"Oh look, that bike's fallen to bits"

[xpc316e]

I left my recumbent trike secured at a bike rack in the town centre last weekend, and when I returned to it I overheard a man remark to his wife, "Oh look, that bike's fallen to bits." He then said after a few seconds, "No, it's a special."

I politely engaged him in conversation for a while. What's the most odd thing anyone has said about your machine?

 

[dudi]

nothing particularly odd ever been said... although i did come down from work once to find an annonymous post-it note stuck to my saddle that simply said "nice bike". that cheered me up a bit.

 

[Auntie Helen]

The question I regularly get asked is 'how do you steer'.

I always thought the very obvious handlebars might be a bit of a giveaway, but no...

 

[LeeW]

"Is that comfortable"

 

[Andy in Sig]

Isn't it bad for your back?

 

[JonoB]

nothing particularly odd ever been said... although i did come down from work once to find an annonymous post-it note stuck to my saddle that simply said "nice bike". that cheered me up a bit.

I said "nice bike" to a guy at the lights as I pulled up beside him, and he looked at me as though I had just made a gay pass at him....

 

[Auntie Helen]

As no doubt the rest of you find, there are a set series of phrases that seem a bit odd.

I get, as I've said above, "How do you steer?" I also get, like Andy, "doesn't it hurt your back" (why???) and "don't you feel afraid in the traffic" (which I suppose might have some initial logic).

Yesterday I had "I don't suppose you'll want to use that in wet weather". Which seemed most odd to me as three wheels means I'm far less likely to slip over going round a corner at speed.

No-one ever asks the questions that really MIGHT be valid:

(a) Don't your feet get cold being out in front? [Yes]
( Do you find cycling clothing isn't always suitable? [Yes, what an awkward place for a map pocket, and I really don't need to wear a nappy whilst cycling]
(c) Is it hard to manoeuvre it through doorways and narrow gaps [yep]

 

[byegad]

How does it steer is THE most common question I get.

A rarer one I got the other day was from a roadie, who, as we battled our way into a 30mph headwind, gave up trying to draft my Streamer equipped QNT. As he finally got alongside me he said,
'There's no shelter behind you!'
I was laughing so hard I couldn't reply.

 

[Arch]

loading up the van after a roadshow once, a gang of kids were hanging about looking at the Trike we had, and I heard "oh, look, you steer it with your hands..." (unlike all the other bikes then....) and "oh, it's got brakes and everything", which I fear said a lot about the bikes they normally rode....

I was always amazed at people who said "Is it hard to ride?" I would reply, "Can you sit in a chair?" "er, yes". "Well, you can ride this then..."

 

[Auntie Helen]

Yes, you're right, we do often get asked "is it hard to ride?"

I fear my responses to these standard questions are getting rather tired or, worse than that, a tad sarky.

The first question I tend to get asked here in Essex, when taking the bike to fairs or fetes or cycling events or whatever, is "how much does it cost?" I always feel like replying "what does that matter?" as they're hardly going to buy one (although I often tell them that they can get KMXs cheap-ish if they so require) but I think it's the standard question that kids here in North Essex seem to ask about everything.

 

[Arch]

The first question I tend to get asked here in Essex, when taking the bike to fairs or fetes or cycling events or whatever, is "how much does it cost?" I always feel like replying "what does that matter?" as they're hardly going to buy one (although I often tell them that they can get KMXs cheap-ish if they so require) but I think it's the standard question that kids here in North Essex seem to ask about everything.

no, I think it's the general tendency of a lot of people (dare I say, the majority) these days to want to know the price of everything and the value of nothing....

 

[Night Train]

no, I think it's the general tendency of a lot of people (dare I say, the majority) these days to want to know the price of everything and the value of nothing....

Or to weigh up if it is worth nicking and selling on.

 

[byegad]

Thirty years ago in a small town in county Durham I heard this conversation.
Boy#1
'I got a new bike for Xmas.'
Boy#2
'How much did it cost?'
Me, unable to avoid butting in.
'Why does that matter? What about, what kind? or How many gears? or what colour?

Now I suspect any enquiry re price has an unwritten follow up. 'What can I get for it second hand, down the pub?'

 

[Auntie Helen]

D'you know, I don't think that WAS the reason behind so many of the enquiries about my trike (i.e. whether it's worth nicking it). After all, these people had no idea where I lived when I arrived at these events. I think it's more a social construct, the first thing you say in a conversation about an object, rather like talking about the weather. The kids were often happy to tell me that their mountain bikes cost £400, I don't think that was an invitation for me to nick them.

I suspect that if I said the trike cost £100 they would think it's a bit naff; because they discovered it was two grand that made it REALLY COOL.

 

[colly]

Questions such as 'is it hard to steer' might seem odd to those who are used to sitting in an armchair and belting along at 25 mph but to those who might never have even seen a recumbent it is an obvious thing to ask.
Riding an conventional bike is something most people have done at one time or another and they can relate to it pretty well.
But seeing someone sitting down with their legs up in the air twiddling about like some demented gymnast is kind of counter intuitive when it comes to balance.