Bicycle Tribes

Submitted by critninja on

The NYT has an article here - http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/04/25/nyregion/spokes.html - about 5 of the obvious "tribes" on the roads in New York.

In Calgary, the Bespoked Rider is definitely the rarest variety of cyclist - but growing, and for our purposes, we would also need to add the following "tribe" -

Pathway Olympian

Bike - beaten down MTB with clip on fenders
Clothing - MEC jacket and pants, backpack, and multiple flashy lights
Manners - Madly dings bell as they try to pass as many people as possible during their commute. Rarely rides slow enough to appreciate surroundings. Is considered a menace by many other pathway users - including other cyclists.

Maybe one more "tribe" -

The Scavenger

Bike - beaten down MTB, usually a mass-market brand
Clothing - whatever they have found during scavenging or functional winterwear you might find at Marks Work Warehouse
Manners - usually rides slowly, frequently with large garbage bags that triple their effective width, can be found on both bike paths and walking paths, and can be found on the sidewalk downtown. Generally mind their own business.

Are there any other Calgary-specific "tribes" you can think of?

Forums: 

The BTer Tribe

Submitted by NW_Tri_and_Bike on

Newbie triathletes that listen to their Ipod while appearing to train on the pathway system as they are too paranoid too ride on rural roads ... no bell and they are easily spotted as they are the guy/gal on the time trial bike (or road bike with poorly adjusted aero bars) with the handle bars higher than their seat. Their logic center is distorted as they think the act of just owning a $3000 bike makes them a good rider when they don't have the hamstring flexibility to properly ride it...

http://ridecalgary.blogspot.com/

GREAT ARTICLE!

Submitted by gyrospanner on

That, and these other tribes you suggested, made me laugh! How about:

THE SHORT HAUL SCREAMER (One of the sub-tribes of the Commuter Clan)

BIKE - MTB or Road Bike, usually fairly expensive due to affluence (noted by ability to live within 5 or 10 km of downtown). May or may nt have clip-ins.

UNIFORM - Dresses well in fairly nice Bike Gear or other North Face / Patagonia / Sugoi / Craft etc. etc. BUT, usually doesn't have to shower when they get into work, as there is not enough time to work up a sweat.

ATTITUDE - I just gotta' get into the office as quick as I can.

NATURAL HABITAT - You will find them screaming along the bike paths or the roads leading into the downtown core (even under the railroad underpasses, filtering through).

FAVORITE RIDE - On the weekend, anywhere outside of the City. Maybe near their cottage? in Fernie or Invermere.

Tribe

Submitted by 2wheeler on

You do still see the occasional " I lost my licence so I'm riding my 15 year old's full suspension with the seat 6" too low, bike to work" guy.

I like to have a pedal in each tribe, and a bike for each occasion. Now that I've got a fancy wool cycling cap, add a tie, I'd like to think I can go "bespoked". I just need some really fine pant protectors and I'll be set.

The alt-rider

Submitted by theorangejacket on

Looking more at home in Amsterdam, Berlin or Portland, the alt-rider can be found riding at a leisurely pace sans helmet, sans lights or any bike/outdoor type clothing. They favour the old style wide handlebars, pedal braking, gearless system, and usually black in colour or else some kind of sunflower yellow or powder blue combination.

Though rarely found on the multi-user paths, the alt-rider is nevertheless casually commuting to their their part time job at the local organic food store, Pilates studio or community college art/pottery class.

The alt-rider looks (and is) earnest, friendly and courteous yet exudes a mildly superior attitude and an inner-city sense of cool. A basket mounted jauntily on the handlebars contains a brownbag lunch, refillable water bottle, some flowers, some kind of lulu-lemon and an overdue library book (William S. Burroughs if over 40, Chuck Palahniuk is under...or Naomi Klein is non-fiction is desired).
A yoga mat strapped to their back completes the look. Dreadlocks and/or quirky name (or spelling of name)is optional but a year off backpacking in Europe or Central America is almost manditory but can be excused if the rider has a 1/2 degree in any liberal arts program.

The alt-rider is rarely seen until around 10:30 a.m. but can be spotted up until closing time at the Ship and Anchor or the Drum and Monkey.

This is a tongue in cheek post and I mean no disrespect. The alt-rider is a welcome phenomenon in a city full of Ford F150s, Hummers and ancient Cadillacs with “I brake for bingo” bumper stickers lurching unpredictably into neighboring lanes.

Not me but

Submitted by BCDon on

I know an Alt-Rider or two. In fact I know at least one who doesn't ride but fits in all of the rest although I think there may be multiple 1/2 degrees. :).

Alt-Rider! Good one!

Submitted by gyrospanner on

The article in the Times missed that tribe. It has been bugging me all morning and I was going to write one up that was similar but you beat me to it!

All I can add is that there is a break-out tribe from this bunch.

They are 50+ and female, ride really classy, expensive cruiser bikes (even with metal-reinforced wicker baskets on the front and enough pannier space on the back to carry enough groceries for a week) but show up to work right at 8am on the dot. They like to ride around their inner city neighbourhoods on the weekend & "go for coffee," or whatever. They usually have a MTB and/or road bike in the garage as well, for longer or more adventuruous trips.

And as theorangejacket says, they definetely are a welcome addition to the city!

ebikers

Submitted by 2wheeler on

Buy an ebike, think its the best idea ever. Tell all there friends, coworkers, and anyone who will listen about it. Brag about all the money they'll save on fuel. Extol the environmental benefits. Detail the technical wonders of the elaborate contraption!

Spend 3 days the first week, in heels and skirts, smugly passing everyone on the pathways. The next week, because of meetings, they only make it out twice, smugly passing, in dress pants an brogues. Six months later they've only rode in two more times...they quickly grew tired of the exposure to the elements, unsightly stains on their pant legs and splotches up there backside.

And now they wonder what they should do with the ebike, sitting in the garage, next to the nearly new bowflex, beside the barely used juicer, on top of the dusty home brewing kit. Just think of all the money they saved!

poetic justice

Submitted by 2wheeler on

The perfect rebuttal to my rant and as if to rub in my inadequacies, I was passed by an ebiker this afternoon riding up a hill. Months of training and I get passed by something that looks like a cross between an I-beam and a golf cart. Same guy I tried to keep up with a month ago. I guess he's sticking it out. Uhhhggg

OMG! I know how it feels!

Submitted by gyrospanner on

Last fall, I was coming up the hill in Bowmont Park that is known as "Blood & Guts" by the marathon crowd and there was a guy riding down the riverside tsinglerack on a F'N Unicycle!!!!

I was compltely amused! Until an eBiker passed me going up the hill - he was doin' about 40, I was doin' about 14 or 15! PMO!

The only get-even comment I can offer is that maybe those guys worry about the number of mAh their batteries have charged up tonight, while I am sitting here quite comfortable with the big steak I have in my belly....

Unicycle Guy

Submitted by catcameback on

I don't know if this is the same guy as who you saw but I have seen a guy out this spring on a Unicycle.

I have seen a unicyclist down in the Shawnessey area in FishCreek and around the Reservoir. At the Reservoir he went off the pathway and into the trails along the east side. He gets around.

I can't figure out

Submitted by BCDon on

how to ride a unicycle. I have one, I spent a number of days one summer a few years ago attempting to learn how to ride it but never got the hang of it. I think I need to get with other people who ride and have them help me learn. I was hoping it was one of those things where you can't do it, keep trying and one day, low and behold, you can sorta do it and then you progress rapidly. All I progressed to was holding onto a fence and "maybe" getting the pedal from the top to the bottom.

Anyone know where I can get taught to unicycle?

C'est en Francais.

Submitted by BCDon on

Et, je ne compren Francais. At least not at that level :). Besides, while a trip to Montreal would be nice I'm not sure I can justify it to learn to Unicycle. Guess I'll have to get it back out and try it out again - there a summer thing to do. Looks like it will be a LONG time before that happens.

The abominable snowbikers

Submitted by mercator on

Riding anything from a mtb to a touring bike, usually with studded tires and fenders, you see them on the path year-round. Since the weather gets pretty crappy in parts of the year, the tribe is sparsely populated. During the summer months they are often mistakenly identified as members of one of the other tribes since they own several bikes.

These folks have high standards for lighting since they normally ride in the dark. Clothing is a mixed bag, indicating a finely tuned sense of the weather. One common feature: they own many pairs of gloves.

Snowbiker too, along with others (don't know where I belong)

Submitted by dailybiker on

I must be one of the snowbikers as well. My winter bike is a MTB with full fender coverage. I have a set of wheels with about 300 studs per tire and another set of wheels with normal MTB tires. It is now all cleaned up and hanging in the rafters of the garage. Yes, I have a bright light...I have been accused of being a train coming down the pathway!! And yes, I have a wide variety of cycling clothing, pants, jackets, gloves, mitts, toques, shorts and jerseys.

In the nonsnowy season, I do belong to a different tribe, depending on which bike I ride. I am not sure what tribe/species I belong to when I ride my 1986 Miyata 1000 touring bike with racks front and back, in addition to full fenders. This is my main commmuter in summer, although I only use the front set or the rear set of panniers, but never both. The fenders were great when I copped out from work at noon today (finishing work from home).

I try to avoid the pathways on my road bike, since it goes too fast for the crowds of bikes, people and dogs. It is good for long rides out of town. This is another species/tribe, as is my real mountain bike for playing in the mountains.

So I am confused and don't know which tribe/species I belong to!!!!

House Poor Tribe

Submitted by Scott on

This tribe belongs to most of the SUV driving, cabin owning, Quad using folks in this fair city. They also want a bike but are so house poor by trying to keep up with the "Jones" that all they can afford is something under $200. Plus, that's all they want to spend because any more than that means it would cut into their beer fund and more toy's to buy for their image. Because they are living large but broke as it gets, they are staunch supporters of both Canadian Tire and/or Walmart which is exactly where they buy their bikes. Ironically, once these bikes break down (which is after anywhere from 1 to 20 rides later) they can easily be found in the back alleys of any subdivision like Deer Run/Queensland for example. Accessories for these bikes often consists of a smoke hanging from their mouth's while they ride and a trucking ball cap on their heads. Avg age is anywhere from 25 to 45 it seems. Once they wastingly toss out the still perfectly new looking bike out by the garbage because it blew a cable or a brake pad, or it has a bent rim... they once again venture out as a family to their favorite stomping grounds to purchase mass quantities of stuff they dont need, cant afford and yes... another bike all to be thrown into the back of their gigantic king cab deisel with a 6' lift kit on it and oversize tailpipe.

~This is what I have observed so far in my few years living down south and IMO, is a tribe that needs to cease to exist but somehow... I doubt it will.

http://mybohemia.wordpress.com/ My Bohemia Blog

I agree.

Submitted by BCDon on

Those "truck nuts" having off the rear hitch are really stupid. I just want to go up and kick them hard enough that the driver feels it "appropriately".

I think

Submitted by BCDon on

that'd be every racer. They don't make any money to speak of.

While my bike isn't worth more than my car, it's worth more than most student's cars! And, when I mention the price to non-riders they just shake their head. But then it isn't a Dogma (@ $16,999).

And why with this bike (a Trek Madone) which I love, along with my Jake the Snake and my old Mountain bike and my old retired sport / touring bike am I still lusting after additional bikes (and that is plural).

Bicycle Rescuer Tribe

Submitted by dmodderman on

This is likely a rare tribe, as it hasn't been mentioned yet. I like to "rescue" old bikes destined for the landfill. If they are in decent shape I'll tune them up and then ride them into the ground (or keep replacing parts until it gets out of hand). Which can take a long time, I'm finding. Or if the bikes are not in good shape I'll use them for parts bikes. Good thing I have an oversize garage and only one car :-)

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