Am I a cager?
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Am I a cager?
So, the plan is to bike M-W-F and drive T-TH. On the days I'm in my car, am I a cager? Or is there some more behavior I have to engage in while driving in order to be a cager? What if I don't hate bicyclists while I drive my car, and am attentive and courteous? Is there some term of endearment saved for folks like that, or do they just not warrant a moniker?
Just not entirely clear on the lingo.
Just not entirely clear on the lingo.
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I think the term "cager" was originally used by motorcyclists and not intended as derogatory though it certainly doesn't sound like a compliment
Personally I think using terms that further divide the world into "us" and "them" is counterproductive.
A bike is my primary means of getting to work and sometimes I'll go for weeks without driving. Some weeks I'll end up driving a couple of times. I may go for days without driving at all or I may spend several hours driving in a single afternoon.
Personally I think using terms that further divide the world into "us" and "them" is counterproductive.
A bike is my primary means of getting to work and sometimes I'll go for weeks without driving. Some weeks I'll end up driving a couple of times. I may go for days without driving at all or I may spend several hours driving in a single afternoon.
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I've always considered "cager" to be a combination of activity and attitude. I drive to work once a week, but like you, I don't rev my engine/lay on my horn/yell at/menace/hassle cyclists while I'm in my vehicle.
Motorist; sure. Driver; yeah. Cager; nope, don't think so.
Motorist; sure. Driver; yeah. Cager; nope, don't think so.
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I assume you intend this as a hypothetical question, since we all know that anyone in a car, simply by virtue of their being in a car, hates bicyclists and drives in a way intentionally designed to endanger bicyclists. It would be like asking, "What if my pick-up truck doesn't have a gun rack and I'm not listening to country music while driving it?" It might be interesting as a purely hypothetical question, but it has no real world application.
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I assume you intend this as a hypothetical question, since we all know that anyone in a car, simply by virtue of their being in a car, hates bicyclists and drives in a way intentionally designed to endanger bicyclists. It would be like asking, "What if my pick-up truck doesn't have a gun rack and I'm not listening to country music while driving it?" It might be interesting as a purely hypothetical question, but it has no real world application.
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Not forcing any terms, just a bit of a rant against all the hate. We're all in this together, we won't be around for long, and not everyone in a car is to be reviled.
On the less pissy side, my new wheels are in! I've managed one (1!!!) day of commuting - Monday - and broke my rear wheel on the way home. Old Araya wheels original to my new to me '85 Centurion Ironman. I have been so looking forward to riding to work, and it just seems like tease after tease. Did I tell you that when I was trying to learn these new fangled clipless pedals I fell in my own backyard and sprained my knee? Kept me off the bike for a couple of days. My wife sure got some mileage from that one!
Anyway, all is well, I'll be on the bike again soon, and I hope to see some of y'all out there! Party on Garth!
On the less pissy side, my new wheels are in! I've managed one (1!!!) day of commuting - Monday - and broke my rear wheel on the way home. Old Araya wheels original to my new to me '85 Centurion Ironman. I have been so looking forward to riding to work, and it just seems like tease after tease. Did I tell you that when I was trying to learn these new fangled clipless pedals I fell in my own backyard and sprained my knee? Kept me off the bike for a couple of days. My wife sure got some mileage from that one!
Anyway, all is well, I'll be on the bike again soon, and I hope to see some of y'all out there! Party on Garth!
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I assume you intend this as a hypothetical question, since we all know that anyone in a car, simply by virtue of their being in a car, hates bicyclists and drives in a way intentionally designed to endanger bicyclists. It would be like asking, "What if my pick-up truck doesn't have a gun rack and I'm not listening to country music while driving it?" It might be interesting as a purely hypothetical question, but it has no real world application.
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I assume you intend this as a hypothetical question, since we all know that anyone in a car, simply by virtue of their being in a car, hates bicyclists and drives in a way intentionally designed to endanger bicyclists. It would be like asking, "What if my pick-up truck doesn't have a gun rack and I'm not listening to country music while driving it?" It might be interesting as a purely hypothetical question, but it has no real world application.
At least that's what one guy initially thought when I pulled over to help him out! The dude looked like he was going to mess his shorts when I pulled onto the shoulder a little ways in front of him. He was obviously out of tubes/patches/CO2 whatever he needed, and was walking along the side of the road with his bike over his shoulder. He didn't expect anything helpful from the guy pulling over in the middle of nowhere in this hillbilly lookin' Jeep, but was very happy that I gave him a ride to the nearest shop.
I figured actually stopping and getting out to offer a ride would be less frightening than just slowing down and getting on the PA speaker: "HEY DUDE! NEED A LIFT?" That would totally freak me out if someone did that, even if they were just trying to be helpful.
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On the less pissy side, my new wheels are in! I've managed one (1!!!) day of commuting - Monday - and broke my rear wheel on the way home. Old Araya wheels original to my new to me '85 Centurion Ironman. I have been so looking forward to riding to work, and it just seems like tease after tease. Did I tell you that when I was trying to learn these new fangled clipless pedals I fell in my own backyard and sprained my knee? Kept me off the bike for a couple of days. My wife sure got some mileage from that one!
egg beaters are the easiest to unclip. I won't even welcome discussion on this without massive pictures and drams of scotch. I managed to fall my first day commuting, going zero mph (zero, null, 0, no movement), due to nothing more than my own complete lack of attention. i walked into work bleeding, sporting a red badge of stupid
andy_k's post is money.
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Just so it's not a total loss for you, Cupcake, we'll give you a free Kenny G. album in exchange for the truck.
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Wow, you run a tight ship. Lucky for me, some of the local chapters are a bit more flexible. When I got my '73 Ford step-side my cousin, seeing that I wasn't redneck enough for it, gave me a gun rack (never mind that I didn't own a gun) and took me to a Willie Nelson concert. I much more redneck now.
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"Cager" is just somebody in a cage, the implication is more of pity than hostility.
But by that definition, yeah, if you're in a car...
But by that definition, yeah, if you're in a car...
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Although I ride my bicycle to work everyday and occasionally run errands so I don't identify with the "Us vs. Them". I still drive a car often enough especially since my wife is not a cyclist. I have a better names for the drivers that harass cyclists.... impatient, rude, ignorant.
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I feel like I'm in a cage when I'm driving instead of riding. Last year sometime I was riding the beautiful rural part of my commute feeling sorry for motorists that were driving home at that time because their appreciation of the weather and scenery is attenuated by their mode of transportation. There are worse terms than cager in my way of thinking.
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I want to live in a world where hipsters and roadies and 'bent riders with their beards and crazy guys collecting cans and hot girls with tattoos riding sting rays can all ride together, and living peacefully with cars.
Also, I believe that "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
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I'm personally not really into exclusive terminology like "cager". I've ridden my bike 50 km in the past 2 days.. But you know what, I came home and took my family of 5 out in our vehicle and passed about 10 cyclists. I wonder if they were calling me a cager? It's pretty silly.
I totally agree with the us/them comment by tjspiel. I think we should be moving away from that type of thinking... I try to work with motorists and not freak out when they make a mistake around me., cause i'm a motorist too and sometimes make mistakes.
I totally agree with the us/them comment by tjspiel. I think we should be moving away from that type of thinking... I try to work with motorists and not freak out when they make a mistake around me., cause i'm a motorist too and sometimes make mistakes.
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I'm personally not really into exclusive terminology like "cager". I've ridden my bike 50 km in the past 2 days.. But you know what, I came home and took my family of 5 out in our vehicle and passed about 10 cyclists. I wonder if they were calling me a cager? It's pretty silly.
I totally agree with the us/them comment by tjspiel. I think we should be moving away from that type of thinking... I try to work with motorists and not freak out when they make a mistake around me., cause i'm a motorist too and sometimes make mistakes.
I totally agree with the us/them comment by tjspiel. I think we should be moving away from that type of thinking... I try to work with motorists and not freak out when they make a mistake around me., cause i'm a motorist too and sometimes make mistakes.
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I think the solution is to keep a good calendar on hand to keep track of who you're supposed to hate that day.
I also think your tongue in cheek post is a good catharsis that points out what you really intended to point out - how silly "us vs them" really is.
I also think your tongue in cheek post is a good catharsis that points out what you really intended to point out - how silly "us vs them" really is.
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Yeah, I must say, today I was hating pedestrians. They totally suck. I almost got taken out by some rapper kid with his ipod on stepping out into the bike lane to j-walk without looking as I was only 3 feet from him doing 30 km/H.
Is there a name for them? "footers"?
Is there a name for them? "footers"?
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Yeah, you're a cager when you're driving your car. No necessarily a bad one. It's just like being male or female.
You're probably not a bad cager though. Just like I'm not a bad male.
What you want to not be is a 'damned cager,' or 'stupid cager.'
Labels make our lives easier. It is much easier to say or type 'cager' than 'person driving a car.'
You're probably not a bad cager though. Just like I'm not a bad male.
What you want to not be is a 'damned cager,' or 'stupid cager.'
Labels make our lives easier. It is much easier to say or type 'cager' than 'person driving a car.'
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So, the plan is to bike M-W-F and drive T-TH. On the days I'm in my car, am I a cager? Or is there some more behavior I have to engage in while driving in order to be a cager? What if I don't hate bicyclists while I drive my car, and am attentive and courteous? Is there some term of endearment saved for folks like that, or do they just not warrant a moniker?
Just not entirely clear on the lingo.
Just not entirely clear on the lingo.