Article on conservatives who ride?

I am a freelance writer hoping to do a story on how different segments
of bike culture align themselves politically, the correlations between
biking and certain politics, and, more specifically, how conservative
riders are distributed throughout a (sub)culture that is increasingly
portrayed as liberal by the media and in stereotypes.

I've had this idea ever since I started reading certain bike
magazines, like Momentum, which all but make a foregone conclusion
that cyclists are going to be left-leaning—clustering in liberal
cities like Portland, Minneapolis, San Francisco, etc.; politically
active in environmental efforts and green living; advocating for
better transportation infrastructure, community cooperatives, and
other progressive causes.

But what about the riders who don't fit that category, the ones who
love to ride but aren't comfortably ensconced in the overlap of
lefties and cyclists? I'm genuinely curious what it's like to be
politically conservative but also part of a subculture that seems to
skew left. In a larger sense, what's it like to agree with a group
whose core principles you embrace, but whose secondary or auxiliary
causes you have trouble with?

My question to you a 1) Do you fit this description? and or 2) do
you know any websites or groups devoted to conservatives who ride?
Feel free to respond here or by private message.


CAVEATS/CLARIFICATIONS:

(As I’ve talked to more people and gotten some confused/hostile
responses in other discussion forums, I've felt the need to qualify
some of my points. Consider what follows fine print.)

Just to clarify: I am not assuming everyone in bike culture is left-
leaning—I am saying that's the perception, at least among some non-
bikers (and bikers too, for that matter—I ride, and it’s a perception
I held until relatively recently). Increased media attention to
cycling and things like Critical Mass have created an image of a left-
leaning, and even anarchic, bike culture which many more moderate
bikers (and citizens in general) have attempted to repudiate. My
article is actually a response to that perception and to the
assumption that bikers are all liberals. I am attempting to break down
some stereotypes, not reinforce them.

Another provocative question is, "What is bike culture, anyway?" This
is actually my lead-off question with the people I've been
interviewing. Everyone seems to define that term differently. Perhaps
it's useful to distinguish between the generic use of the term, to
mean any subculture within those who ride bikes—i.e. commuters,
mountain bikers, the velodrome folks, etc.—and a more specific usage
(Bike Culture, capitalized) to describe the recent (last 10 yrs or so)
increased visibility of bikers, clustered in urban areas, who advocate
biking as an all-encompassing force that permeates every aspect of
their lives, and for whom the practice is inseparable from activism,
whether it's Critical Mass, environmental advocacy, or lobbying for
change in public policy, transportation infrastructure, urban
planning, sustainable fuels, etc.

That's the hardest I've ever tried to pin down a working definition of
Bike Culture, and I'm not entirely satisfied with it. But it's this
(very nebulous, badly stereotyped, quite possibly mythical) population
I'm curious about, whose visibility and cultural currency has been
amplified (often for the worse) by the media, and whose popularity/
mythos has increased in tandem with a mainstream awareness of
alternative transportation and the possibility of environmental
crisis. It's also a group that I think quite frequently functions as a
convenient boogeyman for those who fear or resent bikers for whatever
reason. Here, I think, is where a fascinating (at least to me)
politicization of biking occurs.

But then there are those who shrug and say, "I ride my bike because
it's fun and it feels good. It's not political." And that's cool too.

Part of the goal of my article is to break down all these stereotypes
and separate fact from perception. If we want biking to be an easy and
fun part of mainstream society (and despite our many differences, I
think it's fair to assume we all do) then no group, subculture, or
node on the political spectrum should feel excluded, right? But I'm
not sure we're at that point yet, and my article is going to try and
examine why.

In article
,
Shippy wrote:

I am a freelance writer hoping to do a story on how different
segments of bike culture align themselves politically, the
correlations between biking and certain politics, and, more
specifically, how conservative riders are distributed throughout a
(sub)culture that is increasingly portrayed as liberal by the media
and in stereotypes.

There's an agenda behind that among some folks on both sides of the
political divide. BTW it's mostly a pair of opposed minorities, since
most folks are centrist in their politics.

snip

But what about the riders who don't fit that category, the ones who
love to ride but aren't comfortably ensconced in the overlap of
lefties and cyclists? I'm genuinely curious what it's like to be
politically conservative but also part of a subculture that seems to
skew left. In a larger sense, what's it like to agree with a group
whose core principles you embrace, but whose secondary or auxiliary
causes you have trouble with?

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

My question to you a 1) Do you fit this description? and or 2) do
you know any websites or groups devoted to conservatives who ride?
Feel free to respond here or by private message.

1. No. I fit the stereotype pretty well.

2. I would bet you can find some blogs, at least, such as

http://www.sneakeasysjoint.com/sneak...spent_my_.html

for example (this dude seems to have a sense of humor).

CAVEATS/CLARIFICATIONS:

snip

Another provocative question is, "What is bike culture, anyway?"

What's a culture? Even that's a slippery thing to define, let alone any
specific culture.

Shippy wrote in news:867b1c5e-b333-46d1-9988-
:
But what about the riders who don't fit that category, the ones who
love to ride but aren't comfortably ensconced in the overlap of
lefties and cyclists?

George W. Bush is a well known bicyclist. He only rides on private property,
though.

"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same position
today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics is what
this country wants.

Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same
position today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics is
what this country wants.

What planet did Kunich fall off of? Obama is to the right of Nixon on
most issues. Sheesh.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
"People who had no mercy will find none." - Anon.

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same
position today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics is what
this country wants.

What planet did Kunich fall off of? Obama is to the right of Nixon on most
issues. Sheesh.

Then you won't have a problem demonstrating that with his voting record?

Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same
position today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics is
what this country wants.

What planet did Kunich fall off of? Obama is to the right of Nixon on
most issues. Sheesh.

Then you won't have a problem demonstrating that with his voting record?

Can you demonstrate a single vote by Obama for socialist policies?

Oh wait, just like most of the members of Congress, Obama believes in
socialism for the corporation - can't let corporations fail, no matter
how they screw up. Responsibility is for the middle and lower classes,
not the rich.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
"People who had no mercy will find none." - Anon.

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative
participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same
position today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics is
what this country wants.

What planet did Kunich fall off of? Obama is to the right of Nixon on
most issues. Sheesh.

Then you won't have a problem demonstrating that with his voting record?

Can you demonstrate a single vote by Obama for socialist policies?

Perhaps you should have listened to his speeches in places such as the black
caucus etc. You won't show anything with his voting record because he
doesn't have one. But that apparently isn't anything to make you suspicious.

Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Tom Kunich wrote:
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message
...

There are some very vocal conservative and neoconservative
participants
in various cycling newsgroups. A bit of reading will show you who is
who quickly.

What about me? I was a John F. Kennedy Liberal and that exact same
position today is labeled "Ultra Right Wing".

Today Obama believes that socialism or even further left politics
is what this country wants.

What planet did Kunich fall off of? Obama is to the right of Nixon
on most issues. Sheesh.

Then you won't have a problem demonstrating that with his voting record?

Can you demonstrate a single vote by Obama for socialist policies?

Perhaps you should have listened to his speeches in places such as the
black caucus etc. You won't show anything with his voting record because
he doesn't have one. But that apparently isn't anything to make you
suspicious.

I am aware of what Obama has said about health coverage (government
subsidies to the current for-profit companies), who he has as advisers
(Clinton corporatist Robert Rubin, crooked but legal bank scammer Penny
Pritzker), his sucking up to the neo-con Zionists, his support for
"faith based" government subsidized programs, his war mongering, etc. A
very sharp turn to the right after winning the nomination (just like
Bill Clinton).

In European democratic country, Obama would be a far right politician.
To call him far left is a sign of having drunk the corporate funded
right-wing noise machine cool aid. Sheesh.

At least Obama will have to throw a few bones to the middle class, will
be more fiscally responsible, and will likely not start WW3 in a fit of
semi-senile rage. Obama would have fit in well as a Republican in the
1970's.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
"People who had no mercy will find none." - Anon.

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

I am aware of what Obama has said about health coverage (government
subsidies to the current for-profit companies), who he has as advisers
(Clinton corporatist Robert Rubin, crooked but legal bank scammer Penny
Pritzker), his sucking up to the neo-con Zionists, his support for "faith
based" government subsidized programs, his war mongering, etc. A very
sharp turn to the right after winning the nomination (just like Bill
Clinton).

In European democratic country, Obama would be a far right politician. To
call him far left is a sign of having drunk the corporate funded
right-wing noise machine cool aid. Sheesh.

At least Obama will have to throw a few bones to the middle class, will be
more fiscally responsible, and will likely not start WW3 in a fit of
semi-senile rage. Obama would have fit in well as a Republican in the
1970's.

I have to tell you Tom, I didn't realize that you were an insane extreme
leftist. Now I'll know better than to pay the slightest attention to
anything even vaguely political from you.