I also don't own a TV or a car...But I do own a cell phone and laptop.

A person can have a cell phone and not be addicted to it...Use it only when necessary.

There was a lot of things we didn't have in the 80's that we're lucky enough to have available now.

Resistance to change or (as we called it in the 80's) future shock.... isn't new nor does it preserve anything of value from a previous time. Take a deep breath.... cast off the fears and feelings of being overwhelmed by the change.... and find yourself a good [mobile] rate plan.

Not owning a cell phone or a computer in this modern age would be far more abnormal then not owning a TV or a car. It's important to be "connected" in this modern age.

I can relate to the OP although I carry my fancy new SMART Phone that my wife got me for Christmas because it gives her comfort. I have zero need for a cell phone while riding, it merely comes along for the ride.

I find it interesting how many couples and families will be independently attending to their social media chores while out to dinner.

Without my iPhone, my Garmin won't instantly upload my rides to my account when my commute is over. I would have to wait until I'm on wifi. Unthinkable!

This is the most hipster thread I've ever seen on bikeforums. It's amazing that anyone thinks that anyone else cares what you don't own. Just making the statement in public "I don't own a cell phone" without someone asking first is the height of narcissism.

I haven't watched any broadcast TV for something like 25 years now either, but I don't really talk about it, because I realize that NOBODY CARES.

It's considered so important that the US Federal Government subsidizes part or all of the cost of a cell phone for individuals below a certain income level. How to Get an Obama Phone For Free

Best decision I made the day I broke my leg was carry a cell phone in my saddle bag.

Financial assistance for phone service was initiated in the Reaen Administration!

Extracted from the cited reference:
"In all truthfulness, the term “Obama Phone” isn’t the official name of the free government cell phones program. In fact, government assistance for phones has been around since the 80’s under a program called the Federal Lifeline Assistance program. For people who are living below the poverty guidelines, the Federal Lifeline program exists to provide discounted phone service. Originally, the program provided landlines, but now it has transitioned into cell phones."

I own a cell phone but I don't take it on rides with me either. I don't want to be bothered when I'm riding nor do I want to use the phone to call to have my mommy come get me if I break down; and by the time I call a cop and they come to get someone for trying to sideswipe me or whatever the person is long gone anyways. Most places I ride into I can't even get cell service anyways.

Use a phone for directions? really? you know why there are no bike riders over the age of 50 anymore? They all got lost and are still wandering around trying to find their way back home...my god what a dumb thing to say. People toured all over the world for years before cell phones or GPS's and never cried for something better than just a plain paper map. I'm not saying that a gps isn't a handy little gadget, I'll probably get one to tour the USA, I don't know yet, but I know I will carry a cell phone when that trip happens because today there are very few pay phones around, but for just riding 50 to 70 miles from home I don't carry one.

Look, if you're comfortable having a cell phone with you then fine carry one, but I'm 61 years old and rode for many years before these devices came out and to this day I have no need for one while riding.

Gadgets are just toys for us to amuse ourselves with, I know people who don't even use a bike computer! There's probably some on this forum who don't either, they just want to ride a bike for fun without the hassle of knowing how far they went.

I don't own this or that; ain't I special? is the unofficial mantra for some of the posters on the LCF list. It apparently has infected the commuting list too.

Some of you should read Carlos Castaneda, specifically the part of "Journey to Ixtlan" concerning "being inaccessible." I have a cell phone, a Motorola Droid. (I could also do a Mitch Hedberg take off and state that, if we called things by what we use them for the most, I actually have a big flat watch that occasionally makes phone calls and takes pictures!) My phone is usually WITH me, but not usually in or at hand. I have a phone to make calls when I want, ignore texts and calls when I want, and take pictures when I want. I do sometimes use the internet stuff when on a road trip. I use the calender to schedule patient appointments. Video? Never. I spent most of my life working up to a large screen HDTV--- why would I want to watch anything on a 2x4" screen? People who are more aware than average do not need constant sensory input. "A ShaoLin priest is one with himself." People who substitute tech for higher brain functions will be mystified. ;)

I don't even own a bread machine.

Sometimes I ride my bike, sometimes I don't. Would you or your "ShaoLin priest" approve of such a radical concept?

Absolutely. It's like other passtimes. As long as you're doing them, you're probably fine. It's when THEY start to do you that you get into trouble. :)

Tough Audience.

Probably the wrong time to say that I sometimes ride without fenders or... underwear :eek:

Though I do own of set of each.

But do you post rants about how you HATE underwear or fenders, or about your issues with the people who use or even own them? Are you somebody special because you don't use these items? That is the ticket to being one of the CRAZY people!

this whole thread has a "41-like" quality to it - I request that the moderator move it

Or the 70's. In my youth I was hooked on riding, and eventually racing. At age 14 or so I really upped my riding. 30-50 mile rides. Didn't even carry a spare tube or pump. Didn't have an ID.

When I graduated to sew-ups and racing, then I carried a spare tire and pump. Still no ID. Often I would be 20-30 miles from home with just a banana and a dollar bill in my back pockets.

I easily logged 15,000 miles between the ages of 14-20, not carrying an ID, a dollar or two in my pocket, and a spare tire under the seat. Never was stranded. Never even crossed my mind that it could happen. And all those miles, never wore a helmet, no one did.

At the age of 20 and still a Senior 2, I gave up on the racing. I figured I was too old.

There may be some nuggets of truth but when you think about it they're just common knowledge sprinkled in to give you the feeling of credibility. Such as "being inaccessible" as part of the attraction of a wilderness trek. It's a common carnival con tactic.

Most of Castaneda is half-baked philosophy dispensed awkwardly by the plot of an obvious charlatan playing off a rather dim-witted traveling companion. I read it as a satire of the general genre.

I don't particularly recommend anything by Castaneda, but if that's your thing I suggest "Dr. Who" as a superior alternative.

What this has to do with phones, I dunno. I think they make great e-readers and I simply turn them to silent when I don't want to be interrupted.

TImes change. Everyone had Schrader valves and gas station air was free. There also used to be tire repair equipment at each one, where a patch and some glue was handed out free if the mechanic's trainee was asked nicely.

A dollar also went a pretty long way, most certainly buying a pop, candy bar and small bag of chips, and still leaving you left with the dime needed to make a phone call, if needed. Phone booths were everywhere, and you probably didn't take your life into your hands to accept a ride from a stranger.

Correct, though I suspect you meant Reagan.

Did I imply otherwise?

The hyperlink label was taken from the cited website automatically by the forum software; I merely pasted a link to an article on the Financialsprout website.

This was a fun read.

I am most often riding with a pannier, and this gargantuan smartphone slides nicely into the pocket inside. Gargantuan for a cell phone but very small compared to my DSLR kit and surprisingly functional. I never use it for phone calls/texts on the road but wouldn't hesistate to use it for directions if I ever needed them. I would be thankful for them if i needed directing...

That said- i feel very free when I ride with no panniers, no keys, no phone, no spares, no helmet, no underwear, no fenders; just a pair of gym shorts and a rudimentary machine between my free-to-breathe legs. (...ok MAYBE shoes)

That's weird, just Shaolin priests are one with themselves? I've always considered myself one, not more than one, with myself and not someone else! I would think everyone would be like that, except those with schizophrenia.

[MENTION=205284]rekmeyata[/MENTION] nothing about that quote implies exclusivity, and I think you're feigning ignorance for the sake of a joke.

Is the meaning of that quote genuinely lost on you? Are you trying to ridicule it's application here?

Searching for meaning in your post and coming up short...

Jimmie65, you apparently enjoy communicating with others and using the Internet while riding, but some of us have absolutely no need whatsoever for a wireless communication device. That’s likely hard for someone like you to comprehend, but some of us are from the old school when such devices didn’t even exist and you know what; we still totally enjoyed riding without such devices bacn then (and some of us still do)!

In my case, a wireless communication device is useless ballast, as the satisfaction that I derive from my rides, even my 250-mile mountain rides, are via no means of Internet communication, no communication with virtually useless family members, and my friends are located too many states away to be of any assistance. My satisfaction is derived from being entirely self-reliant and still managing to accomplish the intended distances. Not being able to look things up due to unforeseen circumstances has added greater adventure by providing unusual discoveries to my rides. For instance, when a bridge was out of commission nearly 38 miles into my 200-mile ride, by looking around the general area I discovered two relatively nearby tunnels that saved the day! That was a wonderfully exciting discovery and I’ve since used those two tunnels several times on additional rides. It didn’t require the Internet, family members, or friends.

A phone, for no other reason than calling 911 if and when needed, is an essential tool, much like a pump and spare tube. You can choose to ignore making use of modern technology and decide to crawl out of the woods on your belly in an effort to find help, should you break a leg or develop a significant head injury, but many of us have had such emergencies and were quite glad we had our phones with us.

Having a tool doesn't force one to use it, not having a tool removes the option to use it.

I enjoy the irony of self professed Luddites boasting of their electronic abstinence on an internet forum.