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A friendly wave
I spend more time on my motorbike than on my pushbikes most weeks, and
I get to take part in the motorcyclists' quaint tradition of waving to each other when they pass on the road. (VW bus drivers do this too, I remember.) Rare is the motorcyclist who intentionally refuses this gesture to his two-wheeled motoring brethren. Even racer-wannabees and outlaw-biker-wannabees, otherwise largely at odds, will extend the hand of greeting to each other in passing. Being in the habit of delivering the friendly wave at a second's notice, I often find myself waving to bicyclists when out riding my own bicycle. Yesterday, I was riding my big blue chopper Babe down the waterfront bike lanes to meet some of my Dead Baby Bikes club compatriots. Riding high and mighty, and sporting my club colors, I was making a point of delivering the wave to all the cyclists who passed my way. A lot of them, maybe most, replied in kind. Many did not, and most of those seemed willful about it. No big deal, of course, but there was something in common with all those who did not wave or smile or say hello. To a one, those riders who seemed to ignore my greeting were Cycling Enthusiasts in uniform-- wearing Lycra in colors not found in nature, topped with styrofoam hats, riding road bikes of recent vintage and uncomfortable-looking rider position. Along with their regalia they wore expressions between serious and grim. They rode by, all of them, as if they failed to notice the near-7-foot, near-400-pound guy on a 6-foot tall chopper waving to them as they passed. Yet all the other folks on bikes (the ones wearing mostly real clothes, regardless of the type of bike or speed with which they rode) had some kind of acknowledging response, mostly very friendly. Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? Are folks who wear "Superduperbikeman" getups playing some character role from which they fear to depart? What's the deal? Chalo Colina |
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#2
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Chalo wrote:
I spend more time on my motorbike than on my pushbikes most weeks, and I get to take part in the motorcyclists' quaint tradition of waving to each other when they pass on the road. (VW bus drivers do this too, I remember.) Rare is the motorcyclist who intentionally refuses this gesture to his two-wheeled motoring brethren. Even racer-wannabees and outlaw-biker-wannabees, otherwise largely at odds, will extend the hand of greeting to each other in passing. Being in the habit of delivering the friendly wave at a second's notice, I often find myself waving to bicyclists when out riding my own bicycle. Yesterday, I was riding my big blue chopper Babe down the waterfront bike lanes to meet some of my Dead Baby Bikes club compatriots. Riding high and mighty, and sporting my club colors, I was making a point of delivering the wave to all the cyclists who passed my way. A lot of them, maybe most, replied in kind. Many did not, and most of those seemed willful about it. No big deal, of course, but there was something in common with all those who did not wave or smile or say hello. To a one, those riders who seemed to ignore my greeting were Cycling Enthusiasts in uniform-- wearing Lycra in colors not found in nature, topped with styrofoam hats, riding road bikes of recent vintage and uncomfortable-looking rider position. Along with their regalia they wore expressions between serious and grim. They rode by, all of them, as if they failed to notice the near-7-foot, near-400-pound guy on a 6-foot tall chopper waving to them as they passed. Yet all the other folks on bikes (the ones wearing mostly real clothes, regardless of the type of bike or speed with which they rode) had some kind of acknowledging response, mostly very friendly. Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? Are folks who wear "Superduperbikeman" getups playing some character role from which they fear to depart? What's the deal? They probably read what you wrote about Patrick Tillman and still hold it against you. Bill "just a guess" S. |
#3
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Chalo wrote:
Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? Pretty much. People on bikes wave here all the time. While many people on the fancy fairly new racing bikes and ridiculously over-priced clothes do sometimes wave, they are less likely than just about everybody else. To understand the mentalitity of these people, all you have to do is spend some time in rec.bicycles.racing. Yes, they do think they are better than you. |
#4
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Chalo wrote:
snip Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? yes & no. it depends very much on the bike i'm riding. if i'm .. a. on my wunder frou-frou road bike wearing lycra 75% of the roadies say hello along with a sizeable minority (say 30%) of the trail-riding mountain bikers. b. on my mountain bike wearing lycra most (95%) of the mountain bikers and nearly none (5%) of the roadies return the wave. c. on my track bike with cut offs and a messenger bag in commuter mode all of the roadies damn near to the last, a majority of the mountain bikers and to a man (all 4, but i know them) all of the commuters say hi. Are folks who wear "Superduperbikeman" getups playing some character role from which they fear to depart? What's the deal? granfalloons. -- david reuteler |
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#6
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Chalo wrote:
Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? Chalo, as a motorcyclist, you are probably familiar with the nod or wave that occurs between motorcyclists. It's the sort of thing members of a beleaguered social group do with each other -- a mutual, hang in there, how's it going type recognition. Yet, how many times do motorcyclists nod or wave to bicyclists, and visa versa? I think it's the same thing going on here. These people who are not nodding/waving do not consider themselves to be in the same social group as you. I am aware of the fact that, generally, African American men also do the nod to one another. One time I pulled up to a car with the window rolled down. I was in the left hand turn lane, the car was to my right. I gave the driver, who happened to be a black male, a low-level eye, just to establish mutual acknowledgement of each other's presence. He then gave me a nod, and it almost seemed to be automatic, done without much conscious thought. I returned it, with a sense of inner amusement. -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply Home of the meditative cyclist: http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
#7
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Chalo wrote: (clip) What's the deal? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Here's the deal. Exchanging a greeting with a stranger, whether it is a wave, a smile or a "hello," says you recognize each other as having something in common. I just came back from a ride in a local waterfront park with lots of dirt trails, weeds, and a great view. I didn't meet any other bikers, but every person out there made eye contact with me, and we smiled and said hello. We were acknowledging that we were doing the same thing, even though some were walking their dogs, some were just walking, and I was riding. On the other hand, when I ride a nearby paved trail, where speeds are higher, and the number of people I pass is much higher, the greetings become more cursory, or just disappear. We feel less kinship because there are so many of us. When I ride the city streets I would never think of waving to another cyclist--it would make me look like a yokel on his/her first bike ride--looking for kinship and reassurance. When you wave, and the other rider ignores you, it may mean that you look like a yokel on your first ride. |
#8
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Little Meow wrote in
: When I'm on my bike, most of the casual cyclists I encounter give a clear wave or a nod. About half of the serious cyclists do likewise. Many of the remaining serious cyclists will give the secret signal, which is to raise the left index and middle finger from the handlebar grip as we approach, and slightly sweep the digits outward as we pass. I made the mistake of returning the signal while dressed in old shorts and a plain dark tee. I ended up waylaid on my way home and nearly beaten to death by skinny men in colourful bikie tights and foam hats. I hear that it's a good idea to just stop, and place your bike between yourself and the threat. It would be tough for a group of skinny roadies with ultralight carbon bikes to get past my 35 lb. steel commuter bike, wielded as a shield or bludgeon. -- Mike Barrs |
#9
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"Chalo" wrote in message
om... I spend more time on my motorbike than on my pushbikes most weeks, and I get to take part in the motorcyclists' quaint tradition of waving to each other when they pass on the road. (VW bus drivers do this too, I remember.) Rare is the motorcyclist who intentionally refuses this gesture to his two-wheeled motoring brethren. Even racer-wannabees and outlaw-biker-wannabees, otherwise largely at odds, will extend the hand of greeting to each other in passing. Being in the habit of delivering the friendly wave at a second's notice, I often find myself waving to bicyclists when out riding my own bicycle. Yesterday, I was riding my big blue chopper Babe down the waterfront bike lanes to meet some of my Dead Baby Bikes club compatriots. Riding high and mighty, and sporting my club colors, I was making a point of delivering the wave to all the cyclists who passed my way. A lot of them, maybe most, replied in kind. Many did not, and most of those seemed willful about it. No big deal, of course, but there was something in common with all those who did not wave or smile or say hello. To a one, those riders who seemed to ignore my greeting were Cycling Enthusiasts in uniform-- wearing Lycra in colors not found in nature, topped with styrofoam hats, riding road bikes of recent vintage and uncomfortable-looking rider position. Along with their regalia they wore expressions between serious and grim. They rode by, all of them, as if they failed to notice the near-7-foot, near-400-pound guy on a 6-foot tall chopper waving to them as they passed. Yet all the other folks on bikes (the ones wearing mostly real clothes, regardless of the type of bike or speed with which they rode) had some kind of acknowledging response, mostly very friendly. Is this consistent with anyone else's experience? Are folks who wear "Superduperbikeman" getups playing some character role from which they fear to depart? What's the deal? The primary impression I get from most of the my encounters with guys on Harleys is one of extremely loud noise. Fairly often, they'll twist the throttle as they pass me, ensuring my left ear gets a full dose of 100+ decibel engine noise. I know that most of them have been modified to make them even louder than stock bikes...What's up with that? Do they have to be that loud to cover other...shortcomings? Are guys on big loud Harleys playing some sort of character role from which they fear to depart? FWIW, I'll exchange waves with the occasional motorhead on a quiet BMW, but those loud, obnoxious hogs? No way! GG |
#10
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