Elitism and Snobbery

[Fnaar]

I've got one of these

 

[vickster]

Scruffy bar tape - I draw the line at that ! Cheap black bar tape - that's all you need, but it can't be scruffy !

Black tape?

 

[Racing roadkill]

Clubbies, say no more. Ignore them, they are knobbers.

 

[fossyant]

Black tape?

White tape is a no no, and coloured tape gets mucky fast, and looks a mess

 

[Lavender Rose]

Love to hear the feedback.

I kinda didn't see you had originally posted this @Chris Doyle - best idea? Come to Kent and cycle with decent people darling xx

 

[vickster]

White tape is a no no, and coloured tape gets mucky fast, and looks a mess

Silver, blue or red, my tape doesn’t get mucky. I agree on white although some is better than others

 

[Mrs M]

Pay no heed, their cliquey, passive aggressiveness says a lot about them
I’ve encountered some snobbery on my rides out too
The “hoorays” from the student cycling club, on their Kuota, Pinarello, etc. My cheery “evening” as I zoomed past (when they had a food stop) on my Sora shod wee Felt roadie, was met with a combination of being completely ignored, to looks of pity , only one young lady returned my greeting.
Also several miles from home, in the countryside, astride my Pashley, I was passed by a roadie, I said hello but was met with an evil glare. Imagined he was thinking, this is my road, how can an old wifie on a heavy bike ride on it too
How did I deal with this?
Could have beat myself up and felt bad but decided friendliness and humour was the best approach
A wee Royal wave as I passed (or more likely, was passed) and a friendly greeting, made me feel even better than I already did (cycling is ace)
I’ve met some lovely fellow cyclists on expensive bikes, who have said hello, waved and even stopped to make sure I was ok when I was having a “wee break” (stopped to talk to sheep)
Enjoy your bike and never mind what others think, their “stuff”, not yours
xx

 

[Vapin' Joe]

Most of the people who behave like that are just fashion cyclists. They haven't been round for long and they'll be gone as soon as cycling's no longer the thing to be seen doing.

 

[roadrash]

time for this again....wear what you like and like what you wear …. feck em

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

My neighbour has a nice but plain bike - a Hoy* which I see him cleaning regularly. He commutes 15 miles each way into work wearing a boiler suit and trainers, no helmet as he has for the last 15 years and tells me he regularly flies by the "racing snakes" wearing lycra on their carbon bikes.

*He thinks my Specialized Tricross is a bit fancy.

 

[postman]

What about coffee stops.Has it to be Kopi luwak or does Costa cut it.Dump 'em.Ride out by yourself again.

 

[Fnaar]

If I could afford Rapha, I'd prob'ly buy a jersey or two. But I wouldn't be a fanboy, or sneer at others

 

[Tin Pot]

Ok, so I’m a recreational cyclist like I would imagine close to 100% of us are on here, and for a long time I’ve always ridden solo be it on trails or road. I cycle purely for enjoyment-it’s my escape from life’s ups and downs, if only for a short time.

Some lads at work who follow my strava and mates of theirs added me in to their group chat and invited me on a few weekly socials which I happily accepted (and still do). They’re a fantastic bunch of lads every single one of them. A little cliquey, maybe, but they’ve ridden together for a while so I don’t let that bother me.

But a couple of chaps in the group like to have the best of everything be it clothing or tech or whatever and it’s becoming like a “Keep Up With The Joneses” with all the others following suit and then they scoff and sneer at me because I don’t. They’re quite passive aggressive with it I find at times as well. The latest one is all matching Rapha clobber for next year’s trip to Spain, once I expressed doubt on this (for no other reason than cost as I have other bits to fork out for) it’s like I’ve been an afterthought in the group, feeling a little shut out.

The way I look at it is I enjoy riding my bike-pure and simple. Should it matter that I only wear certain branded attire or don’t have the latest gadget?

I really enjoy riding with these fellas as it’s benefited me no end and we have a good laugh but the elitism and snobbery is driving me crazy!

What experiences (if any) have you had with elitist snobs in cycling and how did you deal with it?

Love to hear the feedback.

I’m a big fan of elitism. But it has to be in the right place; academia, athletics, for example.

What you are experiencing is neither elitism nor snobbery, it is merely socialising. Social groups form for any given reason, then to reinforce the bonds and sense of membership, the group tries to differentiate itself from those that are not in the group. All wearing the same clothes is a classic; goths, hipsters, the military, for example.

Your only actual problem is that they want to set themselves apart by spending more money than you want. It’s not evil, it’s just something you don’t want to do.

 

[Tim Hall]

I'm afraid so, all this time I've been a closet ninja.

I'm the same on the golf course (yes, I'm a golfer too. All my dirty, little secrets are coming out today!).

Golf? I say, steady on old chap.

 

[Lavender Rose]

As I’ve said before @Charlotte Alice Button im quite happy to come down n ride with the nice folks!!

We need to make this happen!