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Let’s ban the word “cyclist”

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  • July 19, 2014 at 12:01 am #21935
    SteppenHerring

    I’ve seen other people make a similar complaint and it does make sense.

    The word “cyclist” seems to have become poisonous. How so? Consider the following news story headlines:

    Cyclist killed in collision with lorry
    Cyclist sought in connection with death of pedestrian
    Cyclist rapes kitten standing in Diana memorial fountain

    Even pro riders spend the majority or their lives not riding a bicycle. We are people who ride bicycles – we’re not some separate sub-species. I drive a car but when some joyriding teenager ploughs into a bus shelter full of pensioners and babies in prams nobody tries to make me feel as though I’m to blame for that. But when a “normal person” sees somebody on a bicycle charging across a zebra crossing or riding aggressively on the pavement or wearing a Lampré top with AG2R shorts then, for some reason, that’s my problem. I’m sick of it.

    Stick a person with the label “cyclist” and it seems they become fair game. Knocked down, injured killed – probably their fault. They were probably riding on the pavement or thinking about kitten rape.

    There is no such thing as a “cyclist” – just people who may use a bicycle to go from one place to another place (which may sell cake). Sure there are people who do antisocial things on bicycles (not nearly as many as those who do antisocial things in cars) but that is Not My Problem. All we have in common is a mode of transport. I’ve driven a van before – just like Peter Sutcliffe – but I’m not like him. I don’t have a moustache.

    Sorry – scheduled to be wet tomorrow so beer/late.

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Viewing 7 replies - 16 through 22 (of 22 total)
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  • July 19, 2014 at 3:30 pm #804487
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    HalfWheeler

    Let’s ban banning.
    Let’s ban banning.

    July 19, 2014 at 2:34 pm #804485
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    bikebot

    This has reminded of an
    This has reminded of an exchange I had with a black mate of mine a few years ago.

    I told him as a joke that I became interested in cycling, because as a straight white middle class male, it seemed the easiest way to find out what it was like to be part of a minority in London.

    Later the same day he showed me his newspaper, and was laughing because the story referred to “the cycling community”.

    July 19, 2014 at 2:13 pm #804483
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    Leviathan

    You conjure up some perverse
    You conjure up some perverse imagery; Lampre top with AG2R shorts.

    A bike most definitely is not just a means of going from A to B. If that were true why then does it take me 9.3km to get to work in the morning but sometimes 20 or 40km to get back? I am cyclist and proud (guess that explains the rainbow jersey.)

    If anyone else wants to come out as a Cyclist please say so below.

    July 19, 2014 at 1:51 pm #804481
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    Anonymous

    Agreed. I frequently correct
    Agreed. I frequently correct my colleagues at work similarly when they tell me what ‘a cyclist’ did to them this morning (generally: complained at being stepped out in front of).

    Kittens in Lycra?

    July 19, 2014 at 1:21 pm #804479
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    Quince

    It’s a valid concern. I think
    It’s a valid concern. I think banning it outright is a few steps too far, but I would like to see there being regulations, or at least conscious effort put into how it is used.

    I remember seeing a BBC News mini-report on a guy who had been cycling on Oxford/Regent Street in London and had a collision with a bus. We was bed-bound in hospital at the time of his interview, yet he was introduced in his text panel as “[Main Line]:Bart Chan [Subline]: Cyclist”. At the time of interview, he was not a “cyclist” he could not be further from riding a bicycle. Yet for some reason, the fact we was riding a bicycle at the time of injury endowed him with the permanent title of being a “cyclist”. He would have been “crash victim”, he could have been “person lying in a bed in hospital”, he could have been anything else, and it may have actually been an accurate portrayal of who he was. But at that point in time, he was not a bloody “cyclist”.

    I’m happy for the term to be used to describe anyone who makes their living from cyclesport (although I would prefer the term “professional/pro-cyclist”), but outside of that it should describe someone who is currently riding a bicycle, and be used in that context. In the same way I am happy to be described as a ‘pedestrian’ when I’m out walking in town, but I do not identify as a ‘pedestrian’ as I write this message. Or in pretty much any other context.

    There should be guidelines as to how it’s used in the press, as it’s become a buzzword and a way of inflaming people. It’s current ‘openness to interpretation’ leaves in vulnerable to being used pejoratively, which in turn toxifies the word outright and makes it hard to discuss in contexts where it would be appropriate.

    July 19, 2014 at 12:54 pm #804477
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    glynr36

    I remember my first beer
    I remember my first beer too…

    July 19, 2014 at 10:04 am #804475
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    Him Up North

    I can’t find the kitten story
    I can’t find the kitten story anywhere… :/

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