Bicyclists and their "crazy" outfits

I've become, more or less, the bicycling reporter at The Courier-Journal. It all started in 2005, with my coverage of a bicycle summit spearheaded by former Mayor Jerry Abramson, and as an offshoot of my environment beat.

I've written numerous stories since then about the city's efforts to make Louisville more bicycling friendly. The buzz has picked up with Mayor Greg Fischer, who has made expanding bicycle infrastructure, such as adding bike lanes to local streets, as part of his economic development plan.

Almost every story now touches off a robust discussion on social media. Also, readers call me to share their views, or send me emails, as they did last week following a story I wrote about how an accident involving well-known attorney Darryl Isaacs had renewed a debate on River Road bicycle safety. Police reported that Isaacs was hit from behind while attempting to make a left hand turn.

Most of those who contact me are decidedly anti-bike. Well, they may like bikes just fine, but they want them confined to parks, or at least kept off the roads they drive, or they want to tax bikes. They complain about a lot of things (bicyclists don't follow the rules of the road, for example), and some will ask me whether I ride a bike. I do, I tell them, and also drive a car. But the fact that I ride a bike is somehow evidence of my bias. That's not true. I am a customer of both the Louisville Water Co. and the Metropolitan Sewer District, and I can objectively cover those agencies. I breathe the air and can cover the Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District.

Transportation is no different.

A lot of bicyclists don't follow the rules of the road, but a lot of cars don't, either. Cars routinely drive faster than the speed limit, roll through stop signs and step on the gas as the traffic lights turn from yellow to red, sometimes taking out pedestrians and bicyclists in the process.

Some people also comment on the "crazy outfits" bicyclists wear, and in less-than-flattering ways.

It's those comments about what some bicyclists wear that I find the most fascinating. They are a window, it seems, into just one more cultural divide in the United States, sort of like what exists between urban and rural populations.

So why do bicyclists wear those crazy clothes?

First, most don't.

Most people I see riding bikes wear pretty much what you'd see other people wearing as they navigate their day. Bicycling advocate Mary Beth Brown in an op-ed piece today notes she even rides in heels.

But a lot of hard-core bicyclists do wear those tight-fitting spandex pants, colorful and aerodynamic helmets, brightly colored jerseys, and in colder weather, brightly colored jackets.

They also tend to herd up.

With such an active Louisville Bicycle Club offering group rides most every day, cyclists can be especially visible. In the last few years, I've participated in group rides on some Saturday mornings. They are fun, and I feel safer when riding in a group.

My readers' dismissive comments about what these bicyclists wear got me to wondering: Just what it is about hard-core bike attire that makes some car-centered people so miffed? And why would cyclists squeeze themselves into such brightly colored and tight-fitting clothing anyway?

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The second question is easiest to answer. Bicyclists want to be seen. Bright colors with reflective markings help make bicyclists more visible to motorists, who can easily kill or seriously injure a rider. The special shirts also contain pockets for bicyclists to carry any gear or snacks they want while they are along their rides. And the tight-fitting pants, which have padding, make cycling more comfortable.

Personally, I don't wear bicycling shirts with a lot of corporate advertising on them. I'd want to be paid for that, if I did.

So, the "uniform" including shoes that clip onto the pedals is practical.

Beyond the practicality, I think it's safe to say that people, generally, like to look good, and if you have a muscle-toned body from frequent bike rides, why not show it off? It's no different than fashion choices people make when they work out at the gym or hang out at the beach in their bathing suits.

To get a handle on why bike fashion irks some motorists, I consulted my own personal think thank: My Facebook friends and followers. Boy, did I get an earful.

Bicyclists are perceived as arrogant, and the attire plays into that. One friend wrote:

There is a bit of the poseur in the way some cyclists dress as if they're training for the Tour de France. It's as if the motorists around them all wore Formula 1 driving suits and carbon-fiber helmets because, hey, I am driving a car here.

He went further:

If you wore leather goggles and a flamboyant, white silk scarf every time you boarded an airplane because I AM AN AVIATOR, then you'd get a feel for the way that Spandex poseurs come across to many folks who aren't cyclists. It's not a crime to dress the way you want, of course. But if you're actually interested in the widespread adoption of cycling as a commuting option, you might want to consider that a city like Amsterdam tries to normalize bicycling -- not associate it with cartoony outfits and a holier-than-thou attitude.

Another friend wrote that motorists are jealous of the physical conditioning of some cyclists. "Most motorists would look like sausages with billboards if they wore that clothing."

Another countered that there are a lot of middle aged men on bicyclists who don't look all that good, squeezed into the spandex. That, presumably, would be me.

"The clothing is just a dig," someone else chimed in. "It's what the privileged classes do in this country - - we use clothing to degrade a group that challenges our status quo."

Someone else picked up on that point, and echoed what I pretty much think, saying simple human nature was involved:

If you don't like it (cyclists), you look for any differences between yourself and the object of your disdain.

The core issue, however, probably has nothing to do with what anybody wears. As one bicycling advocate noted, bicyclists are taking up space on the road.

And sharing the road is difficult, as we all were reminded again last week.

"These bicyclists ride around in their crazy outfits (and) they don't pay any attention to the stop signs, or anything like that," a Louisville resident called to tell me. "I know the law allows them to be on the road, but it's a bad law."

Somehow, we need to elevate the conversation about how bicyclists and motorists can get alone. Lives depend on it.

Please follow James Bruggers on Facebook and Twitter, and here at Watchdog Earth.