SIGN CAUSES STIR: Heathcote's Castle Rock Cafe is copping flak for its sign.

A cafe sporting an anti-Lycra sign for fun has caused a few cyclists to get their wheels in a spin.

Heathcote's Castle Rock Cafe, which claims to be "unashamedly motorist-friendly since 2008", has a sign out the front deterring Lycra-clad cyclists from entering.

"The bicycle is a beautiful thing but they never should have invented Lycra! No Lycra shorts please," it reads.

Cafe manager Amy Grice said the sign had been put up by the former owner because of an incident with a large man in tiny shorts.

That sort of sight was not suitable for children, she said.

When ownership changed, they decided to keep the sign because it made a few people laugh.

"We don't really mind what you wear," Grice said.

The remote location meant it was important to have something a bit different, she said.

"If people take it seriously, maybe they are not the type of people who should come here,'' she said.

Spokes Canterbury member Meg Christie said the message contributed to the lack of respect motorists had for Lycra wearers.

"It is not a smart economic move; a lot of cyclists go to cafes," she said.

A better sign would show a bike with the words, "Runs on latte and muffins".

Pegasus Cycling Club secretary Derrick Nelson said he had not been to the cafe but could understand that bad-smelling cyclists could be off-putting for other customers.

"It is their business and one would assume that, if they had a sign up like that, they have had a bad experience," he said.

Papanui Cycling Club vice-president Bruce Dawe did not find the joke funny.

"Restricting the cyclists wearing Lycra, it is really crazy as far as I am concerned," he said.

Only a few people needed to get upset by it before they would tell their friends and the cafe would lose a lot of business, Dawe said.