Well said, Jan. I agree. I usually "race" my own times on my commute to and
from work. Though in the morning it's just called "woke up late again,
pedal harder to get in on time".
On Monday, June 20, 2016 at 6:44:12 PM UTC-4, Jan Heine wrote:
>
> Good job! A career change to mountain bike pro may be in order! Or more
> likely, it's surprising what a lifetime of cycling will give you in skills.
>
> I think what people mostly are reacting to when they identify as
> "Un-Racers" are the attitudes of racers (or more often, wannabe racers),
> rather than the fact that pushing yourself a bit can be fun. When we are
> returning from a long trip in the mountains with panniers on our bikes, and
> every "racer" on the (flat) bike trail picks us as a target, passing us,
> and then slowing down exhausted, it gets tiring.
>
> But that doesn't mean that riding a performance bike isn't fun, and the
> better the bike performs, the more fun it can be. In fact, I sometimes give
> in to the temptation and up the pace myself, drop the wannabe racers, and
> then keep up the pace, if only to get home sooner. Feeling the bike in sync
> with my pedal strokes and my entire body working hard is fun.
>
> The true high-level racers I've known are usually very pleasant. They
> don't need to prove to everybody how fast they are – if you want to race,
> line up at the start line! It's the non-racers who treat every commute as a
> competition, and every guy (or even better, woman) on a heavily loaded bike
> as an opportunity.
>
> It's easy to confound "anti-attitude" with "anti-performance", but I think
> that is a mistake. Cycling is fun in part because of its speed. Otherwise,
> we could be walking. That doesn't mean that we should prioritize speed over
> everything else – comfort and fun are more important. But when the gains
> come without penalties, such as wide supple tires – faster, more
> comfortable and more puncture-resistant – or frames that get in sync with
> your pedal strokes ("planing") – lighter, more fun at any power output –
> then it makes sense to embrace them.
>
> Fortunately, the image of a "performance bike" is changing. No longer is
> it a harsh-riding machine with skinny tires pumped to 100 psi or more. With
> the new "Gravel" and "Allroad" bikes, the industry finally is espousing
> what this group has been about all along.
>
> Jan Heine
> Editor
> Bicycle Quarterly
> www.bikequarterly.com
>
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