Originally Posted by
southpier
I like the idea, just not how it transfers into practice. this is my first bike with bar end shifters and I was very skeptical and even went so far as thinking the ends would snag (on what? I don't know) and throw me off the bike!
now I would love a lever mounted on the seat tube and a single downtube double cable (push-pull: can't remember what they are called) all retro and chit, but the bar ends are what I feel comfortable with at the moment.
i'll never be, or aspire, a "real" cyclist. but there are some that sneak up behind me and say "hey" or make a little polite conversation before picking up their cadence and tootling off.
good enough for me.
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I believe the criteria for being a real cyclist is whether what you do and have matches with the practices and equipment of people who take themselves way too seriously.
In that thread, I was accused of not being a real cyclist because I liked brifters and on-handlebar trigger shifters, and said I really don't want to relearn using dt shifters. I've also been accused of it (the horror!) for not wearing padded pants, using platform pedals, not using the "correct" cadence and/or gearing, saying that I would find timing my cadence in my head too distracting, and saying I don't want to wear a heart monitor.
To me a real cyclist is someone who rides regularly, but I really see no point in getting specific about even that. It's not a terribly important title. You ride and you like to talk about bikes? That's serious enough for me.