One thing I think is a factor in a lot of this, is socioeconomics. Maybe I'm wrong, or, maybe not where you are, but, at least for my neck of the woods..... (my neck of the woods being, a non-urban center, small-town, car-centric region where everyone over 15 is expected to have a car or two....)
I see the 'ensemble' of racing/club attire is used as a differentiator, indicating some level of affluence.... that you have a carbon bike, and can afford special clothing reserved for riding your bike, with like-minded people. It's a sign of buy-in to the club. If you're not in lycra and spandex, if you're not on a carbon bike, then, you must not be able to afford such, and you are some lower-echelon person that couldn't afford a car, and not someone who one wants to be associated with. We here in RBW-Owners-Bunch are aware that that doesn't always hold true... our 'antique' bikes and wool underwear cost more than their Fuji Supremes and Primal jerseys.... But we're a niche within a subset of a smaller group of the biking population. It really isn't about the price tag for us, we're into what we like for whatever reasons we like it, and it's worth what we'll pay; and for those on this group that have carbon racers too, well, you are on the Rivendell group, so, you're not entirely anti-Rivendellish, right? But you at least understand both sides. But away from our corner of the biking world, there's a lot of people that don't know better.... they see the TdF, they want to get into shape, they 'buy-in' with the outfits and the latest/greatest, because it must be best, right? Grant used to race; he's not anti-racing... if you're gonna race, then go race, on a race bike. But if you're not racing, you might as well be comfortable and enjoy the ride..... -- 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.
