Paul, you seem like a smart man. I often enjoy your devil's advocate positioning. Can we all admit that a large percentage of bicyclists are entitled dicks? Also, can we all agree that no one wants to see a grown man in a full spandex outfit? Thirdly, can we agree that any grown man who wears full spandex in the name of aerodynamics is a raging homosexual? I think there are some things that just can't be logically disputed.
Alright, I'll level with you brother. I am not really very smart at all. For example I hope that when I post six different links showing how bicyclist contribute to building and maintaining roads, I expect that to sink in at some point. That is just damn dumb on my part.
I rarely associate with cyclists. In my limited interactions with them, the biggest dicks seem to riders in my demographic. They never seem to be happy. It's like they ride with a chip on their shoulder. I was passing a guy my age who was riding a bamboo bike. As I got beside him, I commented that it looked like art in motion. NOTHING. No reaction whatsoever. No smile, no thank you, nothing. Damn man, I am happy when I am riding, even when my lungs are hanging out in exhaustion.
A few pages back a video showed a group ride with a schidt ton of riders. I don't like that. If that was a very short stretch on a weekend morning I could tolerate it, but I wouldn't like it. More than a minute or two, it's time to break things up and spread things out, or be willing to pull over. I used to ride with the Gulf Coast Bicycle Club when I lived in MS. Great guys and gals. When we did weekend group rides, we did them on lightly traveled rural backroads and we worked cars around us as quickly as we could. Our groups were seldom more than 10 or so. EVERY single one of those riders gave a damn about motorists.
I'll say this too. I have a bunch of passtimes. Boating, kayaking, motorcycling, fishing, hunting and bicycling. The nerdiest group by far are bicyclists. The most nauseatingly liberal are the motorcyclists. The grumpiest, most perpetually butthurt...never mind, I was on a good roll.
Spandex shorts. I wear them. I have no idea why but that pad in them makes worlds of difference in comfort. If I ride 20 miles without them, I'll have bruises over my sit bones. No amount of padding in a seat can change that, but that damn thin layer of padding does. I can't explain it. The material keeps the nuggets in place to, and that matters. I don't give a cock and balls about aerodynamics.
I agree that no man wants to see me in spandex, and frankly (pun intended) I find a measure of comfort in that. Women on the other hand...
