Bicycling: A poll for the ladies
 

I'm curious how women view guys that ride bicycles a lot or use them to commute. Is this good, bad, or indifferent in your eyes, (talking about a first impression) and does it make a difference whether it's a road bike or a mountain bike?

I don't ride or not ride based on what women think about it or anything. Bicycling has been part of my life since I was a kid (age 27 now), and that's not going to change, but I'm curious whether it helps me or hurts me :cool:

If this is the wrong forum for this feel free to send it where it's supposed to be.

You should have a null option for guys, so we can see the results without messing with your stats :)

Good idea. Unfortunately I don't think you can edit poll options, which makes sense I guess because you could edit the options after the votes are in and make it look like the results were different than they really were.

If a Moderator wants to put in an "I have a penis" option feel free :D

You can also click "view poll results." No offense, but duh. (It's over to the right, at the bottom)

I voted indifferent but I would probably think of it as kind of dorky if I saw someone in their mid to late 20s on a bike (it really depends on the guy though).

...Then again, I live in NYC and everyone just walks or takes public transportation everywhere if they don't have a car. The only people outside of central park who ride bikes are delivery guys.

...oh and mountain bikes definately look cooler than road bikes.

However, if you submit an answer to the poll, every time you come back to this thread the updated results of said poll will be displayed for your conveniance. :thumbsup:

LOL. So I don't think "I have a bicycle" is lookin like a good pickup line in a bar. BTW I don't bike because I don't have a car. My car has 40k miles on it and works just fine. I bicycle because it gets me to work for free and I get a free half hour cardio workout outdoors twice a day. Tons of people on the west coast ride bikes but I guess it's not 'cool' :).

I love bicycling, I think a lot more people would too if they did it. It's the only activity where you can go out and cover 30 or 40 miles under your own power in a couple hours. It's great low impact exercise that can be as intense as you want it to be. My bike is the reason I lost 50 pounds 2 years ago and the reason I haven't gained it back. Oh well, I guess if it comes up I'll claim to be training for a triathlon or something :).

I thought the poll was going to be about obtaining sexual pleasure from bicycle seats. Never mind.

My vote:
It may not always be 'appropriate' (or convenient) to transport onesself via bicycle...
but it's a good thing to do when possible.

I couldn't vote for the 'outdoorsy' environmentally-friendly type, as that is not really a turn on for me.
I can respect it, and practise some such things myself, but it's not my 'lifestyle'.
I like geeks, not hippies :p

So...yeah. :thumbsup: for guys who bike! :D

I myself am a male cyclist...so void me from the poll. However... I am shocked that dude...you even threw that out there. I don't think nothing of it and i'm 41 going on 42...still wearing skin tight lycra and knock mileage out in the range of 36- 100+ miles a day...3-4 days a week. If a woman doesn't get turned on by that (which is the last thing on my mind)...then that's on them...i wouldn't even dwell on that.

I saved thousands on gas consumption commuting on a road bike in the past 4 years, especially during 2000-01 when cost were wide and the economy was somewhat iffy. I rode during that time about a 55-65 mile round trip to work for over a year daily. My health and shape improved dramatically and i had hundreds in savings from it. Just get out there and "Just Do It".

lol,
Pomeranian

/sailor does his best geek impression ;)

Hey, I bike a lot too! Just got back from my morning training ride! :D


Seriosly though, I dont know why so many people hate on cyclists. We're in much better shape than the average person, we arent clogging up the roads, and hey, spandex and shaved legs look good :D Ok, not always, but anyways... Its good to see people cycling, whether to commute or just for the sake of riding. Its fast, its fun, its efficient... Whats not to like?

And out of curiosity, why do mountain bikers "look" cooler than road bikers? :confused:

Why MTB'rs Look Cooler than Roadies?
 

Probably cause they are on the off trails and in the woods or mountains and not on top of hot tarmac "responding as a roadie"...

...but i'm multi-disiplined in MTB and Cyclocross...so i also see it as this, where roadies who compete are real dynamic people...but there are circles of roadies who have this superiority complex or egocentric...F them...i'm not the one...but i love cyclocross and mtb cause it is my recovery from the road heat and traffic, plus in the woods and mountains...there is time to say hi to fellow hikers, bikers and equestrians while on the trails. That is where cycling becomes an avenue to equaint ones self with a nice outdoor loving female... :cool: By the way...one girl "at age 36" kicks my ass going down mountain scapes at about 25 mph over rocks and roots the size of your fist...lol.

Pom

I bike because I can't afford a car, but even tho I can ride the bus I absolutely hate public transportation, and considering how you encounter 1 totally crazy person out of every 200 people you come across in public transit, I love it. That and I save around 30-50 dollars a month. I just don't like how I end up perspiring so much. It's also better than running the track at the gym before your workout, I just bike to the gym and I've already done my cardio. Then it's allllll weights =D

And yeah I thought this thread was going to about receiving pleasure from the bike seat too :p

Well i was going to reply to this thread with how i cycle to work and saves me money etc etc but rainheart here stole every single one of my words.... and then proceeded to word them better.

So


*what he said*

Oh but $ = £ :)

That and i have a girlfriend so i dont really care what anyone thinks about me. I do enjoy cycling and racing cars on my way to work better than the 2 bus trips with stupid people.

What?
I don't have that option........
Am I the only one with this problem?

http://www.boomspeed.com/sixate/Huh.jpg

Does electronics engineer/message board addict count? If only there were more women like you in the world (there probably are, just where to find one?).

I am very lucky in that I have a nice locker room with half a dozen showers in the basement of my building at work, so I can sweat like a pig on the way in, shower when I get to work, and arrive at my office fresh as a daisy. No showers at work definitely screws up the bicycle commuting idea.

Neither turn on nor turn off, but depending on their job...depending on how long their commute is, and how hot the weather is.. and what tehy wear to work (a guy stuffs a suit in a backpack, he looses style points) And unless there's a place to shower, they might be a little ripe -- and that's a serious turnoff...

Ive never tried it, but supposedly if you fold it nicely in a large ziploc, you dont have a problem. Course, if you have to wear a suit, you probably shouldnt bike to work. But shirt and tie? Sure, why not? Folding it in a bag isnt any different than folding it in a drawer...

Why is spandex the official uniform of anybody who rides a bike?

I'm a guy, so my opinion doesn't count, but I have to say that guys on bikes look somewhat gay. Don't know why.

Just to clear things up, I don't look at every guy on a bike and go "ew! Yuck, you loser!"
I'm just saying it's not the ideal way to travel once you get to a certain age - and by that I mean...showing up for dates, to work, or to hang out with your friends on a bike. But again, this is only from the point of view of someone from New York City. I'm quite aware that things are drastically different in the suberbs (where I've never lived in 23 years of my life), where there are places to put bikes, there isn't as much of a fear of them getting stolen, the streets arent clogged with people and traffic etc.

If you live in the suberbs, biking might be a good way to travel. I don't like cars (half the reason I live where I do) and I don't consider sitting in a car 24/7 to be attractive either. But here in the city, you can stay in shape by speedwalking 20 blocks to the gym, where you work out and speedwalk home.

I figured every-day travel was what this guy was talking about, considering he said it was to commute. Therefore, I didn't think it was necessary to say that I don't consider people who bike as a hobby or to excersize dorky. Staying in shape is always good. If I see you in lycra or some type of obvious excersize clothes in the park, I'm going to think "good for you".

I said I thought mountain BIKES(not bikers) looked cooler than road bikes. There's just something more stylish to them imo. I like how they look. Yes, I'm aware that raod bikes and mountain bikes serve different purposes, and no, I'm not claiming to be an expert. This is just an honest opinion from the standpoint of ONE female who might glance for one second at a biker on the street. There's no need to get pissy and send me angry PMs. I don't, by any means, represent the female race so what I think shouldn't really matter to you that much.

Haha, for the record, no angry PMs were from me :). I have never been under the impression that riding a bike makes you look like a big stud, especially in the bright-colored skin-tight clothes hehe.

I have never bought the spandex stuff, I just ride in a regular pair of shorts and a t-shirt. I know why people wear the pants at least though, that seat is pretty brutal on your backside after 30 or 40 miles, and they are padded with gel or chamois. I don't know why they have to be skin tight though, and I can't see any benefit to the spandex shirt, except I guess it breathes.

I am also lucky enough to work in a blue-jeans and polo shirt type office so it's easy to fold/roll up my clothes in my backpack and they aren't wrinkled when I get to work. I generally drive if I have a major meeting or presentation that day but most days it's very casual. There are several guys that ride to work in my department, some of them have done it for 20+ years hehe.

Going to a bar or showing up for a date on a bike would be pretty dorky I agree :) unless it was a date to go for a ride :).

Edit: Oh, and bicycling CAN'T be any dorkier-looking than speed-walking. :lol:

One word: Chafing. I thought the same thing when I started riding. "Shit guys, im not wearing spandex." Then came the chafing. I havent looked back.

You're thinking of horseback riding.

Definitely a turn on for me! I love when men take care of themselves and devote themselves to their health *drooling*

For me it makes a difference whether it's a road bike or a mountain bike. It doesn't seem like there are many who ride mountain bikes and therefore it seems much more interesting/different :D

What about BMX riders? Haha, for a while I'd ride that little thing to school and work, to save on gas, and bust my ass back into shape. I just play around on it in the neighborhoods now though (horrible bike for distance), and am going to get a mountain bike soon enough.

I have downhill and crosscountry mountainbike racer friends who keep trying to get me involved in the races, but I like to just ride for the fun of it. The only reason I see in competing is to be around lots of other people who enjoy the "sport" as much as you do.

As far as whether women think it's sexy. I've met plenty that you tell them you ride a bike as much as possible they kind of shake their head. Most think it's weird that occassionally I'll get with my cycling friends, and hop for bar to bar on our bikes (there are bicyclist friendly bars in this town you can bring your bikes into the bar), and then go jump staircases at the courthouse with a nice buzz. But, then I've met others who love it, and want to join you on your various excursions, or whistle at you while driving by, or get to chat to on the trails, and watching a girl ride a mountain bike over some sketchy rocky terrain without thinking twice, or do some dirt jumps on their bmx, or even flatland tricks... ooooohhhhhhh... drrooooll...

I use the same style and it's there...it's just the same color as the background. vB3 has several options for different link coloring and it appears the poll results link hasn't been changed to contrast the white of the poll box. I'm sure Hal will fix it when things are ironed out.

Humm I'm going to go find my damn bike..... :D

<<<< guy. I ride the bike every day to school and usually to work. I have a car, but spending 5 dollars a day on parking is for chumps. And for the record, road bikes are way more sexy than mountain bikes and a lady on a road bike is pretty freaking hot.