The Slow Bicycle Movement

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08-19-2008, 11:10 AM
Kalidurga

The Slow Bicycle Movement

Here's something for the non-speedsters out there: The Slow Bicycle Movement blog. As described by urbanvelo.org:

Quote:

The Slow Bicycle Movement was inspired by The Slow Food Movement—an organization that seeks to counteract fast food and fast life. Similarly, the Slow Bicycle Movement prizes style over speed. Members of the club advocate a limited number of gears (though nobody seems to be enforcing any rules) and prefer not to ride faster than 15mph.

I've been working on increasing my own speed, but gotta admit-- that sounds kinda cool :D
08-19-2008, 11:23 AM
BethG

Well I've got the SLOW down - not so sure about the "stylish" LOL!
08-19-2008, 11:26 AM
sfa

Now THERE'S a movement I can get behind. Probably waaaayyyy behind, given how slow I am. And I need all my many gears to keep up my slow pace, thank you very much!

It's an interesting idea, though. I suspect the reason so many kids ride bikes and so many adults don't is that somewhere in there the adults forget that you can just ride a bike because it's fun to do--you don't have to compete or perform or improve all the time. OTOH, it's kind of funny that there has to be a movement with a name and rules to get the "just have fun and stop making it more complicated than it needs to be!" message out.

Sarah
08-19-2008, 11:26 AM
Pax

"not to ride faster than 15mph."

Not a problem...who knew I was so hip. :p
08-19-2008, 11:48 AM
wackyjacky1

Quote:

Originally Posted by sfa

And I need all my many gears to keep up my slow pace, thank you very much!

+1, LOL! :D
08-19-2008, 11:51 AM
SouthernBelle

Darn. All that work for naught!

:D
08-19-2008, 12:12 PM
Zen

I'm more than qualified for this :D
08-19-2008, 12:35 PM
Pax

We need a new TE team...Amici Lenti!! :D
08-19-2008, 01:02 PM
salsabike

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pax

We need a new TE team...Amici Lenti!! :D

Oh, I LIKE that. Good one!
08-19-2008, 02:35 PM
BleeckerSt_Girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pax

We need a new TE team...Amici Lenti!! :D

I'm in.
08-19-2008, 03:32 PM
pardes

We'd have to schedule meetings days ahead so we could get there in time.
08-19-2008, 05:11 PM
SlowButSteady

Needless to say, I love the concept!
08-19-2008, 06:11 PM
BleeckerSt_Girl

Only problem is if they insist on single speed bikes.
I'm already painfully slow. On the hills where I live here, if I had to give up my mountain gearing I'd be going down the hill backwards when I was supposed to be going UP it. :cool:
08-19-2008, 06:28 PM
redranger

Slow pride!
08-19-2008, 06:54 PM
pardes

Molasses would be our club food.
08-19-2008, 08:01 PM
shootingstar

Mighty sea turtle would be our lucky mascot. After all, they live a long time.
08-19-2008, 08:29 PM
Trek420

And I already own the jersey :)

www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=23089
08-19-2008, 09:51 PM
Grog

Quote:

Originally Posted by pardes

Molasses would be our club food.

If we can have buckwheat crepes with the molasses, I'm in.
08-20-2008, 07:51 AM
grey

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trek420

And I already own the jersey :)

www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=23089

LOL! That jersey is the BOMB!
08-20-2008, 09:58 AM
BleeckerSt_Girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grog

If we can have buckwheat crepes with the molasses, I'm in.

I fueled up on French toast and bacon with maple syrup before my 25 mile, 10.4 average mph ride this morning.....does that count? I ate it really slowly, too. :)
08-20-2008, 10:39 AM
Grog

Quote:

Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

I fueled up on French toast and bacon with maple syrup before my 25 mile, 10.4 average mph ride this morning.....does that count? I ate it really slowly, too. :)

Oooh, I LOVE maple syrup (being from Quebec) and I make delightful French toast (I think!). But molasses.... mmmh!

Check this out everyone:
Slow Cycle Food Tour: http://www.slowfoodvancouver.com/index.php/AgassizTour/
I missed that one but I hope to be able to make it next time.

I also participated in their "Bike the Blossoms" tour which was also about tasting local delicacies!
08-20-2008, 11:56 AM
ilima

Quote:

Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

Only problem is if they insist on single speed bikes.
I'm already painfully slow. On the hills where I live here, if I had to give up my mountain gearing I'd be going down the hill backwards when I was supposed to be going UP it. :cool:

Exactly. The Amsterdam-Copenhagen ethos doesn't really translate well to much of the US.

I live up a 2.5 mile hill with an average grade of 7.5% and a stretch at 17%. Triple with a mountain cassette, thank you very much.
08-20-2008, 12:03 PM
BleeckerSt_Girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by ilima

Exactly. The Amsterdam-Copenhagen ethos doesn't really translate well to much of the US.

I live up a 2.5 mile hill with an average grade of 7.5% and a stretch at 17%. Triple with a mountain cassette, thank you very much.

I hear you. :cool:

Hey maybe all those "slow biking" club guys live in Florida and Iowa where everything is flat and so they need to use the single speed bikes in order to qualify for the slowness requirement? Even on their single speeds, they are STILL faster than those of us with 1000 gears who are crawling up our gazillion hills on every ride. ;) :D

So it's ok to have lots of gears if you are still slow anyway. :D
08-20-2008, 12:42 PM
Pax

Quote:

Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

So it's ok to have lots of gears if you are still slow anyway. :D

Whew! Glad to know I can still be in the slooooooow club. :D
08-20-2008, 05:35 PM
ladyicon

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trek420

And I already own the jersey :)

www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=23089

Hey, I have that jersey too. I get a lot of comments, good ones, on organized rides. One good thing about a hill slug is that I sure can pass all the faster people on the downhill. Wheeeeee.
08-20-2008, 05:45 PM
TxDoc

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pax

We need a new TE team...Amici Lenti!! :D

where do we sign up :D
08-20-2008, 07:53 PM
shootingstar

If there was ever a TE Amici Lenti jersey, I would get it.. we can make it sound like a cycling wine club group...too inebriated to ride any faster. ;) It sounds slow...and bachannalian. :D
08-21-2008, 03:22 AM
Pax

Quote:

Originally Posted by shootingstar

If there was ever a TE Amici Lenti jersey, I would get it.. we can make it sound like a cycling wine club group...too inebriated to ride any faster. ;) It sounds slow...and bachannalian. :D

Very nice! :D
08-21-2008, 03:58 AM
Becky

That sounds like an awesome jersey! I'd buy one...
08-21-2008, 08:49 AM
katluvr

Quote:

Originally Posted by shootingstar

Mighty sea turtle would be our lucky mascot. After all, they live a long time.

My riding partner and I often talk about having a bike jersey with a turtle on it that says "slow and steady". In our long charity rides we get passed by the same cyclists over and over, because they spend all this time at the SAG stops. We so stop, but briefly and we are just steadily pacing on!

Slower that 15 mph...they consider thqt slow!? Darn it--I thought I was downright speedy when I avg. that!:eek:

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