merziac

Ignorance, prejudice, and as always, no accounting for taste.

iab

Ripoff? Ripoff?

Anything with the Hawk is the end all be all. "Somebody should have told him this is a bad neighborhood."

KonAaron Snake 

I like DS9...and Cisco is my fave captain...but, objectively, it blatantly stole from
b5...and it wasn’t as good.

Manny66 

Every time I throw my leg over a bike to ride, Im looking down on an "Old Frame". Seems that thats allI have are old frames. The newest bike I own is a 1991. So yup I' guilty, Im one of those persons looking down on old frames.

Bikerider007

If you want a comfy ride, that's easy to shift and want to still try and go as fast as you can or compete....then new bikes are great. Even better, get electric assist. No joke I have a few friends that ride these on certain days just to get out.

If you like cool old stuff and tinkering, and being different...the old bikes are it. And if you ride multiple times a week, you can keep pace with 95+% of rides. You just may have to work harder. No one makes fun when you are leading most of the time or pull your weight.

My only experience with this was when we dropped a guy that thought he was faster then he was at the sprint section of a ride. When he arrived he insinuated I could not afford a new bike and tried to make fun of the fact I had a frame pump when you can buy a Co2 set up cheaply. I have several but like my frame pump thank you.

I wasn't going to, but proceeded to tell the rest of the group that arrived how he yelled out "I'm done!" And threw his arms in the air as we dropped him. Dont throw stones when you are in a glass house ...

RobbieTunes

I show up on various old steel bikes, and people look, nod, maybe smile.
They do not shy away in pacelines, because if I feel good, I do it right.

I show up on a new steel bike and they sometimes ask about it.
Because it's modern, generally they want to know if it's steel, aluminum, and where it was made.

I show up on a Y-Foil and they look genuinely confused.
What, a fat man can't ride a "carbon sort-of-a bike?"
They remain polite, i.e. they laugh at me quietly, because I can come across as a bit mean.

Most of them look down on me and my bike. I'm 5'6"
Some of them look over at me, because there are other short people around.
When my KG-196 arrives, I'll Look at them, and I'll smile.

Bad Lag

My carefully crafted, deeply considered response to the scenarios you presented -

At first glance, they assume it's an old Walmart bike (which it surely is not) and pass judgement my way without giving it a closer look. I've had a bike shop mechanic do that and turn my bike away from service.

Who cares, screw them!

Make passing jokes/comments at my expense. Like the time someone I met went into a full rant about how trash the biopace on my bike are, without warranting any such discussion. Yes, it's universally ridiculed, but it works for me and I haven't had any problems with it, thanks.

Who cares, screw them!

I must be stupid for putting so much money into this, about $500 dollars in parts and service. Oh boy, if saving money was my priority. then I wouldn't be into mountain biking. It's about having fun, no idea why this is such a sticking point. If you want to do it and can afford it, do it, right? It's like telling the folks who like to supercharge their Honda Civics to save up for a Bugatti haha.

Who cares, screw them!

"Don't do X or Y, you won't get the value out of it." This makes me smile, as if I'm some scrapper trying to refurbish bikes to resell.

Who cares, screw them!

"Don't bother doing X, save up for another bike." I don't need the newest and shiniest carbon bike at the moment. This thing has lit a spark of joy in me for mountain biking and backpacking, and I'll buy the newest YT Jeffsy when I feel like my skills have progressed to deserve having one.

Who cares, screw them!

Pompiere

Tinkering with old stuff is the main reason I do it. When people see me at a group ride for the first the probably think I dusted the cob webs off the old thing to try riding again. After the third or fourth time bringing a different bike, they notice the pattern and ask "Just how many bikes do you own?"

I don't get to ride several times a week, so I don't ride with the fast group. But even in the half-fast group, I have a good time. We ride the same route as the fast group and collect anyone who gets dropped.

Regarding the CO2 vs. pump debate, I ride in a rural area, so there is the occasional loose dog. A frame pump has lot more reach than a CO2 canister should I need to defend myself.

Loose Chain

Yep, them is what I saw, Gi-trek-alize. All the CF in China will not make up for the 50 pounds most of the guys I saw riding high-zoot Gi-trek-alize'es carry around their mid-regions, lol. Maybe next time I enter the Pikes Peak race to the top I will try one out but on normal terrain they have no significant advantage if any advantage at all over a good steel bicycle with a good motor.

Smokinapankake

If I get grief for riding my old 85 Peugeot Canyon Express, I just look at whoever’s dishing it out and ask them “why do you care what I ride?” Or “How does what I ride affect your life in any way?” Usually the two questions will stop anybody short... unless they’re ignorant enough to pursue - i.e., I just think you could go so much faster or there’s so much better stuff out now or can’t you afford anything nicer or some other variant. Once again - “why do you care?” Or “How does what I ride affect your life in any way?”.

KonAaron Snake 

The only crappy comments I ever see about bikes are typically from commuters/freds complaining about modern bikes and/or roadies. It's not the roadies that usually seem defensive/judgmental. It's usually the anti-snobs that are the most snobby. It's especially funny to me when you see it on a thread like this complaining about people being judgey.

It's also funny seeing people who have no idea what they're talking about grouping entire eras of bikes together...but I guess some feel better about their own things by running down other options (whether they've actually used them or not). IME no one really cares about what you ride, except on the internet and bike shows.

gomango

I couldn’t agree more.

I thought it, you said it.

SurferRosa

"Don't touch it! Don't point. Don't even look at it."


#problemsolvers

Rollfast

'Disc brakes' came on 1950s Schwinn cantilevered models so I hardly call it 'new'. They have a brake arm just like the rear, a 'pork chop' if you would.

The coffee shop downtown that used to be an LBS (same guy) has some boards about Col. Pope's new industry, 'pedal pushers' and a bike safety fair in New York City c. 1976. Some lucky girl about my age had the most excellent whitewalls ever on her purple banana seat bike.

The 'pedal pushers' were all seniors and there were a lot of them in the picture.

Rollfast

That's what the hippies said, after meeting the Doobie Bros. Somehow stuff got done anyway.

Rollfast

I just tell them I joined a forums site with a bunch of old men willing to give me stuff for next to nothing and try to do the same for others. Works.

Rollfast

Aren't they all just a ripoff of all the ripoff TV westerns that came before anyway? Seriously, circle the wagons, we have static Klingons.

KonAaron Snake 

A: no.

Rollfast

So they don't have Gabby Hayes.

madpogue 

Yes. Except his name's Garak.

(Or is it Quark?)

(Or is it Scotty?)

(Or is it C3PO?)

(Or is it Neelix?)

(Or is it Mollari?)

3alarmer 

...but with pressurized gas you can shoot paint balls.