Stupid Terminology
 

Maybe it's just me, but there seems to be a few confusing terms for cycling gear.

For starters, clipless pedals. I can understand why the old pedals are called clips and straps...they look like what they're called, but even those sometimes had cleats. Clipless shoes have cleats, but I have heard those called clips too. It doesn't help that the term "clipping in" or "unclipping" is used for both. Make up your minds and give me some terms that make sense!

Other terms that need sorting:

Chainring/Chainwheel/Sprocket
Saddle/Seat
Stem/Gooseneck
Cogs/Cassette/Gear Cluster
Nipples???

And why are tubes called tubes? They're only tubes if you cut them, which ruins them, otherwise they're hoops, and that's what rims are called. I've never heard that kid's toy called a Hula-Tube. My head hurts.

That's funny. Can't wait for the explanations.

However handlebars actually are tubes, not bars.

I hate the name for the little tire hairs on the tires... Tire Tits...

....and what are dropouts???

A: Feral BMX riders

All of what you say is correct but that won't help. Every occupation/hobby/interest is loaded with confusing and conflicting terminology. Bicycling is no different.

OK, why "Bottom Bracket"?

Cuz it's not on top?

I like the question in the roadie forum:

If a seat is called a saddle, then why is it on a seat post?

I ain't touchin' that one with a 10' post.

I didn't know that Andy Rooney had an interest in cycling!

Don't stop drinking, your head will never hurt.

A lot of that stuff comes from the fact that people have been riding bikes for well over a hundred years and a lot of old stuff has been held over while new terms have come in, old parts have been made in new ways, slang has crept in, other languages have been incorporated (e.g dérailleur), etc. It's a language that has evolved organically over a couple hundred years.

So clipless - well, they're pedals that you clip into that have no clips. Think of a better term?

Handlebars - yeah, they're tubes now but at one point they were bars. At one point they were boards!

Tubes are a circular tube. Why is an o-ring for a square heart rate monitor called an O-ring?

A cassette is a modern gear cluster. Not long ago the gears in the cluster screwed on one at a time rather than sliding on as an assembly.

Saddle - it's an iron horse, don't ya know! Ya sit on the saddle! 'Course, most folks these days sit on a seat.

But in the end, it's just a language that has evolved organically over time. I'm sure we could sit here and come up with thousands of examples of weird terms in the English language. Heck, just compare English English, Scottish English, American English and Australian English.

And why are aero-bars that clamp onto the handlebars called "clip-on" ? :)

Wow, my fragile world has just been destroyed.

People chose a bad word for pedals that attach to the foot. The thing that is missing are toe cages and straps.

"Strapless pedals", "Cageless Pedals" would be better. I guess they just used to called them "clip-ins" and so now they have a paradoxical name.

Personally, I refuse to use the term "clipless". I use "strapless pedals".

I like Sheldon Brown's explanation for "Saddle":
Why a saddle is mounted on a seat post, he doesn't address... ;-)

Sprocket = toothed disc/wheel designed to mesh with a chain or drive belt.
Gear = toothed disc/wheel designed to mesh with other gears.
Cog = one of the teeth on a sprocket or gear.

Both the cassette/freewheel cluster and the front chainrings are sprockets. Not gears, and not cogs.

See: http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_dr-z.html#dropout

I'm surprised nobody has brought up "cotterless cranks."

There's also the common misuse of the word "alloy" as a synonym for aluminum/aluminium.

My main cycle-linguistic peeves are "brake arch" and "crank arm."

Sheldon "Turn On, Tune In,..." Brown

I hate to disagree with Sheldon, but I think it's more a matter of how you sit. After all, a horse saddle bears most of the weight of a rider.

One straddles a saddle, but not a seat.

Maybe?

Not usually. A lot of the rider's weight is carried by his/her legs in the stirrups, particualrly over rough or uneven ground or when the horse is moving at a fast clip. Sitting with all your weight on the saddle and none on your feet is a good way to get dumped.

Ever watch a horse race? The jockey spends very little time actually sitting upright in the saddle. That's both for stability and aerodynamics.

In a horse race the jockey spends absolutely no time in the saddle during the actual race unless something goes wrong. He sits on it during warm-up/warm-down but that's it. But as said, even in a Western (the kind with the horn) or English saddle a lot of your weight is on your feet a lot of the time.

But Sheldon, I've seen feral bmx riders with heads like that ;)

Yup. Plus posting makes for a much more comfortable ride.

"Who knew 'inflammable' meant 'flammable'..." Dr. Nick Riviera

“Hi, Dr. Nick!”