modelmartin

If we get up to Gaylord I might just do that. The Aunt is 93 now and may or may not be leaving her house there to live with a daughter in Ypsilanti.If I do I will bring the Technium!

RobbieTunes

Man, I've been called a lot of things in my life.......

OldsCOOL

We have a great selection of routes up here as you already know. I would enjoy seeing your PRE. There are a few of us PRE owners here. Mine was disassembled and frame hung on the wall of the shop for a Cannondale build last winter. The frame is a bit too long on the top tube for my liking. Fun bike, though. It's an '89, acquired in East Jordan for 120.00 a few years back. Have you been to our 50+ forum? I'm 57.

pastorbobnlnh 

Sheesh! I find myself tied up all day doing church business, and this thread devolves from "bicycle culture" to lyrics in a Kid Rock recording! Well, at least in the video Detroit's own Kid is piloting a classic wooden boat!

old's'cool

I call 'em as I see 'em

Chrome Molly

Ah yes, I lived in Midland for 10 years and (mis) spent many a winter weekend in Boyne. Northern lower Michigan, such a lovely area. Almost as difficult to get to from Minnesota as Florida, but so nice that I want to get back again soon. Some of my favorite memories are of mountain biking on the (now closed to MTB's) north country trail. The northern part of the mitten is full of great places.

Caribou

Guy that works at my LBS said he is a "bicycle rider" and not a "cyclist" because he doesn't change clothes just to ride his bike. So there's one way to look at it.

OldsCOOL

MTBing has overtaken road biking here, at least from my observation. I live near the downtown district in Boyne City with the Avalanche Mt trails just a few blocks away. The bike culture is alive and well, even with the C&V crowd. We are never at a loss for interesting routes here.

JReade

Random, I did the Zoo-de-mack once with my GF at the time. Her family has a cabin on douglas lake, and owns a restaurant there. We would roll into the big city Petoskey to go shopping or see a movie.

OldsCOOL

My old stompin' grounds. Dam Site Inn, Douglas Lake Bar.....

OldsCOOL

I like that. Jeans, Tshirt, docksiders, for rides around town on a vintage racer. I dont know where that kind of enjoyment left the building but I sure enjoy it.

JReade

They actually own the DLB. Duffey clan out there.

OldsCOOL

I worked with a guy back in 2001 who said his folks ran the place back in the 70's when they had the local bands come in to play. That was one of our party places back in the day.

72Paramount

Pastor Bob- you definitely are not a poseur. And the guy who called the riders on chrome paramounts poseurs is also the same guy who has never ridden one. It's a good thing this is a friendly forum, because if I were out riding and you called me a poseur for riding one of the most iconic bikes in America, I would be forced to strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger. But back to bike culture......
1. If a bike had no decals, could you identify it's manufacturer?
2. Do you speak Campagnolo fluently gran sport to c-record?
3. Do you do the work on your bike ?
4. Do you own a hand built bicycle?
If you answered NO to any of these you might be a "poseur" but hopefully you are just an uneducated newbie. As for C&V: If they are classic and vintage that's how most of us like to see them. The #1 reason behind that is to preserve cycling history. Also I don't mind bike flippers, but what I do mind is anyone who knowingly buys or sells stolen bicycles. Talk to pastor bob about the 10 commandments and he will fill you in. As for the bike culture, there are more cool dudes than A#%holes, and generally IMHO the snooty snoots ride Taiwanese Carbon Bikes, and their seat posts are so far up their butts that they can't see straight!'

pastorbobnlnh 

@72Paramount chrome Paramounts, or any chrome C&V racing or MTB bike for that matter, are the cats pajamas! Definitely not bikes for a poseur.

Your post and renewing this thread is a nice distraction from the brutally cold temperatures (-15F at the moment) and not being able to ride (outside).

The upside is the shop is getting reorganized and cleaned. Which in turn has identified:

1. Bikes I need to sell or give away since I don't really ride them!
2. Projects that I've devised in my head and collected parts for that I never started, that now need to commence!
3. Parts, spares, accessories, etc., which I need to photograph and offer on the C&V Classified.

Hows that for a bit of winter C&V bike culture at the beginning of 2015?

DISCLAIMER: The above post intentionally overused emoticons in order to increase the blood pressure of those C&Vers who do not care for them.

ergillma

IMHO, I see the C & V bicycle culture as a subset of "Maker Culture." From Wikipedia: Maker culture emphasizes learning-through-doing (constructivism) in a social environment. Maker culture emphasizes informal, networked, peer-led, and shared learning motivated by fun and self-fulfillment.

bici_mania

Wow. So I learned something new today.

That makes sense, I can see it.

Velognome 

Been thinkin', from a Classical perspective "Bike Culture' exists only if it leads to the refinement of an individual or group. So yes, people on bikes are healthier,happier and good for the environment . As for refinement, we got Tweed rides, right? From a Vintage (aged) perspective, Cicero would ask if Bike Culture cultivates the soul of a man? A quick look at Herse, Hetchins or a Thanet and tell me those are the works of mere mortals?

Number_6

I'm just going to lift what I wrote on another forum. Might take a little bit of extrapolation for this topic- but it presents my "philosophy" of this nicely:

I've found out for myself over the past few months it's not so much the kind of bicycle I like to ride, as it is the experience I want- and the type of bike determines that experience I've got a titanium Moto bag o' tricks for when I have the need to go fast. If I take a notion to go tour and camp for a few days, there's the Catrike (also for when i get to be an old man).

When I got the Super Sport and Suburban last fall, things came back to me and it wasn't just nostalgia. As a kid, when I got tired of the house I'd run out the back door to the patio, hop on my bike and take off down the driveway. Usually I had no idea on God's green earth where I'd be going- friends house? Movies? Corner store? Downtown? A park? I just got out with whatever I was wearing and went as quick as I got the idea. No clipless pedals, bike shorts, helmets, water bottles or jersey. no protracted prep time at all- I just went and I was free. So I'd ride and sightsee, learn the world around me, meet people, hang out with friends. As a friend of mine said- and I believe I've said somewhere on these forums- "we lived on our bikes". There would be a gaggle of us out riding, just running around- the only contest was who could go down the hill the fastest. It really was a lifestyle, I reckon. That experience is not the only one I like on a bike, but it is the one that suits me most often. Most of the time, it is the relaxation as well as the freedom a bicycle can offer I appreciate the most.

So, these old tourers suit me well. I can be slow, a little lazy on them and enjoy what's around me. On a quiet, somewhat level lane around here. I can watch the horses try to eat the fence boards. Ride along the Ohio anyplace from Pittsburgh to Paducah. Rail trails up in the Ohio flatlands, Go to Old Louisville and examine the Victoriana- great for 3-speeds. If there's a lot of hills, I can get the Suburban or the Sirrus. In fact I'm "tourerizing" the Sirrus with upright bars (more comfortable than those flat bars that numb and pain me) and fenders.

Now when I buy something, I can buy it to keep- I know it'll help me do what I want to do. I may overpay or find a steal- but I know there will be enjoyment- that's what's important.

It's great that others ride personal bests, or play in the mud for their raison d'ete. I'm just speaking for myself.

I just found it's what I want to do on a bicycle that determines what machine(s) I'll favor most. So what does anyone else like to do? And what bike would that be?

browngw 

One could posit that there is no "bike culture" in North America.

To be sure there are collectors, romanticist's, historians, tourers' , racers and unracers, and daily riders but to be a culture you must be deeply imbedded in the fabric of society and cycling seems to be less and less so all the time.

An easily understood example is "car culture". It eats up a large portion of our income, our taxes for infrastructure and our streets and towns and stores and almost everything else is designed around it. Think "drive-thru", parking, garages, etc. Even the emerging "pet culture" supercedes any cycling culture. Just count the pet food stores and the aisles dedicated to pets in all the stores.

The fastest growing cycling trends involve cars as much as bikes. Mountain bikes, fat bikes et al spend as much time on a rack or in a pickup as on the trail.

When money for Interstates is used to build cycling infrastructure then perhaps we can say there is a "cycling culture". This is not a good or bad thing, just a reality.

For background, yes I own a car and a camper van/SAG wagon, but I believe that both Canada and the US should stop making the motorized vehicles "king of the road". That movement must come from a large portion of the population to be effective.

Meanwhile we must not give up the ship. The fact that Bike Forums even exists shows a glimmer of hope that an actual "culture" may one day exist. Ride on!

pastorbobnlnh 

@browngw if there "is no bike culture in North America...," wouldn't the land be devoid of bicycles? This feels like such an absolute. For instance we can say accurately; There is no culture of democracy in North Korea. The dictator effectively keeps democracy from becoming a possibility. Bicycles have been a vital part of the North American landscape for over a century.
@ergillma I like your contribution. Very helpful.

browngw 

@pastorbobnlnh Perhaps it is just the cold snowy weather and the short days that made it seem such an absolute statement. That and I haven't been able to get out on my bike in 17 days!

Even when I have been riding this fall and winter it seems there are huge numbers of big four door 4 wheel drive pickups careening around oblivious to all around them trying to get the best parking spot at the coffee shop.

Lets hope for best and agree that we here at BF are doing our best to create a bike culture.

dweenk

For me it is the beauty of the diamond frame and the utter simplicity and efficiency of the machine. As a kid, the bicycle taught mechanics to me (pliers are not proper substitutes for wrenches, and screwdrivers make risky tire irons).

ergillma

I am guessing that a few of you out there have read "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance"? I think a lot of what Pirsig said about "Quality" applies not just to motorcycles but also to what C & V bike enthusiasts appreciate: they just don't build 'em like that anymore.