On Tuesday, February 24, 2015 at 8:18:22 PM UTC-8, Doug Williams wrote: > > pb, > > Hmmm...I'm glad that you found a few good LBS's, >
No, I called three, and got three answers. I made three calls. I got three answers. I chose the three because they were representative of three major corporate entities. > but have you read a mainstream bicycle magazine recently? I see all sorts > of articles and advertisements glorifying racing and bikes so lightweight > that they are completely impractical for normal use. I see VERY few > articles and advertisements featuring practical and reliable bikes or > articles that espouse using a bike for transportation rather than for only > racing or exercise. Transportation? What's that? A fun ride that isn't a > race? What's that? > Do you read Vogue to find articles on dungarees or Harris tweed? Do you read GQ to find out what to wear when gardening? I don't even know what the "mainstream bicycle magazines" are any more. I do know that Bicycling (does it still exist?) didn't offer a new article, or cover, in twenty years. They just recycled the old ones on a regular basis (Climb better in 30 days! Get faster in 30 days! Prepare for a century in 30 days! Get leaner in 30 days!). I hope you don't pay to read it. Doug, are you confusing magazines with actual journalism? Magazines exist to make money, and they'll print whatever they think will sell copies. Apparently what you think is interesting isn't what they think will sell copies. Does that prove something about your local bicycle shop, or does it just indicate that maybe you're looking at the wrong magazine, which you knew before you picked it up. > I don't think that Grant just invented this issue. The phenomena is quite > real. Grant's message resonates with many because the racing phenomena IS > real. > No, Grant didn't invent the issue, but he has fed the flames, and kept it alive, and he has perpetuated a stereotype, and he has offended folks along the way. For no reason. And I assure you that it has affected his bottom line by marginalizing him. Canonize him for that if you wish. > And yes, I do (quite often) encounter smug racers in their spandex > uniforms who disparage practical cyclists. They are mostly wannabe's and > not real racers, of course. But they are numerous and annoying just the > same. > Oh come on. There are rude and irritating members of every population group. Do they represent their groups as a whole? See comments about stereotyping. Also, people tend to see what they are looking for. If you are looking for snotty racers, you'll probably find them. Ironically, typing that reminds me of riding into my neighborhood one night from work. My commute ride is about 40 quite hilly miles each way, a solid 2.5 hours, especially after a day of work, and I had ridden both ways that day, leaving the house in the morning at 5:30 (no, I do not do that commute both ways very often). I was on a carbon Look, in lycra, and I had my clothes and shoes and files and a laptop in my Timbuktu. I was riding very tiredly into my development, done for the day, when a fellow in jeans and a plaid shirt went spinning past me on a Surly. He was sitting upright, and he ignored me as he spun past with a grin. I guess he kicked my ass. If it had been me passing him, I would have said hello, because I try to be friendly to other cyclists. Here is my suggestion to you and to Grant: Promote and enjoy the kind of cycling and bicycles that you like, and let those things stand on their own feet. If your LBS sucks and just wants to sell $15,000 Pinarellos and one-piece suits, go to another store, or mail order, but don't tell me that proves every LBS sucks, or that every customer of that LBS is an ass. Don't sneer at other cyclists along the way, or if you do, they may say things like Norma Steinberg said. There is sufficient rudeness and division in our world. Don't perpetuate it. Think about my comment about Ritchey and Fisher and Kelly not needing to belittle roadies to make mountain biking attractive. The opposite happened -- suddenly it was cool to have two bikes! Grant's ideas in Just Ride are fine. Yeah, I've read it -- he sent me a copy, and I have it at my right hand. It's just not necessary for anyone to prove that his ideas are right by proving that someone else's ideas are wrong. Sometimes two ideas can be right at the same time, and to make an idea attractive does not require belittling another idea. You want to go for a run, go for a run. You want to go for a walk, go for a walk. Runners and walkers don't need to call each other stupid or liars. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
