Living Car Free - You're all a bunch of hobbiests!

...according to some of the nimrods in this thread:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/704606-Is-cycling-a-hobby

:lol:

That's a hard one to describe in this thread, for me its hobby and means of transportation, as i do ride for leisure from time to time:)

It's been years since I regularly rode for pleasure with no particular destination.

Chip,

Are you looking for trouble? Linking into the Road Forum from here. Really?
:lol:

And your name calling is better than theirs, how? :P

I do build bikes as a hobby... for fun. But I ride for transportation, exercise, and for fun... so which part of that is hobby? Answer: you cannot categorize cycling, as it is capable of providing more than a simple pass time. What it means is different for everybody.

Though, for the guys I ride with that drop serious coin on "cabron tarck" bikes and full kit, who never race or commute, it's mostly a hobby. They could get just as much exercise on a cheap bike, but buying the toys is a hobby... riding is exercise.

Chip,

Are you looking for trouble? Linking into the Road Forum from here. Really?
:lol:
I think Chipcom is a troll. Only 21,000 posts in 6 years and obviously hoping to incent the crowd here (...who have just spent the last 3 weeks discussing class warfare...) :)

Well... to be honest... I think we need some excitement here. I agree...damn those roadies... nothing but trouble makers.

What is so funny about that thread? For almost everyone in the roadie forum, it can only be called a hobby, or a recreational sport, yet almost all of them argue it is more. The roadies *could* use their bikes for transport, but probably rarely or never do. Nobody is paying them to ride, either. If they only ride for entertainment and excercise, then it's a hobby.

If, like me, you don't have a car, and you use your bike for transport, then it must be something more. If I sold all my bikes, would walking become my hobby? I use my bikes partly as a hobby, like for riding brevets. And, I buy bikes (sometimes) with an eye for much more than how well they will get me to work or haul groceries. Of course, it's partly a hobby for us, too. We all walk every day, but we don't get together on internet forums to talk about our shoes.

You can drive a car to work and not have any interest in cars except what you need to know to use one, so in that case you would not be a car hobbiest. However, if you also read car magazines, tinker with or customize your car for fun, go to car shows, and post on a car forum you might be a car hobbiest.

By that analogy I think many of us are both transportational cyclists and bike hobbiests.

What is so funny about that thread? For almost everyone in the roadie forum, it can only be called a hobby, or a recreational sport, yet almost all of them argue it is more. The roadies *could* use their bikes for transport, but probably rarely or never do. Nobody is paying them to ride, either. If they only ride for entertainment and excercise, then it's a hobby.

If, like me, you don't have a car, and you use your bike for transport, then it must be something more. If I sold all my bikes, would walking become my hobby? I use my bikes partly as a hobby, like for riding brevets. And, I buy bikes (sometimes) with an eye for much more than how well they will get me to work or haul groceries. Of course, it's partly a hobby for us, too. We all walk every day, but we don't get together on internet forums to talk about our shoes.

Great idea! I'm a bit of a shoe freak, and would thoroughly enjoy such a thread/forum.
I see I'm going to have to go over to the road forum and check it out.

Does this make my bike my hobby-horse?

I think I resemble that remark.

Great idea! I'm a bit of a shoe freak, and would thoroughly enjoy such a thread/forum...

http://solecollector.com/forums

Go nuts, man. The Jordan subforum has 180,000 posts! These people are really into shoes. It looks eerily like this forum (you have to scroll down a bit to see it).

Edit--The shoe forum has 988 users on line right now, while this forum has 1458. I guess a lot of people do have a shoe hobby.

I think Chipcom is a troll. Only 21,000 posts in 6 years and obviously hoping to incent the crowd here (...who have just spent the last 3 weeks discussing class warfare...) :)

Well... to be honest... I think we need some excitement here. I agree...damn those roadies... nothing but trouble makers.

He's a professional troll.

What is so funny about that thread? For almost everyone in the roadie forum, it can only be called a hobby, or a recreational sport, yet almost all of them argue it is more. The roadies *could* use their bikes for transport, but probably rarely or never do. Nobody is paying them to ride, either. If they only ride for entertainment and excercise, then it's a hobby.

If, like me, you don't have a car, and you use your bike for transport, then it must be something more. If I sold all my bikes, would walking become my hobby? I use my bikes partly as a hobby, like for riding brevets. And, I buy bikes (sometimes) with an eye for much more than how well they will get me to work or haul groceries. Of course, it's partly a hobby for us, too. We all walk every day, but we don't get together on internet forums to talk about our shoes.

Why the animosity toward roadies? I'm not a roadie myself, but I don't have a problem with them; even if they're clad in Lycra and riding bikes made of overpriced plastic, their presence on the roads is a good thing for the rest of us.

Anyway, for me, bicycling is much more than a mere hobby: it's a very efficient way to transport beer.

Why the animosity toward roadies? I'm not a roadie myself, but I don't have a problem with them; even if they're clad in Lycra and riding bikes made of overpriced plastic, their presence on the roads is a good thing for the rest of us.

Anyway, for me, bicycling is much more than a mere hobby: it's a very efficient way to transport beer.

I'm not anti-roadie; you're reading something between the lines that isn't there. I'm just pointing out the irony of their arguments in that thread. The fact that they are in the road forum screams hobby. If you buy the not-so-bold assumptions that they don't haul groceries or get paid to ride, then that pretty well seals the deal.

I think they dislike the tag 'hobby' because it somehow implies they are not dedicated. But, lots of people are hard-core about their hobby. To get it out of the hobby class, though, you need to get paid, or have another purpose besides entertainment or excercise.

Chewybrian makes some good points... it's not necessarily bad to have a "hobby" but they shouldn't get bent out of shape about it, either. The Road forum guys tend to real defensive when people accuse them of not being "real" cyclists, just because they don't ride in the rain... or at night... or with cargo, a destination, etc. etc. To them, it's a hobby. It just is what it is. (Not to mention the SS/FG forum... holy cow.)

We here in the LCF forum tend to look down on roadies because of their affinity for convenience and speed above all else, but as single-minded as they are, they're still cyclists. They still ride the roads, they still get seen by cars, they still support bike shops, so it all evens out in the end. I give them grief for driving to a group ride, and they give me grief for not buying carbon fiber and still using cheap bikes with freewheels.

It's all good. Breathe in, breathe out.

You can drive a car to work and not have any interest in cars except what you need to know to use one, so in that case you would not be a car hobbiest. However, if you also read car magazines, tinker with or customize your car for fun, go to car shows, and post on a car forum you might be a car hobbyist.

By that analogy I think many of us are both transportational cyclists and bike hobbyists.

I took issue with this notion that one is either a 'professional' (works in a bike related profession, racing, wrenching, etc), or a hobbyist. I thought the car analogy was apt. A car, bike, hammer or chain saw are just tools. One can use those tools as part of their profession, or their hobby...or they can just use them to do the job they were intended to do...in the case if bikes, simple transportation.

I agree, many of us here are users AND hobbyists AND even professionals (in some cases), but this notion that we can only be pros or hobbyists is just plain silly. I've been riding bikes for transportation since I was just a little troll *******...it didn't become a hobby until this century. ;)

He's a professional troll.

:lol:

Chewybrian makes some good points... it's not necessarily bad to have a "hobby" but they shouldn't get bent out of shape about it, either. The Road forum guys tend to real defensive when people accuse them of not being "real" cyclists, just because they don't ride in the rain... or at night... or with cargo, a destination, etc. etc. To them, it's a hobby. It just is what it is. (Not to mention the SS/FG forum... holy cow.)

We here in the LCF forum tend to look down on roadies because of their affinity for convenience and speed above all else, but as single-minded as they are, they're still cyclists. They still ride the roads, they still get seen by cars, they still support bike shops, so it all evens out in the end. I give them grief for driving to a group ride, and they give me grief for not buying carbon fiber and still using cheap bikes with freewheels.

It's all good. Breathe in, breathe out.

You do realize that one can be a roadie AND a transportational, car-free, cyclist, right?
This tendency to categorize people....and even limit them to only one category, is silly.

Locally, nobody has ever termed my riding a bike as a hobby, though I've heard words like crazy, eccentric, foolish, idiotic..........

Im gonna go out on a limb and say that since we are chatting about bikes on a bike forum cycling must be our hobby, Im going to retract my earlier statement and go with cycling may be more to us but it is for sure our "hobby". Now let the slaughtering of my response begin

Locally, nobody has ever termed my riding a bike as a hobby, though I've heard words like crazy, eccentric, foolish, idiotic..........

don't forget HIPPY!

I say we should instead of saying we're hobbiests we should just call our selves bike nerds, because i bet most of us are!!:)

I say we should instead of saying we're hobbiests we should just call our selves bike nerds, because i bet most of us are!!:)

Can't we just call ourselves darlin?

don't forget HIPPY!

Yep, forgot that one, but I'm sure that with Nixon being in the Whitehouse at the time had something to do with it. :lol:

You do realize that one can be a roadie AND a transportational, car-free, cyclist, right?
This tendency to categorize people....and even limit them to only one category, is silly.

Oh, definitely, but it's the exception, not the norm, at least from what I've experienced.

That's why I never venture into the Road forum... I keep saying this, but most roadies are cagers on bikes, yeah... maybe for them it's a hobby, the ride a bike for pleasure and drive for everything else :p

You know something's wrong when fellow cyclists look at you strange when you tell them you commute by bike. While they're buying trainer stands and stationary bikes, we're out commuting in sub-freezing weather. They drive hours to do hill intervals. We look at cargo bikes and cro-moly.

It's a completely different mindset, but it's still cycling. I think the majority of cyclists aren't even aware that non-hobby cycling can be just as much fun, and can really change their lives.

In an ideal world, maybe we could get everyone to understand the benefits, but the truth is 99% of people who ride bikes do it as a hobby, even if it's a serious hobby.

Im changing my mind again its no longer a hobby for me its an addiction now, im on my way to go spend lots o money on yet another bike that will never be assembled or ridden i have to stop this:)

You know something's wrong when fellow cyclists look at you strange when you tell them you commute by bike. While they're buying trainer stands and stationary bikes, we're out commuting in sub-freezing weather. They drive hours to do hill intervals. We look at cargo bikes and cro-moly.

It's a completely different mindset, but it's still cycling. I think the majority of cyclists aren't even aware that non-hobby cycling can be just as much fun, and can really change their lives.

In an ideal world, maybe we could get everyone to understand the benefits, but the truth is 99% of people who ride bikes do it as a hobby, even if it's a serious hobby.

The people that ride to go places are usually different than the folks who go places to ride, regardless of what they're riding.

Anyway, for me, bicycling is much more than a mere hobby: it's a very efficient way to transport beer. :thumb:

Oh, definitely, but it's the exception, not the norm, at least from what I've experienced.

Yeah, I know....it used to be much more the norm anyway. :(

The people that ride to go places are usually different than the folks who go places to ride, regardless of what they're riding.

Then you got the people like me who do both...it's not an either-or proposition. For example, when my daughter got married I would have much preferred to make the trip from Ohio to Florida for the wedding on my bike...but I'm not quite up to doing the down and back in only five days (which was all I could take), so I drove...with my bike on the rack, which was how I got around while I was down there. ;)

Little boxes, little boxes...they're all made of ticky-tacky and I hate em, simply hate em.

My hobby is riding the bus. The bike is for serious transportation.

What is so funny about that thread? For almost everyone in the roadie forum, it can only be called a hobby, or a recreational sport, yet almost all of them argue it is more. The roadies *could* use their bikes for transport, but probably rarely or never do. Nobody is paying them to ride, either. If they only ride for entertainment and excercise, then it's a hobby.


I suspect the majority of those who are carfree treat cycling as a hobby. The vast majority of those without a car use either pubic transit or walk like myself. The only time I use a bike for transportation are on the weekends. I know quite a few people who don't have cars, own bikes but only use them during the summer.

I suspect the majority of those who are carfree treat cycling as a hobby. The vast majority of those without a car use either pubic transit or walk like myself. The only time I use a bike for transportation are on the weekends. I know quite a few people who don't have cars, own bikes but only use them during the summer.

Majority in the real world, maybe, but not on this forum.

A litte off-topic, but what is the correct spelling of "hobbyist"? Google seems to agree with me.

I suspect the majority of those who are carfree treat cycling as a hobby. The vast majority of those without a car use either pubic transit or walk like myself. The only time I use a bike for transportation are on the weekends. I know quite a few people who don't have cars, own bikes but only use them during the summer.

Speak for yourself ;) When I was carfree, I was CARFREE I rode in all weather at all hours of the day and night (worked two jobs). Mass transit wasn't an option most of the time, the area I lived in at the time didn't have much mass transit to begin with and it shut down long before my night job ended.

Aaron :)

Yeah, I know....it used to be much more the norm anyway. :(

Sadly true... oh well, there are those of us who are holdouts.

You're all a bunch of hobbiests!...according to some of the nimrods in this thread:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/704606-Is-cycling-a-hobby

:lol:

Not anymore. When you become part of the bicycle business world, you tend to leave that 'hobby" label or identity far behind. My moniker has now completely encompass my life and has became my livelihood as of January 1st of this year.

A more formal announcement of this new direction of The World Of Folding Bicycles series is in the works (patience please).

Do drivers ever drive just for pleasure, or are 100% of their trips for a purpose -- work, groceries, bill-paying, etc? I guess they'd be hobbyists, too.

But then, who cares? When someone's paying my bills, then their opinion matters.

Do drivers ever drive just for pleasure, or are 100% of their trips for a purpose -- work, groceries, bill-paying, etc? I guess they'd be hobbyists, too.

But then, who cares? When someone's paying my bills, then their opinion matters.

I know a lot of people that drive as a hobby. They have "weekend" cars, and take them to tracks and drive them for fun. They dump thousands of dollars into them, and have to have a separate car for daily driving. It's one of the main reasons the automotive aftermarket is in such a boom. It's become a multi-billion dollar hobby industry.

Bikes are becoming the same way. The reason they are selling carbon bikes like crazy is because there's money to be made in it. People want them, and companies make them.

I'm the same for my bike or my car... I have one of each, they're both good all-arounders. My car's not the fastest at the track, but I can drive it home afterwards and then take it to the grocery store. My bike isn't the fastest, but it's fast enough, and I can commute on it anywhere with 50 pounds of gear, which the roadies here won't do.

I know a lot of people that drive as a hobby. They have "weekend" cars, and take them to tracks and drive them for fun. They dump thousands of dollars into them, and have to have a separate car for daily driving. It's one of the main reasons the automotive aftermarket is in such a boom. It's become a multi-billion dollar hobby industry.

Bikes are becoming the same way. The reason they are selling carbon bikes like crazy is because there's money to be made in it. People want them, and companies make them.

I'm the same for my bike or my car... I have one of each, they're both good all-arounders. My car's not the fastest at the track, but I can drive it home afterwards and then take it to the grocery store. My bike isn't the fastest, but it's fast enough, and I can commute on it anywhere with 50 pounds of gear, which the roadies here won't do.

Funny you should mention hobbyist motorists...

I know a family in Atlanta, GA that lives pretty much car free...except for his race car. He has a sports car that he races at Road Atlanta. It is not a daily driver, it is registered and street legal, he drives it to the track and races, then drives it home. The rest of the time they use mass transit or bicycles to get around. If they need to go somewhere that requires driving the rent a car.

Aaron :)

Then you got the people like me who do both...it's not an either-or proposition. For example, when my daughter got married I would have much preferred to make the trip from Ohio to Florida for the wedding on my bike...but I'm not quite up to doing the down and back in only five days (which was all I could take), so I drove...with my bike on the rack, which was how I got around while I was down there. ;)

Little boxes, little boxes...they're all made of ticky-tacky and I hate em, simply hate em.


The split is a lot bigger in the motorcycling world, where you can ride much longer distances than you can on a bicycle. The posers hauling their pimped out pos cruisers to Strugis and Daytona so they can "live the biker lifestyle" have a hard time understanding people who would only go places with their bike by riding it.

Little boxes, little boxes...they're all made of ticky-tacky and I hate em, simply hate em.
You don't like ticky-tacky? They make them out of chipboard now.

You don't like ticky-tacky? They make them out of chipboard now.

I love ticky-tacky...I hate the little boxes. chipboard? I should be getting royalties or something. :o

I love ticky-tacky...I hate the little boxes. chipboard? I should be getting royalties or something. :o

Maybe they should hang a picture of you on every wall...

I know a lot of people that drive as a hobby. They have "weekend" cars, and take them to tracks and drive them for fun. They dump thousands of dollars into them, and have to have a separate car for daily driving. It's one of the main reasons the automotive aftermarket is in such a boom. It's become a multi-billion dollar hobby industry.

Bikes are becoming the same way. The reason they are selling carbon bikes like crazy is because there's money to be made in it. People want them, and companies make them.

I'm the same for my bike or my car... I have one of each, they're both good all-arounders. My car's not the fastest at the track, but I can drive it home afterwards and then take it to the grocery store. My bike isn't the fastest, but it's fast enough, and I can commute on it anywhere with 50 pounds of gear, which the roadies here won't do.

Yup, I know this; been there, done that. I posed the question as a counterpoint to the inane 'friend' the OP referred to.

My main point was the nihilistic nature of caring about a stranger's opinion.

I love ticky-tacky...I hate the little boxes. chipboard? I should be getting royalties or something. :o

Yes but Peter, Paul and Mary didn't care for them.