see why people do it.


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## ColinJ (13 Nov 2017)

ABikeCam said:


> Yet a lot of them will happily drive to the gym and sit on a bike that doesn't go anywhere!


And then use an escalator to get from the car park up to the gym doors!


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## raleighnut (13 Nov 2017)

Dogtrousers said:


> The weirdest bit for me is getting up at stupid o clock to go out for a ride. This Sunday it was hammering down with rain outside at 6am and the voice in my head was yelling Stop it! Go back to bed! This is not normal!


It's not normal, the pubs won't be open for hours.


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## gavroche (13 Nov 2017)

Winnershsaint said:


> I've got three bikes. a Playstation 4 and I'm sixty in a couple of weeks!


A PlayStation at 60! You are weird!


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## LeetleGreyCells (13 Nov 2017)

steveindenmark said:


> I live in Denmark. Everyone either owns a bike or knows dozens of friends and family members who own bikes. 50% of schoolchildren cycle to school in Denmark.
> 
> We dont get smirked at.



Sounds like paradise.


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## Slick (13 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I am just about to go out of a nice warm house to a cold garage and spend 40 minutes cycling nowhere on the turbo, even I think that is weird. I'll be back.



So are you.


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## hatler (13 Nov 2017)

Things have changed over the last few years though. When I started cyclo-commuting in 2004 there was no-one in my social group who cycled at all, let alone to work.

Now ?

About half the people I know cycle on something at least approaching a regular basis, and a good number of them commute by bike too. People who, just a few years ago, wouldn't have even considered it. It wouldn't have occurred to them that the bike could be used to get to work.

It does help that I'm in London I think, as cyclists are very visible, so it is becoming, if not the norm, certainly a well established travel mode.


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## huwsparky (13 Nov 2017)

I don't think I've ever been looked at as weird for riding a bike. People maybe a little taken aback by the distance one can cover on a bike in a relatively short period of time but that's about it.


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## LeetleGreyCells (13 Nov 2017)

ColinJ said:


> And then use an escalator to get from the car park up to the gym doors!
> 
> View attachment 383023



That’s absolutely hilarious. Bunch of escalator-riding weirdos.


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## NorthernDave (13 Nov 2017)

roadrash said:


> just like them golfists, they spend ages whacking a ball round a field to to get it in a hole, then they take it out and start again, and they also end up back where they started.



Plus golfists wear those ridiculous garishly coloured outfits - what do they think they look like?


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## LeetleGreyCells (13 Nov 2017)

My family are very supportive. They don’t get it at all, but they are supportive. I mentioned how far I’d ridden on Sunday morning and the look I got was priceless (I had to work very hard not to laugh aloud). Only two of my brother-in-laws get it as they run.

My wife thinks it’s great that I cycle (I spent several years in a wheelchair/mobility scooter) and has even joined me with the kids on some very short rides. Otherwise she leaves me to it. She does nod and smile when I talk about cycling, but I have come to recognise the glassy stare and now reciprocate her patience with me by quickly shutting up.


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## Ming the Merciless (13 Nov 2017)

The gym is weird isn't it? People drive 30 mins there and back to spend 30 mins on an exercise bike and 15 mins showering / changing. Why don't they just cycle there, then when they get there, just ride back. Saves a gym membership.


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## pjd57 (13 Nov 2017)

The strange driving to the gym culture baffles me.
If people feel the need to go , why not walk , jog , cycle there and back ?


I get a few strange looks when I tell people that I cycle to the football now.
7:5 miles from my house to Celtic park.
When you tell them how much quicker bit is than taking a car , they just seem lost for words.


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## classic33 (13 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> The strange driving to the gym culture baffles me.
> If people feel the need to go , why not walk , jog , cycle there and back ?
> 
> 
> ...


The time taken to get from A to B, is what throws most people. The fact that the same journey, where you spend less time stationary, is quicker is hard to get them to understand. Then it's the distance involved that gets them.


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## screenman (13 Nov 2017)

YukonBoy said:


> The gym is weird isn't it? People drive 30 mins there and back to spend 30 mins on an exercise bike and 15 mins showering / changing. Why don't they just cycle there, then when they get there, just ride back. Saves a gym membership.



I use the gym twice a week for 90 minutes at a time, you get to work bits that you do not on a bike.


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## Edwardoka (13 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> The strange driving to the gym culture baffles me.
> 7:5 miles from my house to Celtic park.
> When you tell them how much quicker bit is than taking a car , they just seem lost for words.


In fairness I cycle really quickly when I'm in Bridgeton as well


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## Alan O (14 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> What's wrong with trainspotting?


Indeed, it can make them look very pretty...


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## Maenchi (14 Nov 2017)

'Golfist' never heard that term.....like it...


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## screenman (14 Nov 2017)

Dogtrousers said:


> I go to the gym regularly too. Have done for years. I quite enjoy it. I don't drive there, mind. Nor does my gym have escalators!



I would rather people drive to the gym and use it rather than no go at all.


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## screenman (14 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I would rather people drive to the gym and use it rather than no go at all.



My nearest gym is 10 miles away from home and like many others that use it I before I go directly to customers, or after work. Which may help to explain why some go by car.


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## Edwardoka (14 Nov 2017)

I've never been as fit as I was when I had a 15 mile commute with a big climb in either direction and a gym near the highest point on the commute. Got into a routine of riding uphill, by the time I'd reach the gym I'd be properly warmed up and ready to work out, jump back on bike afterwards and have a nice cooldown session by riding mostly downhill home.

I really wouldn't mind having that kind of routine again.


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## snorri (14 Nov 2017)

YukonBoy said:


> The gym is weird isn't it? People drive 30 mins there and back to spend 30 mins on an exercise bike and 15 mins showering / changing. Why don't they just cycle there,


Perhaps because, like my local Leisure Centre, there is no secure cycle parking?.


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## Ming the Merciless (14 Nov 2017)

snorri said:


> Perhaps because, like my local Leisure Centre, there is no secure cycle parking?.



But you don't need to go in as you are not stopping. So what has cycle parking got to do with it?


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## mjr (14 Nov 2017)

snorri said:


> Perhaps because, like my local Leisure Centre, there is no secure cycle parking?.


That sucks. Have you tried reporting that fault to its operator or the borough council?


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## mjr (14 Nov 2017)

RealLeeHimself said:


> Sounds like paradise.


If only the weather was better. I've only once been as wet.


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## pjd57 (14 Nov 2017)

Edwardoka said:


> In fairness I cycle really quickly when I'm in Bridgeton as well



I come out of Glasgow Green and go along London Rd . Not one of our city's more scenic bits.
Then there's the crazy unfinished cycle lane from the cross up to the Velodrome.
" Shared path "......on the way to a match , doesn't really work.


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## Threevok (14 Nov 2017)

I regularly get belittled by someone who goes chasing Pokemon

Go figure


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## snorri (14 Nov 2017)

YukonBoy said:


> But you don't need to go in as you are not stopping. So what has cycle parking got to do with it?


Yebbut I was giving a possible reason for people who _do _go into the gym, why they drove there and back home. 

I don't go in, well I did go in last month for my flu injection and told the clerk that I felt most uncomfortable there as the place brought back memories of school gym classes.


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## snorri (14 Nov 2017)

mjr said:


> That sucks. Have you tried reporting that fault to its operator or the borough council?


Yes, in writing to the management. It is operated by some splinter group on behalf of the local authority . 
I made representations about ten years ago and the car park has doubled in size since then but cycle parking ...no change.


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## Edwardoka (14 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> I come out of Glasgow Green and go along London Rd . Not one of our city's more scenic bits.
> Then there's the crazy unfinished cycle lane from the cross up to the Velodrome.
> " Shared path "......on the way to a match , doesn't really work.


Yeah, that bit of infra is bizarre, I can't imagine it gets much use as it doesn't neatly join up with NCN74 or go anywhere in particular.
Judging by Strava's heatmaps it gets about half as much usage as London Road (though the velodrome looks amazing on the heatmap)

Kudos for braving match night traffic - do you ever get any bother? If I'm in the office when there's a game on I'll usually wait a few hours to let the area clear up a bit.


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## Milzy (14 Nov 2017)

It’s same with running. People don’t get it. They wonder why people bother to do it and some take p1$$. You are physically very fit, running a sub 3 hour marathon and people shout run forest run etc. The chavs like to lift weights and take steroids. Complete knuckle draggers don’t respect cardio athletes.


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## Ming the Merciless (14 Nov 2017)

It is weird state of affairs where people think to cycle 5 miles you have to be extremely fit or even walking a mile is crazy.


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## pjd57 (14 Nov 2017)

Edwardoka said:


> Yeah, that bit of infra is bizarre, I can't imagine it gets much use as it doesn't neatly join up with NCN74 or go anywhere in particular.
> Judging by Strava's heatmaps it gets about half as much usage as London Road (though the velodrome looks amazing on the heatmap)
> 
> Kudos for braving match night traffic - do you ever get any bother? If I'm in the office when there's a game on I'll usually wait a few hours to let the area clear up a bit.




I had tried cycling to games once or twice before. But this season I've done it for all the home games. 7:5 miles door to door on Strava. If it's a nice day I'll go down the Kelvin and along the Clyde which is a bit longer.
Midweek it's straight through the city centre. 
No hassle whatsoever. Bike rack at the shop and it's about 20- 30 minutes quicker.


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## deptfordmarmoset (14 Nov 2017)

I don't think my family think I'm any weirder for riding a bike. They give me strange looks whether I'm on or off the bike.


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## Moodyman (15 Nov 2017)

Milzy said:


> The chavs like to lift weights and take steroids. Complete knuckle draggers don’t respect cardio athletes.



I'd never thought of it like this but now you've mentioned it, the weights section of my local gym does attract a certain type.


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## mjr (15 Nov 2017)

snorri said:


> Yes, in writing to the management. It is operated by some splinter group on behalf of the local authority .
> I made representations about ten years ago and the car park has doubled in size since then but cycle parking ...no change.


If no joy with the managers, complain to the council. In my borough, no cycle parking would normally be a breach of planning permission conditions, especially if the car park has expanded in the last 12 years. We don't have enough parking but to provide none is shocking.


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## jarlrmai (15 Nov 2017)

The 2 reasons I get for being called weird for cycling are the weather and the dangerous roads.


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## Ming the Merciless (15 Nov 2017)

jarlrmai said:


> The 2 reasons I get for being called weird for cycling are the weather and the dangerous roads.



Well just respond "At least when you are not driving the roads are safer"


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## jarlrmai (15 Nov 2017)

Yeah the carpark at work I have to cycle through is the most dangerous part of my commute.


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## Hyslop (16 Nov 2017)

mikeymustard said:


> If you think people see cycling as weird, try flying kites as a hobby!
> In my six years of kite buggying I managed 50mph on newgale beach, got lifted 20ft by a particularly large (9 square metres) kite in barely 5mph wind and broke more bones than rugby and cycling combined!
> And they still thought it was childish...


That sounds brilliant!....well,the speed and the general idea of the thing,the broken bones?Well no obviously.But into each sunny life,a little gloom will come (of you lived in Carlisle you'd know that).I would love to have a go all the same.


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## petek (16 Nov 2017)

Non-paid-professional MAMILs have always struck me as being a bit weird.
For the hobby-bicyclist, tweed is far more weatherproof and practical than is lycra.
Ordinary cyclists though... salt of the earth.


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## bigjim (16 Nov 2017)

I love the gym. Go regularly. Sometimes drive, car or motorbike. Sometimes I take the bus or ride the bike. The bike is a bit dodgy as they are always getting knicked. I lift weights and feel great afterwards. I don't like riding in the rain or snow, so the gym is where I'm at on the days when I don't want to ride the bike. On a dark rainy day it's great to step into the gym where the lights are bright, music playing and nice people chatting to you. Feels pretty good as well to sit in the Sauna or Jacuzzi after a good workout or swim and watch the good old, cold English rain lashing against the windows.


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## mjr (19 Nov 2017)

Rain always looks worse than it is when viewed through a window.


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## bigjim (19 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Non-paid-professional MAMILs have always struck me as being a bit weird.
> For the hobby-bicyclist, tweed is far more weatherproof and practical than is lycra.
> Ordinary cyclists though... salt of the earth.


Can't see myself washing tweed shorts and shirts out in the sink while on tour. Oh, and expecting them to be dry in the morning.


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## classic33 (19 Nov 2017)

bigjim said:


> *I love the gym.* Go regularly. Sometimes drive, car or motorbike. Sometimes I take the bus or ride the bike. The bike is a bit dodgy as they are always getting knicked. I lift weights and feel great afterwards. I don't like riding in the rain or snow, so the gym is where I'm at on the days when I don't want to ride the bike. On a dark rainy day it's great to step into the gym where the lights are bright, music playing and nice people chatting to you. Feels pretty good as well to sit in the Sauna or Jacuzzi after a good workout or swim and watch the good old, cold English rain lashing against the windows.


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## Sandra6 (19 Nov 2017)

I used to get a lot of "are you mad?" when people realised I'd cycled to wherever it was I was meeting them - generally within a 10 mile radius ofmy house too. 
More recently though i find people seem more impressed than anything else that I cycle to work. I almost feel I have to apologise on the days I cadge a lift.


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## ColinJ (19 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> View attachment 383792


Or just get yourself a boyfriend named 'Jim' ...


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## Pumpkin the robot (20 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Non-paid-professional MAMILs have always struck me as being a bit weird.
> For the hobby-bicyclist, tweed is far more weatherproof and practical than is lycra.
> Ordinary cyclists though... salt of the earth.



So an "ordinary cyclist" cannot wear lycra?


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## pjd57 (20 Nov 2017)

Fa


Martin Archer said:


> So an "ordinary cyclist" cannot wear lycra?


Fat guys in full kit playing 5 a sides ....normal.

Same guys in cycling gear..... what's the difference ?


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## classic33 (20 Nov 2017)

ColinJ said:


> Or just get yourself a boyfriend named 'Jim' ...


That would then be going to Jim every morning, not the Jim though.


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## Apollonius (20 Nov 2017)

What strikes me as the weirdest thing - and it is nothing to do with kit - is the kind of distances you take as normal. A relative of mine got her BSO out recently and puffed and struggled all the way to a nearby park. Describing herself as exhausted and drained, she reckoned she had done about a mile. And, indeed, that can often be the experience when you first start out. Maybe, like for her, that is the final cycling experience. Not many habitual cyclists can recall how every slope was a hill. (I saw a couple pushing BSOs over a canal bridge hump the other day.) 
We stopped for a rest on a hilly sportive a couple of weeks ago. A passer-by asked how far we were doing. 50 miles, I said. I don't think she believed me. 
Try driving to a place you habitually ride to. It seems a very long way in a car! yet, part of the therapy of cycling is to slow down and see the world at a more "human" pace. The ride is the journey, and is the experience. Life itself. Inside a car, the journey is a frustrating and resented waste of time. You see little. You are not engaged with the landscape or the experience. "Put the radio on!" 
We are weird because we see the journey as a part of life. An end not a means. You can get on your bike and spend a couple of hours riding a circular route to get back to where you started from. To do that in a car would be seen as a pointless waste of time and fuel.


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## ColinJ (20 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> That would then be going to Jim every morning, not the Jim though.


They called '_The Fonz_' THE Fonz!


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## slow scot (20 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> The strange driving to the gym culture baffles me.
> If people feel the need to go , why not walk , jog , cycle there and back ?
> 
> 
> ...


I'd be much more impressed if you cycled to Firhill to see the Maryhill Magyars!


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## pjd57 (20 Nov 2017)

slow scot said:


> I'd be much more impressed if you cycled to Firhill to see the Maryhill Magyars!


I often cycle along the canal past Firhill..... without stopping!


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## mjr (20 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> I often cycle along the canal past Firhill..... without stopping!


Sliding along the frozen canal again, huh?


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## Racing roadkill (20 Nov 2017)

The types of rides I tend to do, are not normal, people think I’m not playing with a full deck, they’re right, I don’t let it bother me.


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## pjd57 (20 Nov 2017)

mjr said:


> Sliding along the frozen canal again, huh?


I've been looking at that canal all my life , frozen or otherwise.
Born in Fingal st in 1957, some of my earliest memories are seeing fishing boats coming up the Maryhill Locks.
Didn't really appreciate it for many years. Now I've come to love it.


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## petek (20 Nov 2017)

Martin Archer said:


> So an "ordinary cyclist" cannot wear lycra?


Obviously they can, and do; wear lycra.
Begging the original question.
Why?


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## raleighnut (20 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Obviously they can, and do; wear lycra.
> Begging the original question.
> Why?


It's hard to explain, try it yourself and the benefits will be obvious (BTW no team colours here)


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## screenman (20 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Obviously they can, and do; wear lycra.
> Begging the original question.
> Why?



Would you go swimming in a boiler suit? cycling was designed for Lycra.


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## classic33 (20 Nov 2017)

Dogtrousers said:


> There are no ordinary cyclists. I think we've established that.
> *They're all weird.*


Speak for yerssen!


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## Aravis (21 Nov 2017)

Apollonius said:


> We are weird because we see the journey as a part of life. An end not a means. You can get on your bike and spend a couple of hours riding a circular route to get back to where you started from. *To do that in a car would be seen as a pointless waste of time and fuel.*


It's interesting to note, perhaps, that a motorcyclist would do exactly what a cyclist does, and it wouldn't seem pointless at all.

I guess that the engagement with the environment is there, but compared with cycling, different aspects of the experience are emphasised.

One thing I've practically no experience of is horse riding. I remember someone telling me that as a horse rider in the countryside, you see far more wildlife up close, because all it's aware of is the approach of another animal which isn't a threat.

So maybe experienced horse riders shake their heads at the misguided people who think they're enjoying the great outdoors, but don't realise they're missing so much. I think they're weird.


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## petek (21 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> Would you go swimming in a boiler suit? cycling was designed for Lycra.


Bicycling predates lycra by some decades.
Tweed , on the other hand; has been around for centuries and is eminently more practicable.


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## screenman (21 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Bicycling predates lycra by some decades.
> Tweed , on the other hand; has been around for centuries and is eminently more practicable.



Yes of course I know about lycra, it is of course a tongue in cheek saying.

Tweed, no thanks you can keep that lot, I hate the stuff, only for old people and at 62 I am nowhere near that group. 

Do you wear a boiler suit when you go swimming?


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## petek (21 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> Yes of course I know about lycra, it is of course a tongue in cheek saying.
> 
> Tweed, no thanks you can keep that lot, I hate the stuff, only for old people and at 62 I am nowhere near that group.
> 
> Do you wear a boiler suit when you go swimming?


A wet suit.
The North Sea is chilly at any time of the year.


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## screenman (21 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> A wet suit.
> The North Sea is chilly at any time of the year.



Can you get them made in Tweed, as somebody who spent a good while surfing just down the road from you I can confirm that the sea maybe warmer elsewhere.


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## Johnno260 (21 Nov 2017)

People think I'm odd for cycling for sure, they point out another cyclist killed someone in the news etc, I tell them go look at deaths involving cars/trucks etc

When I do manage to cycle to work the abuse really starts.

I get told go join a gym and use the exercise bike there! lol


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## Profpointy (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> It's a peculiarly British flaw, this sentimental attachment to tweed in the face of evidence that more modern or even native garments do the job required of them much better. This stubborn attachment to the imperial past played a part in the demise of many arrogant but foolish men, including John Franklin, George Mallory, and Robert Falcon Scott. Quite a powerful metaphor really, for closed minds down the ages.



I have to say, there's a bit of the blackadderish lions led by donkeys in some of that. Scott was in most ways well prepared, whilst he made errors, he also had very bad luck on the weather. He was also attempting a serious scientific expedition rather than a dash-to-the-pole like his rival. He didn't have the benefit of modern understanding of scurvy or modern materials. Likewise Mallory was using the best available materials and knowlwdge of his day, yet came a cropper doing something that is still bloody dangerous today, as do many modern mountaineers every year. I don't know enough about Franklin or whether the hubris and ill prepared complaint is valid or not.

Tweed is still a good material today and arguably one of the best available back then. They didn't have paramo and lycra back then, nor the considerably over-rated goretex


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## raleighnut (21 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> Bicycling predates lycra by some decades.
> Tweed , on the other hand; has been around for centuries and is eminently more practicable.


As someone who wore Tweed trousers as a kid and know how itchy they are I'd give them a big  as Sir Billy once said "Jaggardy Arse Wool"

However a nice 'Harris Tweed' sportscoat was the height of fashion in 1980-82, shame the real ones reeked of urine when they got wet, nearly as bad as a soggy Barbour jacket.


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## screenman (21 Nov 2017)

But we do have paramo and lycra now, so why not embrace it.


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## petek (21 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> Can you get them made in Tweed, as somebody who spent a good while surfing just down the road from you I can confirm that the sea maybe warmer elsewhere.


I wonder why they don't make tweed wetsuits.
Lack of buoyancy perhaps?
We get those kite-surfy types off the Point here in summer.
Bleddy impressive.


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## screenman (21 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> I wonder why they don't make tweed wetsuits.
> Lack of buoyancy perhaps?
> We get those kite-surfy types off the Point here in summer.
> Bleddy impressive.



You should give it a try.


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## Ming the Merciless (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> Franklin refused to take advice on using animal skins, as the Inuit did, as he regarded them as savages. I'd be willing to bet that Nepali people don't wear tweedy stuff either. But there are certainly areas of controversy involved in all these sagas.



With Mallory it was not the clothing used that was at issue. Indeed the combination of alternating wool and silk layers with tweed outer has been proven a very efffective combination at high altitude. You will of course realised that Everest has since been summited using the same equipment used by Mallory. Clothing was not an issue.


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## Profpointy (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> Franklin refused to take advice on using animal skins, as the Inuit did, as he regarded them as savages. I'd be willing to bet that Nepali people don't wear tweedy stuff either. But there are certainly areas of controversy involved in all these sagas.



I bet the Nepalis do wear woven wool garments, admittedly not woven in Harris, and maybe Yak wool, but tweed-ish all the same.

Also,it's worth remembering that dry cold like you get in the high mountains and antarctica is a very different thing from wet cold of winter Scotland. Windproof and warm tweed isn't a bad material when it's not that wet. Down is great when dry, but conversely nigh on useless for clothing in the UK. Tweed is somewhat water resistant too and very hardwearing. I don't think I'd choose it for cycling these days admittedly, but a pair of tweed breeks would cut quite a dash on the commute I dare say


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## Winnershsaint (21 Nov 2017)

Threevok said:


> I regularly get belittled by someone who goes chasing Pokemon
> 
> Go figure


Done that as well!


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## raleighnut (21 Nov 2017)

Profpointy said:


> I bet the Nepalis do wear woven wool garments, admittedly not woven in Harris, and maybe Yak wool, but tweed-ish all the same.
> 
> Also,it's worth remembering that dry cold like you get in the high mountains and antarctica is a very different thing from wet cold of winter Scotland. Windproof and warm tweed isn't a bad material when it's not that wet. Down is great when dry, but conversely nigh on useless for clothing in the UK. Tweed is somewhat water resistant too and very hardwearing. I don't think I'd choose it for cycling these days admittedly, but a pair of tweed breeks would cut quite a dash on the commute I dare say


You'd definitely need 'undercrackers' on with Tweed down there though (See post #127)


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## Profpointy (21 Nov 2017)

raleighnut said:


> You'd definitely need 'undercrackers' on with Tweed down there though (See post #127)



True dat 
The itchiness is indeed a problem for my hillwalking breeks and the trousers of my (rather fine it must be said) tweed suit - so the jacket gets worn rather mor than the full rig


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## classic33 (21 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> I wonder why they don't make tweed wetsuits.
> Lack of buoyancy perhaps?
> We get those kite-surfy types off the Point here in summer.
> Bleddy impressive.


 They do,  but would it suit you?


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## Profpointy (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> I said it played a part, not that it was central. I recommend a look at the biography of one of my heroes, John Rae, for details of why Franklin's exploits were such a disaster for him and his loyal men, of which his insistence on unsuitable clothes formed part, sadly.



To be fair, I didn't think they planned to be walking on the ice, so I would have expected they'd have had standard polar lattitude sailor gear of the day. Presumably that would have been tried and tested by generations of whalers and such


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## Foghat (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> I'd be willing to bet that Nepali people don't wear tweedy stuff either.



Indeed, but what advice on native garments for high-altitude climbing in the death zone above 8,000m do you reckon the Nepalis may have given Mallory et al, that they foolishly ignored?


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## Foghat (21 Nov 2017)

User13710 said:


> I have no idea. It was a thought experiment.



I see. These will put your experiment on Mallory's approach to clothing back on the right path, then:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4470522.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5076634.stm


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## Alan O (21 Nov 2017)

Foghat said:


> Indeed, but what advice on native garments for high-altitude climbing in the death zone above 8,000m do you reckon the Nepalis may have given Mallory et al, that they foolishly ignored?


I suspect their only advice would have been "don't" - as far as I know, the Nepalis didn't really climb any higher than the high valleys (until the foreign climbers came along).


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## Thorn Sherpa (22 Nov 2017)

steveindenmark said:


> I live in Denmark. Everyone either owns a bike or knows dozens of friends and family members who own bikes. 50% of schoolchildren cycle to school in Denmark.
> 
> We dont get smirked at.



Brilliant that such a high number ride to school, I'm the only one out of 30 plus workers who rides to work at my place and most live under 3 miles away! I pretty much get the same comments as other's have said NOT WIRED UP RIGHT, CRACKERS, MAD well there the polite ones anyway!


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## classic33 (22 Nov 2017)

Thorn Sherpa said:


> Brilliant that such a high number ride to school, I'm the only one out of 30 plus workers who rides to work at my place and most live under 3 miles away! I pretty much get the same comments as other's have said NOT WIRED UP RIGHT, CRACKERS, MAD well there the polite ones anyway!


And the non polite ones?


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## snorri (22 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> Fat guys in full kit playing 5 a sides ....normal.Same guys in cycling gear..... what's the difference ?


The difference is the former perform in the relative privacy of a sports field where few others see them, while the latter mingle with, and offend the eye of, the general public.


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## confusedcyclist (22 Nov 2017)

johnnyb47 said:


> you've got to much spare time and need to get out more and get a life mate.



This is one of my favourites, it's usually followed up by, "Did you watch that episode of _insert blah blah booooooring_"... Sorry, exactly who needs to get a life and a real hobby?


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## Nigel-YZ1 (22 Nov 2017)

I like how you can be having a perfectly good conversation with someone, then you mention you're a cyclist. Then it happens - "It really annoys me when cyclists...". This time it was riding double file. But they couldn't be too critical - I was driving them the next 90 miles.
It's a case of "How do I talk to this weirdo without getting dumped at the side of the M1?".


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## mjr (22 Nov 2017)

Apollonius said:


> We are weird because we see the journey as a part of life. An end not a means. You can get on your bike and spend a couple of hours riding a circular route to get back to where you started from. To do that in a car would be seen as a pointless waste of time and fuel.


I remember people just "going for a drive" when I was younger. I'm not surprised people don't do it as much now. Driving is generally pretty shoot. It's better by bike. Even if you persist in torturing yourself with spandex.


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## Thorn Sherpa (22 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> And the non polite ones?



A whole lot of F's nine times out of 10 including thick as f##k, must be f##king mental, f##k that in this weather, f##k that when youve got a car


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## crazyjoe101 (22 Nov 2017)

Milzy said:


> It’s same with running. People don’t get it. They wonder why people bother to do it and some take p1$$. You are physically very fit, running a sub 3 hour marathon and people shout run forest run etc. The chavs like to lift weights and take steroids. Complete knuckle draggers don’t respect cardio athletes.


That's one I've never heard of before, I'm yet to meet someone who genuinely doesn't 'get' running, granted, there is a general p*** taking amongst the weightlifting lot but most of them do cardio too so it's just a bit of fun really.


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## petek (22 Nov 2017)

I got "Riding on a toy in traffic" one day last week and that was in 'polite' conversation after a meeting when somebody noticed my bike outside the village hall.
Thing is we don't really get 'traffic' round here just the odd car or delivery van and I'd possibly cycled 200 yards tops on a public road all the way there. The rest was along a traffic-free prom.


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## classic33 (22 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> I got "Riding on a toy in traffic" one day last week and that was in 'polite' conversation after a meeting when somebody noticed my bike outside the village hall.
> Thing is we don't really get 'traffic' round here just the odd car or delivery van and I'd possibly cycled 200 yards tops on a public road all the way there. The rest was along a traffic-free prom.


You are traffic though.


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## petek (22 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> You are traffic though.


I am NOT a 'traffic'!
I am a free man.


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## classic33 (22 Nov 2017)

petek said:


> I am NOT a 'traffic'!*
> I am a free man.*


That may yet rebound on you.


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## petek (22 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> That may yet rebound on you.


Actually I'm married, so the point's moot.
A lad can dream eh?


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## Evenflow (23 Nov 2017)

To be married is normal 
To get divorced is normal
Riding the Cap de Formentor is not normal (I was told)
Without a bike I am more or less ordinary (and normal?)
So I ride a bike and endeavour to live "A life less ordinary"
However I am a cyclist
All cyclists ride bikes
This is normal
Therefore all cyclists are normal.


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## classic33 (23 Nov 2017)

Evenflow said:


> To be married is normal
> To get divorced is normal
> Riding the Cap de Formentor is not normal (I was told)
> Without a bike I am more or less ordinary (and normal?)
> ...


What about the unicyclists, tricyclists & quadricyclist then?


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## Evenflow (24 Nov 2017)

Me as a Tricyclist, my first bike. Normally happy.
Unicyclists - only seen em as performers
Quadcyclists- never met any so cant comment but both are in the minority which of course
doesn't make you a bad person.


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## al78 (24 Nov 2017)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> Yes that IS weird, but I do have to say I think going to the gym in general is weird, no matter what means of transport got you there I can't think of anything more boring or more pointless.. It always strikes me as ironic that people will buy things like cars with power-assisted everything, to reduce physical effort, then they go to the gym to lift weights etc because they do virtually no physical activity in their everyday routine.. Why not just generally do more physical activity during the course of the day, then you won't need to waste time and money down the gym!



It is not weird going to the gym if that sort of thing interests you. Some people enjoy strength training, some people enjoy aerobics classes, or whatever else these places offer. It is easier to do taylor-made workouts in a gym. The advantages of riding a stationary bike in the gym are that it doesn't rain inside, there aren't nasty gusty crosswinds inside, no risk of taking a tumble on black ice, you can stop whenever you like and not be miles away in the middle of nowhere, there is no exposure to careless drivers, no issue with knobheads at night who either have badly aligned headlights or feel the need to use full beam just because there aren't any streetlights, there are no smartphone morons stepping out in front of you because the family brain cell can't simultaneously operate a smartphone and engage spatial awareness. In short, if someone doesn't have any interest in riding a bicycle, but wants to schedule some time for exercise, the gym suits that very well. I suspect a lot of people on here are somewhat egocentric and cannot comprehend what it is like not to enjoy cycling, therefore people not cycling but doing other forms of exercise is weird. Try looking outwards instead of inwards.


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## LeetleGreyCells (25 Nov 2017)

Evenflow said:


> Unicyclists - only seen em as performers
> View attachment 384434



I saw a unicyclist on a fat off-road tyre doing the easy trail at Sherwood Pines once. It made me literally stop in my tracks. I did wonder if he knew about the one-steep downhill that was round the next corner (it is the family trail). My kids thought it was the best thing they’d seen and asked me about riding unicycles


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## Evenflow (25 Nov 2017)

I go to the gym on a regular basis, it has a spa too which is good after a winter ride. Also when there's ice and snow about,
quite common up here, I'll do a couple of spinning classes ie interval training. Also do weights, ie not heavy stuff but light weights high
reps, good for core strength which helps your climbing. I've met a lot of cyclists in the gym and regularly go riding with a couple of them.
I can recommend it.


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## SkipdiverJohn (25 Nov 2017)

Evenflow said:


> I go to the gym on a regular basis........... I can recommend it.



I'm not saying the actual exercise is a waste of time - quite the opposite. However, for me, the time spent going to and from is a waste and I'd find the Gym routine too tedious. 
I just do a bit at home as and when I'm in the right mood and feeling enthusiastic enough. Moderate weights, chin-ups, and press-ups. My job is fairly active so I don't go looking for too much punishment. That said, I do hope to get back into the habit of using the bike more, to improve general fitness and lose a few pounds in weight. I have a casual approach though, if I tried to make it a strict regime I'd soon get fed up with it as it would seem like a chore not a pleasure.


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## screenman (25 Nov 2017)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> I'm not saying the actual exercise is a waste of time - quite the opposite. However, for me, the time spent going to and from is a waste and I'd find the Gym routine too tedious.
> I just do a bit at home as and when I'm in the right mood and feeling enthusiastic enough. Moderate weights, chin-ups, and press-ups. My job is fairly active so I don't go looking for too much punishment. That said, I do hope to get back into the habit of using the bike more, to improve general fitness and lose a few pounds in weight. I have a casual approach though, if I tried to make it a strict regime I'd soon get fed up with it as it would seem like a chore not a pleasure.



How weird


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## SkipdiverJohn (25 Nov 2017)

Everybody's weird in some way. Cyclists are weird, runners are weird, motorists are weird. Kayakers (like a work colleague) are outright loonies!


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## screenman (25 Nov 2017)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> Everybody's weird in some way. Cyclists are weird, runners are weird, motorists are weird. Kayakers (like a work colleague) are outright loonies!



What does that make me then, I do all of those and more. I even spent most of the day shopping with my very better half and enjoyed every moment.


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## BoldonLad (25 Nov 2017)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> Everybody's weird in some way. Cyclists are weird, runners are weird, motorists are weird. Kayakers (like a work colleague) are outright loonies!



I agree, everybody's weird in some way......... except me that is


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## SkipdiverJohn (25 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I even spent most of the day shopping with my very better half and enjoyed every moment.



Now a man who actually enjoys shopping - that's _really _weird. Most blokes I know, me included, absolutely hate shopping. It's a waste of good drinking time!


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## petek (25 Nov 2017)

I do the big grocery shop every week but draw the line at clothes shopping with MrsP.
If Amazon or eBay doesn't sell it then I tend not wear it.
That said when Greenwoods in Skeg closed down recently, on the last day; I got a super new meetings-suit for change out of £50.


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## pjd57 (27 Nov 2017)

Days like today , when it's cold out and I'm going to and from the football , past thousands of people stuck in traffic ,while I plod along , I know lots of them will think I'm mad .But when I am back in having a cuppa, they're still stuck in traffic.


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## screenman (27 Nov 2017)

I have been up an hour, the weird people are still in bed now.


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## Alan O (27 Nov 2017)

I'm just out of bed, the weird people got up hours ago.


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## classic33 (27 Nov 2017)

screenman said:


> I have been up an hour, the weird people are still in bed now.


You'd a lie in then?


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## screenman (27 Nov 2017)

classic33 said:


> You'd a lie in then?



A whole 7 minutes, still got to the pool on time though.


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## lazyfatgit (28 Nov 2017)

pjd57 said:


> I've been looking at that canal all my life , frozen or otherwise.
> Born in Fingal st in 1957, some of my earliest memories are seeing fishing boats coming up the Maryhill Locks.
> Didn't really appreciate it for many years. Now I've come to love it.


I rode along it a lot in the year or two before I left. It’s amazing how peaceful it can be even though you’re right in the heart of a city.


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## pjd57 (28 Nov 2017)

lazyfatgit said:


> I rode along it a lot in the year or two before I left. It’s amazing how peaceful it can be even though you’re right in the heart of a city.




We even have tourists coming through Maryhill now !


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## captain nemo1701 (29 Nov 2017)

MichaelW2 said:


> Acceptable obsessions for adults include men in shorts kicking a ball around a field, cars, beer. If you include Radio 4 listeners, add political party leadership challenges. Everything else is trainspotting.



Yes, I've never really understood the attraction of overpaid multi millionaires kicking a bag of air around a large lawn in an attempt to marshall it into an outdoor cupboard. But then, I watch Star Trek, build model kits, do gardening, like astronomy so I'm weird, really weird.....


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