"serious" cyclists rocking skateboard helmets

gbx i hope you don't do this

they r so heavy, even I don't get it

phony society- WE REJECT YOUR FALSE VALUES

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2009/10/19/1255960294781/Cycling-outfits-from-Bobb-016.jpg

guys do you know about 'stack hats', they were the big thing here in the '80s among thee kids

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h137/obsolution/rc_header4-2.jpg

how about "serious" cyclists rocking no helmets?
aint it about protecting the melon, then?

cutty no i do not, i wear a normal helmet that needs new padding around the perimeter, it's all scratchy velcro right now

i will accept bmx and dh and w/e dudes wearing skate helmets, tho

but riding, in the city, in the summer??? pleaaaaaase

my helmet is a cross between a skate helmet and a real helmet. i love it.

haitch, my (Australian) girlfriend was telling me about stack hats last night! I'm going with her to Oz in March and was wondering about cycling, and she told me about the helmet laws etc and then had a rant against the 80s stack hat stylins. Now I can understand what she means!

Skateboard helmets are heavy and underventilated, right? Why would you?

nyc "bike culture" fixed gear kids won't wear a real cycling helmet

if they're wearing anything at all its usually a skateboard helmet

lol mark, anyone brought up here who was within 100ft of a bike would've had one. ironically i have a feeling they were proved unsafe a while ago!!

prob has something to do w/the fact that cycling helmets are super dumb lookin?

i, personally, am fine with lookin superdumb if it protects the insides of the head from being scrambled.

still, stackhats, there ARE limits. i know u all feel me on this one.

prob has something to do w/the fact that cycling helmets are super dumb lookin?

grow up

just sayin they look funny thats why people wear the other helmets - its pretty simple - i can understand thinking the skate helmets are stupid but on the other hand bike helmets are ugly - so there you go

gotta say i find the skater helmet somewhat displeasing to the eye

^^^

it's the same reaction i get when people are so turned off by lycra like it's AIDS

suggested to my sister (who's just borrowed a bike off her boyfriend's mum) that she may want to invest in some knicks for longer rides. "OH I'D RATHER DIE." whatever, chafe on then!

exactly. wtf?

it's like there's a fear that you look like you're trying, or something!

also i am a happy convert to the bibs lately.

I really want to get a summer bib, I love my winter bib tights.

http://cn1.kaboodle.com/hi/img/b/0/0/13/6/AAAAC6BbWHkAAAAAABNliQ.jpg

does this count?

that lazer commuter helmet is pretty weird looking imo.

some ppl need to avoid lycra like its aids rly

it's like there's a fear that you look like you're trying, or something!

totally

cycling outfits are some of the most ridiculous looking clothes ever in the history of civilization - totally fine w/me if you want to wear them for the functionality - my running shoes look like spaceships - but pretending that you have no idea why someone might not want to look like that to the point that you need to impugn their motivation is just willfully clueless

how are they ridiculous? shorts and a jersey. basketball uniforms are less ridiculous because they are baggy and not form fitting?

football uniforms are less ridiculous how? they wear tights.

most ridiculous looking clothes ever in the history of civilization

also watch your hyperbole dude

i only impugn the motivation of people that want to go on long, exercisey bike rides but then don't like it because they got sweaty in their normal clothes and under their unventilated helmet

also, w/r/t helmets specifically: yeah, i sorta ~do think that choosing between skate/normal helmet on the grounds of looks is a decision that hinges on whether or not someone wants to look like a "biker," not that skate helmets are inherently less ridiculous looking. because, as demonstrated here, bikers are snobby tools who don't want you in their club, and if you've got an areo-looking speed helmet you'd better be able to match it with SPEED and SERIOUSNESS

no matter what, you're going to end up with some plasticky blob on your head, may as well get the one that FEELS the least like you've got a plasticky blob on your head

making the choice to wear a helmet in general is a big step. but once that decision is made, i am amazed that some people are just like--"YEAH, I'LL START WEARING A HELMET-BUT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL I WEAR A CYCLING HELMET. TAKE THAT!"

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_R2yHiPgsajA/SVEwIO69-DI/AAAAAAAAAlM/2h6DcfkkQS0/s400/wampum,pa+basketball+uniform+1957.jpg

skate helmets: meant to withstand multiple impacts because u r crashin all the time

bike helmets: meant to withstand ONE much, much more massive impact

if your doing tricks and falling over or generally just ringing your bell a lot, get a skate helmet

if you want to be comfortable on the way to work, get a bike helmet. they're both gonna fuck up your hair, and make you look like a spaceman when you go into the store, who cares

maybe all the nyc fixies are on their way to an imaginary halfpipe

if your doing tricks and falling over or generally just ringing your bell a lot, stop riding a bike

^ fixed

lol

loved it when the womens' b-ball league out here mandated the use of lycra suits

my friend who played in the leage at that time, i think she was loving it a good deal less

Spandex" is a generic name and not derived from the chemical name of the fiber, as are most manufactured fibers, but an anagram of the word expands.[1] "Spandex" is the preferred name in North America; in many European countries it is referred to as "elastane".

omg surfers look sooooooooo ridiculous. i'm totally going surfing this weekend, but you sure as shit ain't gonna find me in a fucking wetsuit.

Apparel and clothing articles where stretch is desired, generally for comfort and fit, such as:
athletic, aerobic, and exercise apparel
wetsuits
swimsuits/bathing suits
competitive swimwear
netball bodysuits
bra straps and side panels
ski pants
disco jeans
slacks
hosiery
leggings
socks
diapers
skinny jeans
belts
underwear
dance belts worn by male ballet dancers and others

guys, competitive swimmers wear lycra bikini bottoms and shave their entire body.

(not really true they wear those "controversial" body suits now)

are they for real with 'disco jeans', please say yes

mind blown:

In comic books, superheroes and superheroines commonly wear costumes thought to be made of spandex. However, early superhero comics predate the invention of spandex (Superman: 1938; Batman: 1939; Captain America: 1941). Printing processes for early color comics only rendered images with distinctly separate solid blocks of color well, because overprinting and color mixing yielded inconsistent results and bad looking muddy colors. Because spandex is skintight, as many superhero costumes appear to be drawn, and because spandex is almost exclusively made in similarly bright solid colors, the after-the-fact assumption of spandex composition was made. The same assumption of costume composition is also made for latex and rubber garments, which are also typically solid in color and skin-tight.

i think i told this story before on ILX but my tri uniform (way back when) bottoms were navy blue speedos that had the Bud Light logo across the crotch and I asked my coach if I he had any regular Bud ones.

mind blown:

In comic books, superheroes and superheroines commonly wear costumes thought to be made of spandex. However, early superhero comics predate the invention of spandex (Superman: 1938; Batman: 1939; Captain America: 1941). Printing processes for early color comics only rendered images with distinctly separate solid blocks of color well, because overprinting and color mixing yielded inconsistent results and bad looking muddy colors. Because spandex is skintight, as many superhero costumes appear to be drawn, and because spandex is almost exclusively made in similarly bright solid colors, the after-the-fact assumption of spandex composition was made. The same assumption of costume composition is also made for latex and rubber garments, which are also typically solid in color and skin-tight.

― cutty, Thursday, 22 October 2009 11:30 (53 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Surely they wore wool, just like cyclists and swimmers of the day.

people seem to arc up about the colour when discussing jerseys and stuff - always going on about fluoro and sponsors logos. possibly more so than the tightness issue!

most ridiculous looking clothes ever in the history of civilization

also watch your hyperbole dude

― cutty, Thursday, October 22, 2009 12:09 PM (14 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

lol watch yr editing "some of the most ridiculous"

and yeah football uniforms are also pretty funny but i only ever see those on tv not on middle aged dudes in prospect park so its just not on an in yr face reality level

its really fine w/me if u love yr cycling outfits - but pretending that people dont find them hilarious will not make it so

in which case i can show critics to the local shopping strip where tasteless tracksuits on the less fit are worn with gay abandon if they want a real horror show (xp)

http://www.rapha.cc

yeah these clothes look so ridiculous

too hilarious 4 me

i dont know if i have the words to describe what it is abt cycling gear - its not just the tightness - but its def one of the most universal derided looks out there

yeah it's that same mentality that forces motorists to break in front of cyclist and throw shit at them

just a messenger here cuts - pretty much everyone who doesnt wear the stuff finds it at least silly ime

yeah it's that same mentality that forces motorists to break in front of cyclist and throw shit at them

― cutty, Thursday, October 22, 2009 12:40 PM (23 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

i really dont think thts it - i dont own a car - i like to ride my bike - but i find cycling gear goofy lookin

http://www.spandex-party.com/

sort of NSFW

im having a hard time believing that youre not aware that its not a popular look

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2009/03/anti-veloism-weird-creepy-bike-hate.html

hmm, i like non-technical looking semi-technical gear, but that $300 bomber srsly makes me wanna puke. preferably on a rapha bomber jacket.

xpost

im having a hard time believing that you subscribe to such ignorance and would use the term goofy

am thinking of breaking the personal 'no race jerseys until you actually start racing' rule with the la vie claire retro styles, i reckon that's a good look

im having a hard time believing that you subscribe to such ignorance and would use the term goofy

― cutty, Thursday, October 22, 2009 12:44 PM (16 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

ignorance of... the beauty of cycling gear?

that its not a popular look

it is popular. with real cyclists who understand function over form.

'no race jerseys until you actually start racing'

smore like, 'no team kit unless its your team kit' rule, and its a good rule

exception: "andrea peron gave me this csc jersey at a fundraiser, im wearing it."

Old timey simple cycling jerseys are great but the all-over printed goofball PRIMAL WEAR or NASCAR-looking ones are lame.

The "screw you I ain't wearing a BIKE helmet" thing is kind of hilarious on stubborn motorcyclists in helmet law states when they wear those ridiculous little Ming the Merciless skullcaps that apparently meet the bare minimum required by law. You both look incredibly stupid and should you fall you have no head protection so you fail on all counts. It's like a five year old throwing a tantrum.

I am prepared to feel shunned if I ever do drop the money on a replica wool molteni jersey.

it is popular. with real cyclists who understand function over form.

― cutty, Thursday, October 22, 2009 12:47 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

dude already gave u a pass for function ok

yeah i was gonna say, "no race jersey until i'm racing" is the same attitude as "no ~bike helmet until i'm a biker"

like ppl go xc skiing in stuff that isn't skinsuits, but yr a fool if you go in jeans and a sweatshirt

xps

Yeah but there's not really a halfway step for helmets where you don't feel/look pretentious.

oh, i mean that i have a couple jerseys, just not team-branded ones! what hunt3r said basically.

"pretentious!"

i want to live. so pretentious!

Mind you I like looking pretentious so so my fat arse in a TdF green jersey is entirely appropriate.

as long as it's not your fat ass in a KOM jersey

i rly dont care about helmets as long as you wear one, find one youll wear.

however theres plenty good lookin jerseys that arent mock team kit. i mean if you wanna go play pickup in your bird jersey its on you, but you got decent options man.

i will grant that a molteni throwback might garner exception to offered rule. i'll just amend to make it a blanket ed exception and be done with it.

i mean if you wanna go play pickup in your bird jersey its on you

lol

http://www.cyclingtipsblog.com/2008/11/how-to-look-pro/

DNFTT, dude is like Morbius on the Obama threads.

def agree that fluorescent spandex w/ sponsor logos all over looks ridiculous. there are some non-goofy cycling clothes tho. it's more the floro and the sponsor shit that looks dumb.

tho wrt helmets, they really don't look goofy at all imo. i had a hard time wearing one at first but then i realized that 1. i could die and 2. i don't give a second glance to anyone else wearing a helmet, so why should i feel ridiculous in it?

the real winners are the dudes riding around nyc, brakeless and helmetless

in tight jeans

running red lights

the thing that looks funny abt bicycle helmets is how theyre just sitting on the v top of yr head - someone should design one for the more casual user - most people prob dont give a shit abt the various aerodynamic benefits

in america in general i think the dream of mass bicycle adoption has been somewhat undermined by the fact that cycle design and culture is lead by the hardcore cohort - obvs there are more important factors too - like governmental indifference and aggression - but i do think more people would be amenable to getting into riding if almost everything wasnt abt going fast or riding over boulders and shit

naked dude on subway lycraman: i'm not ashamed of my body outfit!
seinfeld: THAT'S YOUR PROBLEM RIGHT THERE

I dunno if helmets are seen as "goofy" like spandex is, but they're def more common on novice riders and "pro" riders -- in the middle is where it gets confusing. Like, you're not going far and you're not concerned about traffic on your little sidestreets, but technically anything could happen so do you want to tempt fate to ride 5 blocks to your friend's house or is it just too ridic to worry about it?

i wear a bike helmet, but i think skater helmets look cool (didn't know they were less effective, if that's the case?).

nothing wrong with spandex i guess, but it definitely has the air of "seriousness" which prevents me from wearing it.

theres a study that shows that the barometer of a community's cycling friendliness is direct correlation w/ the % of women on bikes. if that's relevant to the point about ppl being averse to hardcore cyclists.

i dint state that at all well.

what i meant is that if we had better cycling infrastructure, more ppl would ride, not just a bunch of fringey weirdos who are mostly dudes

and helmets wld be nice?

i mean laurel i get that, and will zip to my sister's house v occasionally w/o helmet, but most of the time i'm like wait it is just not that onerous to wear a helmet for five minutes as i ride somewhere

i will make exceptions, tho: i live 50m from a cross-town bike path that runs pretty much to the door of a good venue (triple rock). if i didn't want to keep track of a helmet at a show, i'd feel OK going without

yeah on the one hand, there's a huge change with parenting and kids and helmet safety. my nieces don't get on the barbie bike to go up and down the block w/o the pink bell from target, whereas i went all over hell and gone on my haro fsx as a young lad w/o anything on my head but the sunshine.

on the other hand, this is what they always said about soccer. all the kids are playing it! it's gonna take over!! since the young end of today's hipsters were born in the EARLY 90s (this is somewhat horrifying to me btw) you'd think the change wd already be visible

anyway i guess i'm talking about helmet vs no helmet, no the wearing of skate helmets which is a fashiony cop-out obv

skate helmets are "i heard about that one guy who got clipped by a delivery van last fall, but i am definitely not one of those fakeass livestrong middle manager fuckfaces"

ice craem styles

lol i do luv the king of the mountains jersey

theres a study that shows that the barometer of a community's cycling friendliness is direct correlation w/ the % of women on bikes. if that's relevant to the point about ppl being averse to hardcore cyclists.

― honesty is not ordinary to the height of the bunny hop (Hunt3r), Thursday, October 22, 2009 1:09 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

while there may be some aversion to serious cyclists - its more that like 95% of bikes and gear are designed for intense usage - theyll by like one of those cruiser bikes where u sit all upright thatre everywhere in europe in a bike store - and if some noob goes into the store to buy one theyll feel all intimidated - even if its not warranted

tho i think the fact that its way more dangerous to ride yr bike in america than europe is a much bigger factor - if there were bike lanes seperated by barriers everywhere in new york i have no doubt youd see a surge in casual riders just commuting or gogin to the movies or whatever

ha my old teammate is in the photo spread. in full skinsuit. PRO.

we need shit like this http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/09/bike-lanes-in-saxony.php

my friends' bike shop is female owned/operated and has at least 2 females working at all times which is dope imo. ALSO: 0% snob culture. they also carry the "sickest" designs in the area, (ie, even ddb is a fan from 3k miles away).

ddb is a case in point

dude would never wear shorts. then it was--ok, i'll wear lycra shorts, but i'll never wear a bibs. now he wears bibs, jersey, and shaves his legs.

:-O

cutty you were probably a case in point too tho right????

i have found bike store ppl to be a mix of snob and evangelist -- there's a lot of lingo but they're happy to have you get into it on any level. buying any kind of bike gear as a noob is way more pleasant and informative than buying anything car related.

since you reference yglesias blog-- thats where i saw ref to that study (i can not speak to its merits)

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/10/bicycling-and-gender.php

i was never derisive of lycra, i just didn't ride enough to necessitate wearing it

once i was putting in more than an hour in the saddle at a time, i started wearing the gear

and never once did i consider wearing a skateboard helmet to protect my coolness

were u always helmeted?

nope, i was riding a brakeless track bike without a helmet through red lights wearing jeans

then i joined fixed-gear anonymous, a recovery group for idiots

nope, i was riding a brakeless track bike without a helmet through red lights wearing jeans

in clipless pedals iirc

without a helmet through red lights wearing jeans

lol that's me except i have brakes n gears ;)

yeah. i came from recreational MTB so i was already used to clipless pedals and found clips and straps didn't give me the power or control i wanted.

http://star.txstate.edu/content/fixed-gear-biking-just-useless-fad

that is gold

as much as i enjoy baggin on some fixies

hey GET OFF MY LAWN!

Is fixed gear so bad? The trends are horrible, but you don't have to wear all the crap. And there's no reason not to have two brakes. I know we've had the discussion elsewhere, but I find mine nice to ride and relatively low maintenance. And it leaves my road bike nice and fresh for out of town rides on my days off.

I know that some of that argument is slightly disingenuous - clipless, brakeless cyclists weaving selfishly through understandably peeved pedestrians is the more usual look, but - there is another way.

As for clothing -

I used to treasure my long sleeved woollen CTC top, until it became unwearable. T-shirt and lycra shorts for long rides in the summer. Leggings/tights in the winter, and a peaked hat with ear flaps that makes me look like far more of an idiot than any helmet ever would, but which keeps my ears warm and most importantly, keeps the rain off my glasses. And a very nice long sleeve Rapha top that I got as a Christmas present a couple of years ago that is really warm but not sweaty.

Oh and a gore-tex jacket. And gloves. My hands get freezing. Overshoes for long rides. Because my toes get even colder than my fingers.

cycling gear is goofy looking, no shit. big-ass helmets and tight lycra; hardly hitting the style blogs w/tht get up. but the rub is: ur exercising; if u care abt wht u look like while ur exercising then ur pretty silly

I think I look pretty good in lycra

/confession

today i rolled into downtown thinking on this, "i dont really think i see too much of this phenomenon. maybe its a nyc/big city thing. i'll keep my eyes out for it." the NEXT GUY I SAW, 15 secs later. flat bar fixie 20something.

ha!

"cycling gear is goofy looking, no shit. big-ass helmets and tight lycra; hardly hitting the style blogs w/tht get up. but the rub is: ur exercising; if u care abt wht u look like while ur exercising then ur pretty silly"

This is the truth. But it's also why, when riding for the purpose of transportation around town, you're allowed to wear normal, good-looking clothes.

you've reversed the argument

It's a rhetorical trick.

Er I mean, to be more serious, that I would understand there being different modes of riding, one of which is exclusively for exercise, over long distances, for which it's more important to be comfortable than stylish, and another is your basic short-distance, low-pressure around-town riding, for which you want to look good at your destination.
I'm taking it as a given that most spandex riding gear is not stylish. The stuff on the link you posted above actually looked pretty good, but it's still "stylish biking clothing" and not "stylish clothing." Like I wouldn't just wear it out to the bar or whatever.
And it's expensive!

And yes, both modes of riding demand a helmet (at least in the city), and skate helmets seem like a weird bet-hedge.

imo its ok to look sexy while exercising

poxymoron

cycling gear is goofy looking, no shit. big-ass helmets and tight lycra; hardly hitting the style blogs w/tht get up.

i doubt you'll be hitting any style blog in the near future but yeah I'm rocking my new PAUL SMITH/RAPHA kit for tomorrow's century ride dawg.

tite
http://www.kitmeout.com/img_assets/paul-smith-jeans.jpg

in black btw

tht's me in the picture, so - pwned

I'm white btw

(nice)

rapha condor man and brit road race champ k. house was rocking the all-white kit last week. not down with the white shorts as a rule but it was working for him!

eah I'm rocking my new PAUL SMITH/RAPHA kit for tomorrow's century ride dawg.

tite

― ♪♫(●̲̲̅̅̅̅=̲̲̅̅̅̅●̲̅̅)♪♫ (Steve Shasta), Friday, October 23, 2009 1:41 PM

pink union jacks? cryingeagle.jpg

well its paul smith, i'm just happy there aren't tonal stripes everywhere tbh

fixed-gear-biking-just-useless-fad:
"yeah no brakes, 1 gear, been there and done that when I was 3 whatever"
ha!

im sympathetic to the fixie hate but one cool thing is how easy they are to maintain

fixed gear bikes are great imo.

for one thing they've almost killed off ppl on mtn bikes in the city.

i aint tryin to hate on fixies
i just think thats funny