Recent fatal crash at UCLA

On 09/14/2012 11:23 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 16:39:15 -0700, "Kerry Montgomery"
wrote:

Frank Krygowski,
Your original statement:
"I've never used them, so they can't be essential."
No indication, obvious or otherwise, that you were referring to only
yourself.

Obviously, a jersey with three pockets in back and two in front is
essential for bicycle riding. I'd collapse like a marionette with cut
strings if I couldn't reach into my right front pocket for a starlight
mint at appropriate intervals.

NOTHING is essential for riding a bike, except two wheels -- and
that's only because you have to call it riding a unicycle when you
have only one, and walking if you haven't any.


+1. Well two wheels and your butt somewhere on the contraption. Time
to be essential...

On 09/15/2012 04:04 PM, Dan O wrote:
On Sep 15, 12:38 pm, Jay Beattie wrote:
On Sep 15, 9:22 am, Frank Krygowski
wrote:



Jay Beattie wrote:
On Sep 14, 6:13 pm, Phil W wrote:

If people have a medical need for shoe covers, that for some
inexplicable reason isn't equally well served by boots and socks, then
it is a medical need, not a cycling need.

I have a much lower threshold for essential -- which for me is defined
as "necessary to ride without being totally miserable." Why should
bicycling be miserable?Sometimes, chamois cream or insoles or any
number of things can be essential for certain riders.

Wow.

I just tried to recall an incident when I was miserable on a bike. I
came up with only one: I was lost in a foreign city, trying to find our
hotel room where my wife was waiting and worried about me, riding in a
waterfall-like rainstorm with no rain gear at all.

But riding without shoe covers, insoles or chamois cream??? Sheesh.
I've literally _never_ heard anyone else describe that as misery.

Read this:http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0...ag=freewhfranc...
Mark Beaumont was seriously miserable when he ran out of chamois
cream. Merckx was side-lined by saddle sores. Hot foot at mile 90 or
mile 190 because of poor metatarsal support -- descending in driving
rain at near freezing temperatures with no shoe covers and frozen
feet. I can think of all kinds of miserable that can be avoided.


I didn't really mean really facetious - even semi. Chamois cream
could be absolutely essential. (I am thankful that it hasn't been for
me yet.)


Don't know about essential but it comes in handy for long rides. Like
Joy said, the only thing essential for cycling is two wheels. But why
not be more comfortable when it's relatively simple?

On 09/14/2012 09:00 PM, wrote:

snip

One more-- repeating, one of the very best in my experience is a guy
who rode his "touring" (utility, everyday, "beater") bike on our group
rides. Nobody cares (in my bunch) in the first place and for this guy,
it was just "more respect". "We" don't care what he rides, we care
about how he rides.

I can't believe this attitude is unknown away from my location.

Believe me, it's not.
While most of my club eventually move to road bikes, there are no
restrictions against using hybrids, much less touring bikes. Some of us
even use the beaters and touring bikes until the snow melts in the spring.

And it's just as you say, we care about how someone rides, not what
or how fast. You find a group that rides your speed. If you can do
35kph average on a hybrid, no one is going to tell you not to ride with
them. If you are the fastest rider in the club and can't hold a line,
no one will want to ride with you.

It would also be better off if there were less foaming at the mouth when
different opinions are expressed. But such is our culture, I guess.

So express opinions and leave off the nasty remarks. Make a positive
contribution to "our culture".

Good luck with that one.

On Sep 16, 9:09*pm, Frank Krygowski
wrote:
James wrote:
On 17/09/12 09:29, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

I think it's a shame when bicyle shop employees don't want to take
the time to educate a new bicyclist to the differences amongst
different types of bicycles. Because of that many new bicyclists end
up with bicycles totally unsuited for the type of riding they do.

Why would a shop keep stock of many more non road racing bikes than road
racing bikes, if road racing bikes was what they wanted to sell?

The "what they want to sell" is key. *A shop owner trying to clear out
stock, or an employee working on commission, may be highly motivated to
sell an expensive racing bike. *When my (now former) paper boy got
taken... um, convinced to buy a racing bike, I assumed that's what
happened. *When my elderly friend ended up with a racing bike, ditto.

You still have a paper boy? Some hobo in a car delivers my paper . . .
and the publisher is on the brink of bankruptcy.

I have no clue what happens in other cities or some racing bike only
store, but every time I go in to a shop to look at bikes, the first
question is "what are you looking for?" Then I get pointed in that
direction. Then I get asked "what kind of riding do you do and how
much do you want to spend?" Upselling generally involves buying a
nicer version of whatever bike type I have targeted -- getting the one
with Ultegra instead of Tiagra, etc. YMMV.

-- Jay Beattie.

"Duane" wrote in message
...
On 09/14/2012 11:23 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 16:39:15 -0700, "Kerry Montgomery"
wrote:

Frank Krygowski,
Your original statement:
"I've never used them, so they can't be essential."
No indication, obvious or otherwise, that you were referring to only
yourself.

Obviously, a jersey with three pockets in back and two in front is
essential for bicycle riding. I'd collapse like a marionette with cut
strings if I couldn't reach into my right front pocket for a starlight
mint at appropriate intervals.

NOTHING is essential for riding a bike, except two wheels -- and
that's only because you have to call it riding a unicycle when you
have only one, and walking if you haven't any.


+1. Well two wheels and your butt somewhere on the contraption. Time to
be essential...

Duane,
One person's essential is not another's:
http://my.opera.com/badmadcyclist/bl...averse-jumpers
Kerry

"James" wrote in message
...
On 17/09/12 11:14, Tom $herman (-_-) wrote:
On 9/16/2012 5:47 PM, James wrote:
And don't hark back to helmets. In this country it's the LAW.

Well, that is just as stupid as letting Rupert Murdoch run the country.


Here it was Frank then Kerry and now James Packer.

--
JS.

JS,
Are you saying I'm stupid, or like Rupert Murdoch, or running the country,
or something else?
Kerry

On Monday, September 17, 2012 9:08:13 AM UTC-7, Kerry Montgomery wrote:

"Duane" wrote:

On 09/14/2012 11:23 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:

On Fri, 14 Sep 2012 16:39:15 -0700, "Kerry Montgomery" wrote:


Frank Krygowski,

Your original statement:

"I've never used them, so they can't be essential."

No indication, obvious or otherwise, that you were referring to only

yourself.



Obviously, a jersey with three pockets in back and two in front is

essential for bicycle riding. I'd collapse like a marionette with cut

strings if I couldn't reach into my right front pocket for a starlight

mint at appropriate intervals.



NOTHING is essential for riding a bike, except two wheels -- and

that's only because you have to call it riding a unicycle when you

have only one, and walking if you haven't any.





+1. Well two wheels and your butt somewhere on the contraption. Time to

be essential...



Duane,

One person's essential is not another's:

http://my.opera.com/badmadcyclist/bl...averse-jumpers


Moreover, essential to what? Essential to riding a bicycle (at all)? Or essential to the experience that makes riding a bicycle worthwhile and something that I love to do.

Dan O wrote:
On Sep 16, 9:09 pm, Frank
wrote:
The "what they want to sell" is key. A shop owner trying to clear out
stock, or an employee working on commission, may be highly motivated to
sell an expensive racing bike. When my (now former) paper boy got
taken... um, convinced to buy a racing bike, I assumed that's what
happened. When my elderly friend ended up with a racing bike, ditto.


He's either a sucker or (more likely since you were apparently unable
to get him straightened out) that's what he really wanted. Why don't
you save the crap you're giving us for him (or maybe you did and just
have enough to go around... and around).

The man in question didn't ask me. He showed me afterward, when it was
too late, and he was asking for advice on how to raise the handlebars so
he could reach them.

BTW, it's obvious you're incapable of seeing the disconnect between your
use of phrases like "the crap you're giving us" and your complaints
about truly civil language that I use.


--
- Frank Krygowski

Dan O wrote:
On Sep 16, 9:51 pm, Frank
wrote:

snip


[much rehashing trimmed]


snip


It's not that I don't see benefits. It's far more likely that I
understand the benefits, and have judged them to, for me, not balance
the detriments.


For you. Sure. Fine. But your way is not the one right way (I'm
quite sure I've tried to tell you exactly that many times before).

I'm reminded of the time I was walking along and had a small, dopey,
hyperactive dog yapping obnoxiously and nipping at my heels.

--
- Frank Krygowski

Kerry Montgomery wrote:

Duane,
One person's essential is not another's:
http://my.opera.com/badmadcyclist/bl...averse-jumpers
Kerry

I came across two guys riding machines like that at a monument park last
year. What they could do was truly amazing.


--
- Frank Krygowski