xcracer13

Im curious why people in cycling shave their legs. I never truly understood why some people do. Thoughts?

Machka 

Yeah, I don't get why society wants us to shave our legs either ... but they do ... especially if we're going to wear capri pants on skirts to work or school. Oh well, it's life I guess .......... but in the winter, when I can wear long pants to work and school, I don't bother.

chephy

Your post is sexist. What about women who don't shave?

The reason male cyclists shave legs is to cut down on drag. If you're in Tour de France, it probably makes a difference. Otherwise probably not.

Machka 

Like me! See post above!

Actually it isn't to cut down on drag - hair or the lack of it doesn't make that much difference. It's to make cleaning out road rash easier. If you've ever tried to clean gravel out of a leg wound when you've got a hairy leg, you'll know what I'm talking about. Moments like those ... I wish I did shave more often.

chephy

An article on leg-shaving.

Nachoman

In a word, yes.

DataJunkie

It is all for the entity known as bike forums. More repeated content to drag up weekly.

Reasons to name a few:
1) Vanity
2) It looks better
3) Easier to apply sunscreen
4) Massages feel better
5) Easier to clean out road rash.
6) Spandex with hairs sticking out of them looks awful.



I really do not understand why this question comes up so often. Many other sports involve shaving various body parts. Swimmers, body builders, etc.
Do forums devoted to these sports suffer from the same incessant questions?

dauphin

...as long as people continue to answer them.....

Machka 

Well first, in this case, I suspect that xcracer13 didn't realize that women ride bicycles too, or he wouldn't have posted this particular poll with the wording he chose. I thought it was greatly amusing that the first two people to respond were female cyclists.

Second, I suspect that xcracer13 is 13 years old and doesn't know any better.

BikeManDan

The only reason that made any remote sense to me was for massage

DataJunkie

One could say the same thing about your arrogant response.

damnable

Maybe then he's got some bum fluff coming out and wants some advice.

And yes, the original post is sexist.

elgalad

How so?

Yes, female cyclists shave their legs too, but in the context of a society where women shave their legs anyway, it's not viewed as unusual for female cyclists to shave.

However, men generally do not shave their legs, except where they participate in a particular activity for which shaving is beneficial, so men shaving their legs for cycling could easily be viewed as out of the ordinary, hence the question.

Why do women shave their legs for cycling? That doesn't even make sense, as the vast majority of women shave their legs anyway (well, all the women I know), so they're not specifically shaving as a result of being a cyclist.

People are too quick to jump on the bandwagon of political correctness. There are clearly differences between men and women. That doesn't make one any better or worse than the other, just different. To suggest that something is peculiar to one sex and not the other is not derogatory, except in cases where such generalisations are clearly incorrect (eg. all men are smarter than women).

Machka 

How so? You must have had difficulty reading the question. First, I'm a WOMAN or a LADY ... not a CHICK. Second, I'm a lady who does NOT shave her legs ... at least not regularly ... so shaving is not necessarily something that "chicks" do. In fact, I know a lot of women in this part of the world who do not shave their legs during the winter. Therefore the generalization is clearly incorrect.

Bekologist

you'll only need to shave your legs for bicycling if you:

a)intend to crash.

Sianelle 

Crikey yes. Women in my part of the world often leave their legs to go hairy over Winter too. I certainly do this myself because I'm usually wearing either long trousers or opaque Winter and Autumn weight stockings during the colder weather and there's no point in mucking about with unecessary grooming.

stevegor

I'm a man.....and when I raced I shaved my legs
1% for ease of cleaning out gravel if I crashed,
0% for aero-dynamics
99% for sheer and utter vanity.....cos, man did they look unreal, especially after a 10 week block of intense training.....made Arnie's pegs look like chicken legs.

Now I don't race I don't shave and it must annoy the heck out of the CF pretty boys when an old geezer with gorilla legs whips their collective butts on Sat morning hit outs

damnable

You are presuming here that all women in society shave their legs. I am one of quite a few women I know who do not regularly do this. Oh no, according to you, I am going against society.

Also, as Machka has said, I am a woman and not a 'chick'.

My main gripe however was that the question was obviously directed only at men, especially since as people seem to have pointed out 'most women shave their legs anyway'. The questions is also impying that all 'chicks' should be shaving their legs. I'm not concerned since I refuse to be a 'chick'.

pj7

I shave my back.
...sometimes

elgalad

No, it implies that women shave their legs, whilst men do not (outside of specific sports), which is true for the majority of women. The only reason you read into it that it implies you should be shaving your legs as a woman is because you feel somehow put upon by society in that it is more acceptable for women to have shaved legs. Don't take that out on the OP.

damnable

Right, so do you have the data to back that up?
If I felt that I had to shave my legs because I feel 'put upon' by society to do so, then I would shave my legs.

You accuse me of reading too much into what people say, yet then somehow from my few comments dare tell me about my feelings on peer pressure and social conformity.

geebee

People get a life.
There is nothing sexist about this question, it is straight forward and completely innocent as far as I can tell and in view of the comments made I am trying to see fault in it.
The only possible fault is that a search would have answered it, and if that is a crime there are a hell of a lot of criminals around here.

elgalad

Thank you.

Well, except maybe for the "get a life" bit

Machka 

Did you read the rest of the question??? Apparently not. The question is clearly written as though:

1) all the forum members here are male
2) all women shave their legs

Neither of those presumptions is true.

I'm not sure if that makes the question "sexist" or not, but it does make it necessary to point out to the OP that not all forum members here are male, and not all women shave their legs.

And also that many women don't appreciate being referred to as "chicks". We prefer being shown a little bit of respect.

geebee

Apologies, I took the question as the whole with out reading the poll.