Could you be a froseur?
 

As I was returning from my ride out in Da Boonies this morning, I came upon someone who couldn't have been more Freddish if he tried: hybrid bike with handle-bar-mounted rear view mirror, white polo shirt (might have been a Ralph Lauren), khaki shorts, white cotton socks, tennis shoes, and a huge saddlebag that dangled from his saddle like a bull's scrotum. As I was winding down from my ride I slowed down and let him keep the lead back to our houses.

Good thing. He lives across the street and is a Gestapo-level yard Nazi. Anything that encourages those boys to stay out of their yards and away from their lawn-mowers, weed wackers, edge trimmers, and leaf blowers makes the world a much better place.

I was decked out in full Poseur gear today: red (and white) full carbon bike with Ultegra components, red helmet, red gloves, red jersey (over 50), red bottle cages, red zip-tie to hold my cue-sheet clip, red Camelbak Podium bottles. Crap, I'd even bought a saddle bag because it had red draw strings on it. Not to mention my Sidis and cool-max low-cut bike socks.

The bike socks were white, of course.

On closer inspection you would have noticed some disturbing things: I have my own (helmet-mounted) rear view mirror; I haven't flipped my stem, in fact I use an extension stem; my shoes aren't white or silver; my saddle bag is large enough to hold two inner tubes, a multi-tool, and 6 CO2 cartridges, which I carry all the time. It's not bull scrotum large but it's much bigger than any poseur would ordinarily use.

In short, I'm not really a poseur, but it doesn't seem right to put me in the Fred category either.

Hence I'm coining the term "Froseur" ('pronounced froze-yer'), someone who combines major features of both populations.

Could you be one?

You are a wanna be poseur.b You gotta get rid of the mirror not matter where it is and the exstension stem ain't gonna cut it not to mention the big hurkin seat bag. Nope zip zilch nadda you are still one of us :D

"Froseur"...needs some work, but I get the idea. Just a suggestion...DO NOT post this poll in the Roadie Forum...that could get ugly.

Don't you need to bike somewhere north of KY to be a froseur?





Don't worry about it...........you are after all...................."the Weak Link"






When are you going to invite your new friend for a ride...................you can exchange lawn tips.

Well I guess I am more Fred like, is there term "Fred-eur". I hav not gotten to the bke shorts, and when do will opt for bibs, not bike shirts yet, just bright colored "Ts", and out for ride with wife, a tropical print shirt, not tucked in;)

No socks, yet sport shoes of sorts, kinda of a hybrid sandal/water shoe, but harder sole than running shoes, very comfortable for biking.

Hybrid - Mirror to end of the bar type, rear rack with top mount bag, loaded with medical and fix-up tire kits with multi-tool and camera, plus cell phone, and often Blackberry when out during business hours for the west coasters.
http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...IMGP1277-1.jpg

Road bike, Schwinn 80 Conti with alloy rims - no bag, but fanny back with some gear, but same dress. Oh, mirror attached to end of drop down, in place of tape cap. And usually have fingerless gloves on this steel rider. Same arrangement with restored 87 Schwinn Traveler with more aggressive set-up with out mirror on this rider. (Pic before clean-up and new tireshttp://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m...d/IMGP1317.jpg

Both bikes are now fitted with odometers (velo5).

I must be a sight!, no wonder few, if any speak, when I am out and about:eek:

When I started reading this thread, I thought that froseur was a wanna-be Fred! Y'know, someone who wore the helmet mirror but didn't really use it, or used a pannier but only had his wallet in it.

Froseur hits the term pefectly. Nearly there but a bit of fred still involved.

Now where did I put those Knee length red woolen socks for winter riding.

Could we have a hawiaan shirt friday ride......................over suitable bibs.

Ahh, categories. Not a good idea to categorize people like that.

Personal example. This morning, I had to go to the hospital for some follow-up. Living in a brain dead North American city that long ago moved its largest hospital to the suburbs, I needed transport despite living right smack in the middle of downtown. Car laid up due to licence overdue for renewal, couldn't afford a sheet of bus tickets on this particular day, and no way I'm leaving my custom road bike locked outside of the hospital (road bike acquired in more prosperous times). So, I borrowed my daughter's old, now unused mountain bike and became a commuter bicyclist for a day.

One tire not fully seated in rim, so front wheel bounces up and down in a very obvious way. Huge Kryptonite lock hanging loosely on handlebar and rattling all the way. Bike is too small for me so saddle obviously too low. Me dressed comfortably for hospital visit, but certainly not for cycling. I sure felt like your description of a Fred, and I probably looked like I have no clue whatsoever about cycling (even though I did cycle vehicular style the whole way, probably the only person on an old mountain bike who did this morning).

But hey, I did save the 6 dollars cash bus fare, and I didn't use a drop of gas.

I guess sometimes I'm a Fred, other times I'm not. Whichever I am on any particular ride, I staunchly reserve the right to be wearing Shimano sandals. I do plan on fixing that bouncing tire though, in case I have to do this again.

There's something hors catagorie about what that would have looked like. And I salute you.

I'm not sure but I think the 50+ jersey is more Fred than poseur. The true poseur jersery is from Elevengear

http://mysite.verizon.net/jayandriot/Poseur.jpg


Jay

No, I'm not a Froseur. As my avatar says, I'm a FRED in training. I'm studying hard to become a full FRED. Last week I hung on the back of the B ride, refusing to take a turn pulling the pack. That was worth at least 10 FLAPs (Fred Limited Accumulated Points). I've been informed by FRED central that for upgrading my road bike from mismatched brifters (one an RSX the other a 600 Ultegra) to matching, 9-speed 105's, I've lost 30 FLAPs. However, since I maintained my triple, they cut the penalty by one third. It's a good thing I didn't upgrade to 10 speed cause I would have been dropped from the trainee program. I stopped wearing my matching BF jersey and shorts. Instead I wear a MTB jersey when I ride road, and a road jersey when I ride MTB. Last week I changed my rear tire so it no longer matches my front tire, good for 10 FLAPs, but I lost one FLAP for removing the Presta valve caps. My bar tape is not holding up well so that's good for a few FLAPs. But last year I got 50 FLAPs for trading my standard stem for an adjustable stem like you find on hybrids. That was a bigee!

I'm definitely fully Fred, all the way. On my morning ride today I was wearing tan slacks, a black polo shirt, and an old pair of leather dress shoes that used to be the ones I wore to the office before they became too disreputable-looking. (That's a pretty typical riding outfit for me.) I don't have a saddle bag yet (only because I haven't yet decided which one to buy). To top it all off, I removed my old handlebar tape and hoods and installed new hoods, but haven't gotten around to taping the bars yet so they're bare metal. Oh, yes, and I had a pair of bright orange-reflector-covered velcro strips securing my pants legs to my ankles (probably not necessary, since my bike has a chain guard, but my first road bike didn't have a guard and I can't seem to ride comfortably now without some sort of clips or straps around my ankles).

I am in need of 50 FLAPs. Would you mind telling be where you got the adjustable stem?

Voted "No, nuff said" because all this categorisation is too complex. Unnecessarily complex. There's only one kinda categorisation I use:

1. Catweazle
2. not-Catweazle

I'm a Catweazle (of course) and it's kinda easy to be a Catweazle. All you need to do to be one on a cycle is, when you catch the eye of somebody else on a cycle, say "Hello" in friendly fashion (or nod/wave/whatever in friendly fashion if the circumstances aren't conducive to conversation) or do same in response if the other cyclist did it first.

That's it, in a nutshell. Catweazles are friendly folk, not-Catweazles aren't.

An interesting idea, but no. As the approximately once-monthly arguments on the Road forum point out, there is no shared definition of a Fred. The correct definition is a high quality cyclist who does not care about his appearance, i.e., one who can blow you away while looking terrible doing it. A poseur, on the other hand, is the direct opposite - a person whom you can blow away and cares only about his looks. Thus, combining the terms does not work.

No, 'nuff said.

By Kerlenbach's definitions, I'm not a Fred. Whew! ;)

Google, "adjustable bike stem", and for needing to ask, 50 bonus FLAPs. ;)

A celest -colored Schwinn.

If there isn't a rule against that there should be.

That's good for 100 FLAPs if it has different color bar tape on each side and a saddle that says "Bianchi".
That's huge.

http://pcpowerplay.com.au/forums/ima..._surrender.gif


Could somebody please tell me what "FLAPs" means, in this context?



(I'm pretty confident, by the way, that if a bike that colour came into my possession I'd have to repaint it, no matter what brand it was!)

Sounds like your neighbor might cut a handsome profile, all neat and tidy in his polo shirt and khakis. And he's keeping your property values up too, with his OCP meticulous yard work.

And yes, on my commute I am so Fredded-out that roadies actually actively avert their delicate eyes when they ride past: 80s Univega touring bike with 36 spoke blast-proof wheels and alloy rims, fenders, coffee in a stainless steel insulated bottle in the cage, old REI MTB shorts, Old Navy faux polo in hideous orange, corny REI full-finger gloves, rack and panniers, my lunch, briefcase, extra socks, underwear, a blitz-krieg of lighting for all occasions, cell phone, road ID, a ton of tools, patch kits, tubes, and a frame pump that could fix flats for a whole group ride... The humiliating list goes on and on...

When I'm not commuting, I do a Clark Kent: I dive into my vast OCP wardrobe, don my full Lycra (non-team) kit, mount my elegantly sparse road bike, and pant up the hills with the best of the wannabes.

But when in Fred mode, I'm not your neighbor's brand of Fred. I would think his type is usually found on a Rivendel, nose in the air, silently judging everything that falls under his gaze as inadequate, at best, and probably inferior, in fact. Probably also goes to sleep in his reproduction Morris arts-and-crafts oak recliner reading a Smith and Hawkin catalog.

Aren't fantasies great?

No! :notamused:

Geez! I haven't seen any of the 50+ riv owners writing a paragraph about people who ride LeMonds! Take it back, or I'll sit on you until you cry UNCLE!:D

Before you sit, I want a fair contest... So what are people who ride LeMonds like?

Apparently they have rich imaginations and don't like arts and crafts furniture.