Annoying Comments From Those Who Don't "Get It"

[chiasticon]

Originally Posted by MattTuck

Respond with, "replacement value or market value?"

"reality or what I tell my wife?"

[echappist]

Originally Posted by shovelhd

1. I was heading home on my evening commute, approaching a one-lane underpass. No traffic coming the other way, but I hear a car behind me in the distance. I take the lane, then move over to the right. The car pulls up next to me, rolls down the passenger side window, and asks me what kind of taillight I have, because he saw me at least a half mile away.

2. A pack of crotch rockets pull up next to me at a stop light. A guy takes a look at my bike and asks "Is that Di2?"

don't leave us hanging. what tail light do you have ?

[velofinds]

Originally Posted by chiasticon

ever had anyone randomly ask you how much your bike costs?

Usually I'll fudge some reasonable-ish sounding number. Typically it seems like people ask out of idle curiosity, not because they're looking for some accurate value.

[93KgBike]

Originally Posted by fuzzalow

I rarely, if ever, look upon any conversation occurring with a stranger as an "annoying comment". I can tell alla you fellas in complete honesty that I don't feel the need to look down on anybody for any comment they might have as annoying or as ignorant or as anything meaningful in any way. It is just a human interaction, not an IQ test.

It is all just simple, idle chatter that I will handle with my usual affable aplomb. What purpose or pleasure could anyone possibly get by being a dick to a total stranger unless they were being a dick to you first? And even then, why add more negativity into an already divisive world by being a dick in return, it's bad karma. Just move along.

I ride a Brompton in town. Almost everyone responds favorably to this bike. People stop from walking to where they are going to watch me unfold the bike and pedal off. While I'm waiting at a stoplight, pedestrians crossing might comment: "How much one of those cost?" - I always lie and tell them much less than the actual cost - "THAT MUCH!?!?". One time a woman said to another that I was going to "set a land speed record" on this bike. I was impressed that she knew the term "land speed".

That's on a Brompton.

Roadies fare much, much worse to pedestrians and to the general public at large. Road bike riding and road bike riders are already swimming upstream against a less than favorable public perception. And in the big picture, we as cyclists want a better relation with the public in how they view bicycles and bicyclists. So I can only ask and remind any of us to please refrain from snark in responding to those who don't "get it". We, as men, have reason and purpose.

Hey, what can I tell ya - I can always find a way to give you the long answer.

This is a really healthy way to think about this. Thank you for posting it.

Myself, I am so isolated in my bike weirdness, and always have been (even during Lance's decade (TourDuPont-TDF7)), that I get excited when any non-cyclist shows any interest of any kind in bikes, even a negative interest. I have to try to NOT proseltyze at them.

That elevator comment above actually happened to me about thirty years ago, except my response was more along the lines of, "well, what would you ride for 8 miles?" We became pretty good friends while I worked there.

If your goal is not to make a direct positive change to your experience of the immediate environment through using a bike, then why are you? Being somehow rude or exasperated about biking, towards others, strikes me as contradictory; or maybe Eeyorish.

[gemship]

Originally Posted by pdmtong

Not probably. you wouldn't. We used to have a female malaumte, about 100#s of pure muscle who could run at about a 7:00mile pace. Used to take her for run/walk using my mtb. she was going about 15-18mph when she decided to STOP and it was like someone threw a boat anchor out. I was flying in the air attached to my bike for long enough to realize i was helicoptering about 3 feet off the ground and that in another second it was going to be painful.

She was a GREAT dog...running using bike not really an issue if one anticipates. that crash was pilot error on me. I just got absent minded and paid for it.

back to your ask...those around you just aren't interested and it's not your job to educate them. let it go and move on.

that said, it is a conversational skill to ask and navigate a conversation in which you have no knowledge. challenge yourself to do better than those you are interacting with when the conversation turns to something you don't care about.

Ha,ha that is a funny story. I agree if one feels challenged in conversation amongst the ignorant one must simply smile and let it go. Yes let it go and if you like the person enough then change the conversation to something easier to relate to like what you saw on your ride. Or if that fails say well it's nice to talk to you but unfortunately I am on a schedule, have a nice day My personal pet peeve is when and btw it has not happened in a while, so yeah...when I am considered the ambassador to cycling.

[gemship]

Originally Posted by benb

I actually think these people usually don't mean entering an actual race (if they even know those exist). She means she's not going fast. She thinks everyone going fast is racing. The Dumb thing about the "I'm not racing, why would I need a helmet?" thing is so many of those "non cyclists" who think we are insane and dangerous seem to have a really hard time keeping the rubber side down. They often seem to be on the comfort style bikes that have really sketchy handling due to no weight on the front wheel and they're really off balance. But I'm sure you know all that.

I know this guy that is a big time bicycle enthusiast. He mostly builds these comfort, hipster single speed jobs with relatively affordable quality components to give the bike a nice aesthetic. Relatively fast cruising yet comfortable bikes good for a twenty mile jaunt at 18 mph or a three mile cruise at 5 mph. So anyways he made one for his girlfriend and she did the unthinkable because they live in this apartment building on the water with boat dockage. She wedged the wheel between some wood planks/flooring and it was low tide and down she went about fifteen feet to a boat dock! Broken this and broken that. They were never ones to wear helmets. Freaking scary, your story reminded me of that. Sheet happens I guess.

[gemship]

Originally Posted by David Tollefson

Ride my bike to my day job. After a shower, I get in the elevator with my bike going up one floor. Large-ish woman gets on the elevator along with me.

Her: You ride your bike to work?
Me: Yeah, it's only a little over 8 miles.
Her: I'd never do that.
Me: (look her over once) I know.

:silence:

a ha,ha and tee,hee,hee. The irony here is you don't even have to be in really good shape to change your perception to 8 miles being a doable distance. You just gotta do it regularly and the change will come.

[leftyfreak]

I was on a ride in the White Mtns. of NH, resting in the parking area at the top of the Kancamagus Pass, waiting for a couple of other riders to make it to the summit. A Suburban pulls in and a guy gets out with his family. He looks around, sees me, pauses for a moment, then walks over and says: "I think you're crazy...but I RESPECT you!" We had a good laugh together over that.

[parco]

My wife teases me about me cleaning my bike, I keep quiet as she is repotting her plants.

[BryanE]

Don't ever tell anyone what you paid for a bike.

[Tony T]

Wasn't there a book written on this subject?

[Pierre]

My favorite is when my brother in law (who is obsessed with TEAM sports) will tell me (outta the blue like he hasn't said this to me every time our two families get together), "I just don't get endurance sports, man. Where's the fun? It seems so boring." I've given up on providing a response...

[dustyrider]

This must be one of those roadies are like cats and mtbers are like dogs thread.

I find most people annoying, and if they weren't, life would be pretty dull.

Nothing an ice cold beer can't set right!

[shovelhd]

Originally Posted by echappist

don't leave us hanging. what tail light do you have ?

I didn't mean to do that! I believe it's a Cree. It came as part of a Magic Shine kit from Geomangear. Remember him?

[muz]

Couple years back, I was in a small group on the return leg of a 300k brevet (River Road close to Jenner for Bay Area locals), when we were overtaken by a pack of racers on a road race. We sped up to use the draft and started talking. When I explained to a racer that we are on a 300k ride and headed to San Francisco, he asked "so how many days is that?"