Very frustrated and sad (longish)

[Zen]

I'm surprised no one mentioned Sheldon

[Karma007]

I showed up for my first group road ride with my Target mtb (chunky tires and all), t-shirt and converse! I'll admit to being a little intimidated, but the group was friendly and pointed out how much harder I was working than they were, to push my bike at the same speed. If you love to ride, ride!

[Grog]

There's this dude I've seen a few times on the road in Quebec, including on a week-long bike tour.

Old mountain bike with a wire basket in the front with his little dog in it, wearing cut-off jeans and a usually-unbuttoned shirt.

A really, really strong rider.

Turns out he's a former pro-cyclist and the trainer of other pro-cyclists. But he also just likes to ride. (I guess riding spandex-free changes his frame of mind.)

Just ride and have fun. Do whatever it takes to have fun, be safe, and feel comfortable. And if you feel like you're wearing the "wrong" thing, remember that even the pros do it.

[Biciclista]

And then there's Kent Peterson

He wears hiking boots when he rides and wears street clothes and he's really cool. (Sort of a Sheldon Brown type)

[ClockworkOrange]

Hey, as you guys would say "Gray, you really rock girl", that is some mileage you do!

I cannot afford to buy all the fancy named clothing or accessories but I love what I have. I'll let you into a little secret, I seem to spend more time looking up various things on the internet, cos I have never heard of them, now what's all this chamois stuff about??? That's what I use to clean the windows.

My gorgeous faithfully Orange Clockwork bike is 10 years old this year and it was second hand then.

My happy days of riding apparel use to be a sleeveless vest top, shorts and flip flops, and no helmet! However, after coming on this site it has taught me not to be a numpty and to wear a helmet.

If I cycled about in all the proper stuff, I would really stick out like a sore thumb. For me, I love cycling alone, perhaps if I was younger I might have joined a club, otherwise it is just myself and my partner.

I guess my motto is "I DON'T CARE", I just ride in a mish mash of clothes and love every minute of it.

Finally, Gray you have a lot of supporters out there and I so admired what you wrote.

Hope the training goes well for the Lifecycle Ride in 2010.

Clock

[solobiker]

Sorry you feel this way. All that matters is that you ride and enjoy yourself. You don't need the fancy jersey or shorts to ride your bike. I used to ride with someone who would always pick on me because my shirt/jersey did not match my gloves or my helmet. Give me a break..I don't care if they don't match. From my name you can probably assume that I ride alone, well I do. I am not a member of any clubs or teams. Just enjoy being outside.

[PamNY]

I saw my favorite biking lady today! She always wears a leopard swing coat, along with festive jewelry (including big earrings) and colorful scarves. She's not a young woman, but she's out there biking in winter and looking very stylish indeed.

Pam

[Miranda]

When I first started riding, I joined a club ride. They made me feel like an idiot (you don't have this or that???). ...they made me feel like family. Total strangers taught me all I needed to know and listened to my endless questions. I think it's a matter of finding a group that makes you feel comfortable.

This is the main thing that has held me back from attending my first group ride to a club I have a paid membership in. Sad, isn't it? When no one (including the lbs who took my $ for my bike) would help, I stumbled across this board. My first post was to the effect of: (deep breath before typing) I have bleeding abrasions on my labia minora...". I have never felt more supported, have never been made to feel stupid, or the like here on TE. Why can't the whole freakin cycling world be like this? It makes me mad.

Gray... Chin up and keep pedaling it out. Aquiring gear can be a slow going process. Most importantly--you have heart. (((hugs))) Miranda

[Selkie]

Don't be so hard on yourself. Getting to know you from your posts, you seem like a genuine, kind person. No artifice or pretense (in my book, that's a very positive attribute). Now you just have to see that in yourself.

You're a "real" cyclist and you definitely are not a "poser." Try not to worry about what other people think and just enjoy your time on the bike. If people give you a hard time about superficial things (clothing, equipment, etc), they probably aren't worthy of your company.

And Gray, in Morgantown, anything goes (if it hasn't changed too much since I graduated in '85).

[Duck on Wheels]

Hi there! I kinda feel like we're soulmates, or ... næh, more like I aspire to being your soulmate. I'm doing the Lifecycle for the first time this year, and most of my cycling gear will be hand-me-downs from my sister and daughter. My first longish ride was a 100k on a comfort bike. I shipped the bike to my sister who took it to her LBS for assembly and fine tuning. They took one look at it, said "The Cinderella Classic on THIS? I give her one hour!" So she wheeled around and took it to her other and more favorite LBS, where they said, "Hmmm. The Cinderella Classic on this. OK. Let's see what we can do to make it doable for her." They switched me from big knobby tires to medium-narrow slicks and I did 42 of the 62 miles in the worst weather that ride has had in its 30-year history (hail, headwinds, and stinking dead skunks on the road). That was my first ever ride more than to and from work or toodling at snail's pace through the countryside on a Sunday. This year I'm signed up for the California ALC I've got a lighter, more efficient bike (though still a hybrid, and not a very expensive one) and a few more pairs of cycle shorts. I've also dared, for the first time ever, to use some hand-me-down lycra shorts (being middle-aged with the "spare tire", an ostomy bag, and various aches and owies to prove it, I've only gone for baggy shorts before). I probably look pretty dorky, but I'm finally at the point where I consider myself a cyclist and don't care. Well, as for the right to consider oneself a cyclist, you're doing more miles a day than I am at this point. YOU ROCK!!! You'll do great on the Lifecycle, and I bet you're an inspiration for many on the road already! You certainly are to me, and I haven't even met you.

[GraysonKelly]

Thanks everybody for your support. I was just really having a down day yesterday. I went to the bike shop again and while they are really nice guys who are willing to listen, they are still pushing all this stuff on me that I either don't understand it's purpose or can't afford and they don't seem to get that. I understand that they run a business, but it's just frustrating. And these people that I contacted about maybe joining their group ride were not all that encouraging when I told them what bike I rode and that I'd never ridden with people before (except when DP and I go to the rail trail). Anyway, thanks again for all the support and help ya'll have offered. I appreciate it very much. As far as my shoes go, they are Sixsixone and I'm not sure they make them anymore. I will have to figure out what "model" (?) they are, first. I was actually wanting a new pair anyway, something that I can walk in as well as ride in. it's funny, I haven't fallen off the bike or had any major incidents since I started riding again, but I've fallen down the steps twice in those shoes. Again, thanks to all of you. I do feel better and have regained some of my "This is my thing. I love doing it. So I'm gonna do it my way." attitude, so thanks for reminding me.
Hugs all around!
Gray

[GraysonKelly]

Hi there! I kinda feel like we're soulmates, or ... næh, more like I aspire to being your soulmate. I'm doing the Lifecycle for the first time this year, and most of my cycling gear will be hand-me-downs from my sister and daughter. My first longish ride was a 100k on a comfort bike. I shipped the bike to my sister who took it to her LBS for assembly and fine tuning. They took one look at it, said "The Cinderella Classic on THIS? I give her one hour!" So she wheeled around and took it to her other and more favorite LBS, where they said, "Hmmm. The Cinderella Classic on this. OK. Let's see what we can do to make it doable for her." They switched me from big knobby tires to medium-narrow slicks and I did 42 of the 62 miles in the worst weather that ride has had in its 30-year history (hail, headwinds, and stinking dead skunks on the road). That was my first ever ride more than to and from work or toodling at snail's pace through the countryside on a Sunday. This year I'm signed up for the California ALC I've got a lighter, more efficient bike (though still a hybrid, and not a very expensive one) and a few more pairs of cycle shorts. I've also dared, for the first time ever, to use some hand-me-down lycra shorts (being middle-aged with the "spare tire", an ostomy bag, and various aches and owies to prove it, I've only gone for baggy shorts before). I probably look pretty dorky, but I'm finally at the point where I consider myself a cyclist and don't care. Well, as for the right to consider oneself a cyclist, you're doing more miles a day than I am at this point. YOU ROCK!!! You'll do great on the Lifecycle, and I bet you're an inspiration for many on the road already! You certainly are to me, and I haven't even met you.

Thank you for saying that. I hope your ALC experience is everything you want it to be. Please keep me posted on your training and stuff and let me know what you thought when you're done. Maybe we can inspire each other and maybe we'll meet at ALC one of these days. Have a great day and thank you again. Hugs!
Gray

[TxDoc]

First of all... you are training for the Lifecycle, so I totally agree that YOU ROCK!

No worries about gear, and fashion, and terminology... it does not really matter much unless you plan to go pro
You ride and enjoy riding and that is just fine.
Believe me, there's plenty of people that ride $20 used bikes in plain street clothes and they leave the 'fashion police' in the dust every day
Ride and be proud and most of all be happy!

[beccaB]

Momentum magazine has pictures of people riding in all sorts of clothes. I had to get some specific bike clothes after getting so cold I couldn't warm back up for days. I was sweating too much and getting chilled. You shouldn't be made to feel bad about whatever you decide to wear on a ride, it's a personal preference thing. I also get winter hives, so I had to break down and buy windpants. I think I look weird in bike clothes, but they feel good on me. When I got started doing this it was always just sneakers and a t-shirt and regular shorts, until I could slowly afford the other stuff.

[Zen]

I saw my favorite biking lady today! She always wears a leopard swing coat, along with festive jewelry (including big earrings) and colorful scarves. She's not a young woman, but she's out there biking in winter and looking very stylish indeed.

Pam

I hope someone says that about me one day