Originally Posted by
seedsbelize
I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and post my first rant on BF. I've been thinking about the direction this thread is taking, and I'm finding it upsetting. What ever happened to cycling for the pure pleasure of it? When did it become a matter of conformity, or tradition (or keeping up with the Joneses) to line up the tire label with the valve stem, because it might otherwise reflect poorly on one's mechanical abilities, or vanity? If I'm out there on the road with a group of riders, and one of them looks down at my wheels and thinks less of me because of where the tire label is, whose problem is that really? Certainly not mine. Now, it seems, we have to dress our bikes up in black tie in order to be accepted by the other black tie riders.
I guess this has been going on for some years now, and I've been so far out of the loop that I haven't noticed it.
I ride because I enjoy riding. Please don't invite me to your black tie affairs.
I see your point, but for me, it's the build rather than the bike that moves my spirit. I don't care what kind of machine it is, as long as I get a chance to take it apart and put it all back together without too many pieces left over. Getting the tires on a bike the right way is a part of that - it's not some keep-up-with-the-jones thing. It's the same result, but a different motive.
I'm sure everyone so obsessed with tire label placement has some whacked motivation, but maybe some of them aren't black tie.