Originally Posted by
StephenH
I was planning to do the Dallas one this year, but didn't make it due to some other issues. I was there last year.
One thing to keep in mind is that the clothing style is more 1930's, so the appropriate bike you need is something like Doohickey's rod-brake-roadster, not your 1975 10-speed. And of course, 95% of the riders don't have anything like that. It's mostly the fixed-gear-urban crowd that's out with whatever bikes they have, rather than the antique-bike-collectors or vintage-bike-appreciators.
The amount of time and money that goes into clothing is highly variable, so you see a lot of variation in how period people actually look.
Last year, it was reasonably warm, too. The wind yesterday wasn't bad, considering they only go a few miles. People take their coats off when it's warm, they don't have to ride in it just because they own it. But a good cold dry day would really help the atmosphere of the ride.
Money wise it doesn't have to be expensive at all. I just got back from the thrift store up the street (looking for bikes) looked through their more formal isles and there were several NICE tweed jackets and vests for $5-10 each. The pants are the hard find. I didnt see a matched suit or loose wool pants that I could cut into a proper knicker but that's not to say it wont show up in the next week either. I think it can be done for under $50 if you hit the thrifts.