Fahrradsozialismus

Going through the hit stats for the past few months revealed an curious fact – Audrey Hepburn is still really popular:

By far the most Google hits to my little rant factory are searches for “Audrey Hepburn” linking to the three images I alluded to here, which is really rather interesting since one of the points I tried to make is that having such graceful & elegant idealisations (no matter how selective) such as Audrey Hepburn or the inspiring snaps from Cycle Chic is great for getting people into cycling. If one more person got interested enough to hop on a bike because of this superficial but ultimately human mental association, then all the linguistic & logical burden I’ve placed upon the blogosphere & the English language in general will not have been in vain.

Having recently signed up for flickr, it was wonderful to discover some great pics of bikes with or without people on them, and finding communities where you can share your visual experiences in things that interest you. One particular group of some considerable interest is Vélocouture, dealing with an issue I think quite important to many cyclists & potential cyclists alike - that of what to wear when you ride a bike & look good at the same time. It’s something I think that deserves some serious intellectual scrutiny & contextual analysis - but since I lack the ability to even maintain rudimentary cohension, you’d have to look elsewhere for that.

“Vanity thy name is Whoah man those are some totally awesome jeans!” is something you will never hear or say unless you are a total fool with no regard for the sanctity of the Bard. But beauty, or more plainly looking good - be it appreciating it in others or pure narcissism, is something most people enjoy, regardless whether it is just an uncontrollable animalistic drive or not. Fashion is but one facet, albeit perhaps the most overt & immediate realisation of such mental processes. Whether we admit it or not, we do make choices, however minor, in what we wear most of the time, and having to alter one’s choice just so you can ride a bike is agreeably disagreeable, to say the least – at least in the minds of some potential cyclists.

As it can be seen, however, in all established cycling cultures such as Copenhagen, Beijing or Tokyo, you don’t really need to get all kitted up for the daily commute, though of course that’s all fine & dandy if you combine your exercise/training with your daily commute. In fact it would be actually quite an efficient way of utilising your time. But for most people, especially if you’re terminally lethargic like me, you really can’t be bothered to shower or change once you get to your destination, or lack the facilities to do such things conveniently. Many cyclists are therefore reluctant to commute by bike so they won’t be too sweaty and/or smelly for the rest of the day, and understandably so.

As I shall demonstrate here with obviously irrefutable proof by the very virtue of having given them myself, I’ve posted a few images of yours truly in the Vélocouture of the stuff I wear when I cycle around commuting. If you ignore the pretentious obnoxious poses, you’ll find everything there are just normal clothing that you see on people who drive cars, catch buses or if you’re James Bond, defuse nuclear devices wear.

To me it might have something to do with one’s attitude towards how one should cycle for different purposes. I must admit I do enjoy trying to catch up to (and usually fail miserably) the bike in front when I ride my roadies when I ride for fun, I mean it’s just like a car racing game - except for the car & game bit. Such competitiveness, innate or otherwise, is something we all experience every now & then, regardless of what things like Taoism preach in terms of achieving equanimity through disengagement – something so very ideal & yet impossibly difficult to convince oneself with. What is life but a continual struggle of the self against !self?

Again I did have a point to make apart from drivelling sentimentalities. For most people like me it doesn’t take long to work up a good puff & sweat when you pushing 30km/h, so riding in such a manner when you’re just trying to get from A to B is probably a little excessive, and I ride at a pace which only exerts my body minimally, in fact far less than walking since there’s always wind to cool you down. For most commuting distances – say around 15km one-way, you really don’t save too much time by going from sub-sonic to warp 5, at most perhaps 10-20 minutes depending on your easy going speed & “racing” speed. Indeed the faster your easy going speed is to begin with, the less time you knock off by pushing yourself & going faster still.

A few things that might help in changing the road racer mentality:

1. Ditch that Speed/Cadence/Power computer/HRM/GPS, etc, so you are not constantly trying to keep an eye on maintaining that golden AVG or Cadence whilst monitoring your heart rate to achieve optimum output. Also, your bike also looks less cluttered without all those dials & readouts which imho looks better.

2. Ride “clunkers”. I don’t mean something that’s mechanically broken down, but something that puts more emphasis on comfort & durability rather than performance or speed. In Australia, many who start out to cycle as adults often end up a mountain bike – or more usually an imitation of one, I know I did. There’s nothing wrong with these especially at the price point, and are perfectly adequate for commuting once you get some slicks on them & sort out the riding position. However if you are looking for something more specialised, then some of the modern hybrids are very good also based on what I have read and are designed for commuting, though I have no personal experience with them. For some style (again a personal thing), by which to me is old-fashioned roadsters & ladies’ step-throughs, there is eBay where there’s usually a few on offer in most major cities. Some Danish, Indian & Swedish models are also available in Australia through various retailers. To me, and I am sure many others, full on road bikes aren’t really ideal for everyday commutes, unless it is turned into something that resembles a tourer/hybrid/roadster.

3. Just relax & enjoy the view along the ride, you’ll find there’s so much curiosity & beauty around if you just look, it’s makes the ride a whole lot more enjoyable – just don’t get carried away & missed that turn to school or work, ahem, unintentionally.