Browsing this lovely site, I realize nobody's wearing a helmet or clip-in shoes. But this is how people dress in the world's great bicycle cities, like Amsterdam and Copenhagen. You get on your bike and go to work, on a date, to the market etc. Cycling is simply part of daily life and does not require special equipment.
We've managed to make riding a bike safer, yes, but at what cost to fashion and common sense? My wife, a stylish Swede, has broached the subject of middle aged men riding around on public roads in spandex shorts. The Sartorialist has at least explored some of the more attractive alternatives.
We all know the alternative: aggressive buttocks wrapped in sweat soaked, day-glo spandex (alas, me on my Sunday morning ride). Such riders don't seem to be part of anything but their own exercise routines. In contrast, the cyclists above feel like they are part of city life. They care what you think of them--and it shows. This is a beautiful thing.
Thanks to The Sartorialist for permission to use the photos above.
I can say fashionable cycling best fit for girls not for men.
ReplyDeleteSo girls should be fashionable and men should look like day-glo children?
ReplyDelete" Enquanto passamos a achar normal em alguns estamentos de nossa sociedade uma família ter mais de um automóvel, imagino que haja outros nas quais uma bicicleta atende à família inteira"
ReplyDelete>>>>>>> Ciclistas Anônimos (Anonimous Cyclists)
www.ciclistasanonimos.blogspot.com
The cyclist in these pictures use bicycles as a convenient mode of transport complimenting their dress and lifestyle. Rightly wearing no specialist cycling clothes, this is as it should be. Unfortunately, the only necessary accessory is the bike lock.
ReplyDelete-DRK
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Dr K,
ReplyDeleteGood point. I don't see locks on any of the bikes. The locks could be attached to an outdoor rack at the destination. The typical Dutch bike carried a monster lock, weighing 15 or more pounds. Of course the typical work bike weighs over 40 pounds without a lock so the extra weight doesn't show as much as it would on a racing bike.
I fall on both sides of the fence: I'm a spandex rider AND a casual clothes rider-- and I would LOVE to ride around with the wind in my hair on my commuter bike.. but since I'm something of a 'cycling role model' in my community, I feel the pressure to always, ALWAYS wear my helmet. And I don't terribly mind it-- I do like wearing my helmet-- I just, once in a while, would really like to ride down to the market with sun in my hair.
ReplyDeleteI've always felt that if I ever were to ride without my helmet, someone would be there to rub it in. Funny thing is, my helmet got locked inside my local food co-op one day and I had to ride down the street to get it-- and OF COURSE, someone I know from the Bicycle & Pedestrian Committee shouts from the street, "HEY, WHERE'S YOUR HELMET??!"
Ahh! Just no escape.
Did you shout back, "HEY, WHERE'S YOUR HAIR?"
ReplyDeleteRJ There's a small but vocal cycling minority who argue that helmets make you LESS safe. They cite studies that show riders with helmets ride much more recklessly and claim that cars typically come closer to helmet clad riders. They also claim that our various safety requirements effectively limits the appeal of cycling to those who are willing to dress for the occasion--and spend money on all the gear.
ReplyDeleteI wear my helmet religiously, even on my recumbent where one can argue it's not as critical. But I did see a hell of a lot more people riding bikes in Holland, where once just hops on a bike and rides. In fact my bike savy Dutch friends observed that "people will laugh at you if you wear a helmet around town." I did anyway.
A couple of years ago Grant Peterson aired some of these arguments at length over at rivbike.com in his "reader" and a firestorm of angry letters--both pro and con followed.
Great point, and one I've been trying to make since I started bike commuting last April. I rarely wear special clothes to bike, except in the heat of summer. The helmet issue is still undecided. I'm superstitious enough to believe that the one time I don't wear it will be the time I get hit by a car, but like the earlier commenter, feeling the wind in my hair would be great.
ReplyDelete