the biking social class

Pilot Pete, another fine,

Pilot Pete, another fine, long and very well made comment.  I thank you.

I wonder if RedRobot will ever read it.

Regarding redrobot’s first

Regarding redrobot’s first paragraph, yes there are bike geeks and those who understand little about the machine they ride other than it’s a pretty colour. So what? It’s only a heriechy if you choose to view it that way – I’ve got a big bunch of mates who all ride, some like me knock out 100 mile rides regularly as it is my passion. Others don’t do that in a week. So what? We all get on great and the stronger riders in the group never put themselves on any kind of pedestal and happily muck in helping the less technical/ less geeky ones with mechanical knowledge, advice and help. For example I recently leant my bike box to a mate who was going on a cycling trip, have shown another how to use ridewithgps as he was struggling to get routes on his new Garmin and indexed the gears on another mates bike as he had made a hash of it himself. So there is a heriechy in terms of ability, knowledge, kit, tools and a whole host of other things, but it doesn’t get in the way of us just being mates.

Similarly, there is an economic heriechy, just as there is in all aspects of life. Unless someone tries to be elitist and is disparaging of those who spend less, then once again, what is the problem? I own some very nice, expensive bikes and spend lots of money on kit, but I wouldn’t dream of taking the piss out of anyone else’s bike or kit choice based on how much it costs. One of my mates rides a tatty Allez on which he commutes and rides for leisure with. Some of his cycling jerseys are getting mis-shapen at the hem they are so old! So what? He’s as strong as an ox and can leave me up the hills. We just ride and enjoy ourselves.

So it sounds to me like jealousy from someone who covets more expensive bikes and kit – I’ve honestly never come across a cyclist who has been elitist based on how much his bike/ kit cost because cycling is a great leveller – the guy with the most expensive kit can easily be left in the wake of someone who is stronger, no matter how cheap their kit is. 

As others have said, life is not equal. Some live on minimum wage, some earn a fortune. There are many reasons for both. How an individual spends their disposable income is up to them. Many own (rent) flash cars, must have the latest mobile phone, the biggest surround sound home cinema setup, jet skis, second properties, gadget after gadget. Others just spend it on bikes and cycling. 

That brings us onto the second paragraph. I agree there is definitely hostility towards cyclists, based on a number of factors, but a class war? Not sure I completely agree with that. Sure there are the odd drivers who really think you ride a bike because you can’t afford a car, which is laughable, but the majority who demonstrate hostility seem to do it out of some ill perceived belief that they have more rights on the road because they are in the majority of car drivers. They feel they should be able to drive at whatever speed they choose to and should not have to slow down due to the hazard ahead that is the slower moving cyclist. They therefore believe that cyclists ‘hold them up’ and feel they should get out of the way because of this ill perceived belief of greater entitlement.

This manifests itself with the usual ‘road tax’ argument, followed closely by the ‘insurance’ and then ‘registration’ arguments and if you engage for long enough the anecdotal cyclist law breaker stories that they ‘once experienced’ but refer to as ‘all cyclists’.

Only last week I attended a British Legion and veteran’s dinner hosted by a local restauranteur on behalf of my outgoing Mayor wife. We are both ex military and I was sat next to a now retired WO2 in the infantry, something else we both had in common. The talk got around to the recent local elections and how he had voted for my wife, then onto what she was planning to do over the next term. She is now Cycling and Walking Champion for our county council and is pushing active travel and healthy lifestyles, looking to put more cycling infrastructure (of decent quality) in all our towns to encourage the uptake of cycling and to allow kids to ride to school etc. Then said WO2 made a throw away comment about cyclists not using the paths that were already there. I didn’t hold back and just slapped him down as he came out with cliche after cliche regarding cyclists and his obvious hatred. We covered ‘road tax’, passing too close (he said a metre was fine, so I asked if he would overtake another car at 50mph with only a metre between them). We discovered he had no idea about the Highway Code and the rules regarding cycling two abreast and I pointed out why and when riders would ride as such and when they would single out. He couldn’t argue against any of it. Give him his due, he gave me and my wife a lift into town, we had a few beers and he dropped us home!

So, the point is, it’s not a class war, it’s a deep rooted, incorrect belief regarding perceived entitlement to use the roads. Too many drivers (and I honestly think it is a majority) hold the belief that they have more rights than cyclists and too many of them believe that cyclists shouldn’t be anywhere other than in the gutter and should get out of their way. Too many (although a minority) think they can take the law into their own hands and do their own judge/ jury and executioner routine by punishment passing, brake checking and whatever else they deem suitable to correct the perceived ill that has been done to them. This is not confined to any particular group of road users – boy racers, van drivers, bus drivers, even the old and retired drivers are at it. Even amongst our group of friends many (although not particularly hostile with it) hold these beliefs and casually show their lack of knowledge regarding the law relating to cyclists. Most don’t mention it in front of me any more though!

PP

I’ve had cheap bikes in the

I’ve had cheap bikes in the past. We still have a couple in the family fleet. I’m not sure how much I spend on cycling/year, but what with BC membership, club membership and race fees on top of maintenance (plus a new race bike for my son), it’ll all add up. 

You can buy a decent bike secondhand for not much money. It doesn’t have to cost the earth. 

Municipal Waste wrote:

Municipal Waste wrote:

I spend my entire salary on cycling, including not eating and living in a tree.

You’d be surprised how much free food you can find on the ground around trees. The only problem is how to keep a stockpile of it safe to see you through the winter.

Ballpark figure I spend about

Ballpark figure I spend about 3.5-4 k Euro/year on cycling (bike, gear, clothing, maintenance…) and recover something like 1.6k from that (employer pays 0.23 EUR/km for the commute).  But -not that any justification is required, the cash is mine to spend and I pay the equivalent of a nice Mercedes in taxes every year- I don’t own a car.

My neighbour rides a 12k Euro bike but only during the weekends provided the weather is just right (neither too hot nor cold, not too much wind, no rain or -god forbid- snow or sleet).  He spends more time researching the latest Meilenstein wheelset than riding his bike.  I say more power to him and I hope he enjoys his rides, just like I hope that the 22 year old fitness maniac living down the road who can whip my arse on his 400 Euro clunker enjoys his.  

And the cost of renting a car

And the cost of renting a car for 2 or 3 years is ?

“Over £30 billion in new credit was issued by auto finance dealers in 2016 alone”

redrobot wrote:

i’m not a communist in any historical sense. stalinism was bad, post stalinism was bad, pre stalinism was bad. i can still point out the evils of consumerism. affluent commuter belt types tearing round the countryside on £3k bikes at the weekend doesnt seem right somehow. the athleticism / eco statement etc is fine. the economics, not.

Who the he££ do you think you are judging people by how they spend their hard earned cash? My £3k bike does 5000 miles per year and will still be going at 10 years old.  During that time the average golfer will spend £10k on membership fees alone.  

And don’t give us the crap about equality – your average teenager from a working class background these days is equipped with a £600 iphone, plus contract, and subject to replacement every couple of years, not to mention £80 a pop trainers – because that is the choice their family make. 

I choose not to spend £120 per month on Sky TV subscription, I choose not to buy the latest ultra HD ZLED TV, I no longer go to music concerts at £60 plus per ticket, I choose not to take beach holidays, I choose not to burn money smoking, and I am writing this on a 10 year old laptop that cost me £300.  What gives you the right to question my spending choices?

I average out spending around

I average out spending around £1000 a year on cycling. Cycles, maintenance, parts, clothing, club membership. Every 10 years or so I buy a really good bicycle. My current bestie stands me at over £6.5k, but I look after them meticulously and each of my bicycles are as good or better as the day they rolled out of the bike shop.

For my £1000 a year I get transport to work, exercise and on Sundays I get to dress like I know what I’m doing, lycra and all. As for technical, well I do understand how to strip and maintain most of the parts that come on my bikes, but my main concern is that they are shiny and in good working order. I couldn’t explain the difference between a BB30 bottom bracket and a BB8 astrodroid but I appreciate that there are “geeks” out there who have an encyclopedic knowledge of bicycle stuff and that they are generous enough to share that wisdom for free on internet forums, always happy to help out with any technical question.

Don’t get hung up on the cost of clothing. Sticker price isn’t what most people pay. I have some nice Castelli stuff, but when it is last year’s unfashionable end of line discounted stock and Tesco’s are offering 3 for 1 clubcard points for EvansCycles it would be rude not to. For the most part expensive kit is at least partly expensive because it is good unlike a lot of fashion clothing.

Pleased to hear that you are on the road for £45. Many cyclists started out on the cheap. My first proper bike was £5 from the local tip. Now I can afford better and I’m not jealous of those who can afford to spend more. One of the things you will learn is that no matter what you think someone might be like because of what they drive, ride or how they dress, how rich or poor they are, for the most part they will be decent people and as a cyclist you are probably more likely to have someone stop and offer help if you need it. Cycling is one of the most inclusive activities available, it is most certainly not the preserve of the “middle class” even though I am most distressingly the stereotypical one of those at this stage of my life.