MikeRides

A post in the Lessons Learned thread gave me the idea for this one. For those of you who have been riding for 6 months or longer, how would you classify your riding?

a. Racer - You concentrate on being faster and stronger on the bike.
b. Tourer - You don't care much about speed, but concentrate on riding longer distances.
c. Commuter - You ride mostly for transportation. Whether it's commuting to work, running errands around town, or both.
d. Other - Please specify.


I definitely fall in the "Commuter" class. Most of my rides are work-related or running errands.

dr_lha

Somewhere between racer and tourer. I'm interest in going both faster and farther, but I don't really have much interest in entering races as such.

jsigone

I'm a weekend warrior, fastish & long distance

But during the week, I'll fall into the racer class. Get the most miles and vertical out of my lunch hour. 18.5mph and 1200ft+ for lunch is a good lunch. 16mph and 1800ft+ is a really good lunch

TrojanHorse

Yeah, you're missing a lot of real estate between "racer" and "tourer" IMO. Some sort of fitness class rider that wants to go faster / farther but won't be entering races.

Mr_Garth

Pleasure commuter, that's me. I keep on inventing small tasks and commutes that 'require' using the bike. Most of my rides are going for lunch, coffee, shops, pint, tea, coffice etc. with an occasional long and slow distance thrown in

-Garth

BigMo59

"other"- Old and Slow would be me! Sixty y.o. and 288 down from 350. I ride a Trek Shift 4 about 20m per ride. Try to get three to four rides a week in. I'm already thinking about my next bike though.

Willbird

Racer who races himself I guess

mkadam68

I noticed the "Racer" group doesn't say anything about actually entering a race, just going fast & getting stronger.

TrojanHorse

It says "racer" right there in the name, unless you're suggesting that the real name should be "Poseur"

RISKDR1

old.

FBinNY 

+1, been riding seriously for almost 50 years.

I ride because I enjoy riding, and ride just about daily. I commute, do errands, longish sport day rides and multi-day tours, but don't race competitively. Speed per se isn't an issue, since I don't ride competitively. I don't ride to train, nor train to ride, I just ride, and the training happens by itself. As long as my speed over distance is fast enough to give me decent range in reasonable overall time, I'm a happy camper.

Judi

I guess I'd be an "Other"...slow and relaxed, riding every day but not to get anywhere, just because I like it.

1nterceptor

A little bit of each; including D - other.
Some of the riding I do are social in nature; hang out with other riders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh5V...aIoDLA&index=7

Some of my other rides are for charity:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RByK...IoDLA&index=35

And sometimes I ride to explore different parts of my city:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U930...IoDLA&index=40

corwin1968

I've pondered this and come to the conclusion that there really isn't a category I fall in. I ride like a little kid. I have fun being on the bike and pretty much go wherever my fancy takes me, especially if it's someplace I can do a lot of twisty-curvy type riding. Pretty much all pavement. Distance riding holds no appeal for me. Speed is only appealing in that it gets the adrenaline factor up when I find a twisty sidewalk to ride on.

SammyJ 

Yes!

Dave Cutter

+1

+1

I am also a solid.... "other"!

I generally call myself a recreational rider. I no longer work... but most or my errands are ran via a bike. I bicycle because I want to... and I want to because it's fun.

Jarrett2

I've been riding less than two years, so I'm still defining myself and consider myself new still. As of today, I've ridden 6,901 miles since I started riding in late May 2013. I've averaging about 360 miles a month right now, but hoping that will increase as the rain eases up.

The first year or so of riding was strictly to lose weight and I did, 152 lbs. Mostly on comfort hybrids on a local park trail/MUP. Once I dropped weight, I wanted to go faster, so I got a road bike and started going faster until I was too fast to be on the trail safely anymore. So I ventured out on the street. First in the flat areas, then I discovered hills

After that I discovered Strava and then I started feeling more competitive. Along with weight loss rides, I started doing rides solely to increase my performance. I set out to capture as many of my local KOM's as I could and I currently have 6. Due to the topology of my neck of the woods, a lot of the local race teams train out here and pushing myself to win those KOM's has been tough and fun. I did the cycling leg of a sprint tri on short notice last year. It was the first time I sustained 19+ mph for an hour.

Lately, I've been losing interest in going faster. This may sound funny but part of the reason is the people I like to ride with the most, just don't go that fast. If I find a group that pushes me physically, a lot of times they aren't super friendly. The slower paced groups are, I'm finding. So I've been doing more slow rides lately.

Also, I'm really getting into the idea of touring lately. I really like the idea of the slow, meandering pace and taking in natural beauty along the way. I'm in the process of building out a touring bike for 3 day type trips to start out. I'm having trouble finding people that want to go with me as most of the cyclists I know are just not into that really. There is a group going next weekend that would be perfect, but I have a gig and a wedding to attend next weekend unfortunately and can't go. I'm going to make this happen at least once before the year is up though.

I work from home, so I don't commute obviously. If I did have a commute, I would try hard to make it by bike.

So there you have it, I'm sort of an inbetweener that's evolving into different aspects of cycling that grab my interest as I go. Really enjoying myself along the way and getting/staying healthy to boot.

kc0bbq

Not really a tourer, but distances are a thing. Maybe aspiring (read wannabe) racer? A gran fondo is the closest thing to a race as I've gotten. Not really a race but at least you're on the clock. Kinda sums up my cycling life right there.

jade408

Commuter here. I use a bike for my errands. I did go in a bike tour today: to explore some different areas of my city.

I also would be a "cycle chic" person too. My bike should match my outfit.

Ok not completely but I bike in normal clothes and that includes skirts and dresses.

mi.tom

Hello, back in the early 90's when I rode a lot I would have said a Tourer and a full time Commuter. Really getting back into riding again now and I am trying to ride daily no matter the distance. Right now I will say I'd say working on Tourer, currently working on both speed and distance (no job to commute to at the moment).
Final answer = Trying to be all of the above?

BugDude

Fitness rider. I'm pushing myself to go faster and farther than I've gone before but as a 293 lb man on a hybrid I certainly wouldn't consider myself a racer other than racing my own accomplishments. And my distance rides are in the 30 mile range (which for me is a long ride), so I wouldn't call that a tourer either. I ride 5-6 days per week and am increasing my weekly and monthly mileage averages as well as speeds as I'm also decreasing my weight. Whatever you want to call it, I'm doing it with vigor and enthusiasm. I'll never be one of those little stick guys on the $7000 race bike whizzing by at 25+ mph wearing spandex going a thousand miles a week, but that doesn't make me any less of a bicycle enthusiast.

beakersbike

Commuter/Tourer. Rediscovering the love I had for cycling 30 years and 100+ pounds ago. Maybe if I'd never lost it I'd have never gained it? Way back when, I saw a poster for what I think was the first BRAN - Bike Ride Across Nebraska. I was intrigued but had a schedule conflict. Then I got a car. Bad move. All that to say I'm building up for longer rides. BRAN is still a bucket list item for me. This year I'm training for Pedal the Plains in eastern Colorado, 3 days, 170 miles.

I want to start doing some overnight mini-tours, take my son with, load up with some gear, ride out 15-30 miles to a campsite, camp out, then ride back in the morning. Fits nicely into the budget that way. Speed isn't much of a concern, though with longer rides it might become more of one just because a couple miles an hour difference can make an hour or more difference in saddle time.

auldgeunquers

I am other/other/other - which in my mind is utility/recreational/kid shephed. I ride to get things done, to have fun, and to have an activity to share with my kids - sometimes all at once. My older is working on her first 2-wheeler and my younger has graduated from trailer or seat to a tag-along with his own pedals, bottle cage, and bell (though that last may have been a mistake ... ). I now can re-build my cargo trailer yet again so I have something decent to go yard sailing with of a Saturday morning.

Willbird

I would not chisel anything of the things in stone that you think you will never be :-), give it time, never say never :-). The tires, or the spokes, or the wheel bearings.....something makes this magic singing sound up over 20 mph , that sound is more addictive than crack with a meth chaser :-)

snowman40

A, B, C. Definitley C if I can get out of service industry and work in my home town.

EDIT - I race my previous times on routes and I'd like to do the Amtrak Century and maybe some of the others which I would consider touring.