Originally Posted by cooker
There was a thread a bit like this last year. The suffix "-ist" implies some type of expertise, dedication or advocacy: eg "therapist", "existentialist", "soloist", etc. So by that standard, a "cyclist" is someone who claims special skill or knowledge or sees herself as somehow commited to or representative of a lifestyle centred on bikes, ie. more than just a bike rider.
I bet many people here do have that self-image. But in a William Blake sort of way, some of the most involved and experienced riders have probably transcended that stage of identification, and just think of themselves as someone who rides a bike.
even before i started "cycling" i could denote a difference between cyclists and people who just ride bikes. I don't think referring to oneself as a cyclist indicates that the person is an expert in the field but rather a person who uses a bike in a certain way as compared to the person who rides a beach cruiser with tassles and a basket from point a to point b.