What's a Fred?

[Fujichants]

Lol, some of the posts on here made me laugh.

I've had times when people greeted me, but I heard it too late and already am too far away to say hi back. Or I mutter an inaudible "hi" because it catches me by surprise.

A lot of the racer guys look me in the eye when we pass each other from opposite directions or give a little nod with their head. There are some that don't do anything, but that's cool, I don't expect anybody to greet me.

And I love matching my clothes and wearing nice brands when cycling - that's just the way I am. Just like how I love wearing nice clothes in my every day life. I definitely don't look down on people, because it is all about being comfortable on the bike. Whatever works for you.

The one thing I can't get over though is cycling socks. I can't seem to find any nice ones that match what I am wearing without them being corny. Seriously...what's up with the images of little cupcakes and rainbows and ugly flowers on cycling socks?

[Flur]

I wear whatever I want. I have a nice flashy bike and don't ride super fast, and only own one jersey and no real cycling shorts, so I'm sure there are some people out there who think I'm some sort of a poser or fred, but I don't care. I learned at a young age that it's a waste of time worrying about what strangers think.

As far as the saying hi thing goes, I agree with those that have said it depends on culture. When I lived in NYC strangers really didn't say hi to each other. Especially women. The traditional greeting for two NY women is the "New York Once-over" where they each assess whether the other woman is wearing "status-appropriate" attire and accessories. Dialogue is only involved if both parties "pass" the once-over. It's really very unnerving to the uninitiated. I doubt I ever passed a once-over. LOL!

Here in Minneapolis people say hi, which can be just as unnerving! For cyclists, I've noticed that the more serious-looking riders, when riding in my neighborhood, almost never say hi. In fact, they almost never even say "Passing on your left" as they practically take off your left shoulder. When I was riding in North Minneapolis, almost every other cyclist said hi to me. The first few might have thought bad of me for not responding, but it was so unexpected I didn't really get a chance to respond. I did say hello to a few, and then when heading back to my neighborhood I said hi to a guy I was passing and I think I scared him! So even in one city the culture can vary.

IMHO it doesn't matter if you say hi or not, or if the other person responds or not. It doesn't matter what you dress like or what other people think about it. If someone who doesn't know you is going to judge you on something so little or superficial as whether you said hi or if you're wearing the right top in the 5 seconds they saw you, they're probably not worth the effort you would put in to be friends with them anyway.

[Mr. Bloom]

Norwegians are very friendly.

My Norwegian mechanic is very friendly to me...I was 15% of his income last year! He smiles and waves at me everytime he drives past me on my bike rides (and is very careful not to hit me on my bike)

My favorite lbs guy is actually named "Fred"...no end to the irony in that one...

[SouthernBelle]

Their acknowledgement may be so subtle that you aren't catching it. Single fingers, down-lows (how one should always wave to motorcyclists), nods, eye contact.

[Crankin]

Fujichants, I'm with you. I love my cycling wardrobe; it's another chance to buy clothes! Seriously, since I bought my hybrid, it is another chance for me to buy different types of cycling clothes. And of course Lisa (bad influence) has brought me over to the dark side with the wool stuff. I never even knew I already had a pair of Ibex pants for winter sports until I went on the wool thread.
I am probably a Fred of the nice bike/matched clothes/no skill variety, but hey, I figure 2-3K miles a year for the past 4 years buys me something. Along with those 20% grades I climbed at 5 mph.

[boy in a kilt]

My choice of appropriate cycling wear has evolved over the years.

Now, I just wear whatever. My preferences is toward high visibility shirts from my days in construction and a few pairs of favorite shorts/manpris.

My attitude has evolved too. I was admittedly elitist when I was younger, but now I get all excited when I see anyone riding a bike. Gear doesn't matter anymore.

[vinbek]

I've always called the black chain ring marks on your leg a Fred!