Tattoos and cyclists
 

I've noticed that the cyclists that I see are much less likely to have publicly visible tattoos - especially large tats, and sleeve tats - than the general population.

Maybe I'm wrong?

As for myself, I have nothing against tattoos. I just never saw anything that I wanted permanently embedded in my skin.

You need to get out more often.

I think those inclined toward body modifications such as tattoos are more likely to be attracted to spectator sports.

Personally I'm no fan of tattoos, and I find them particularly a turn-off on women. I've seen women with bodies that are themselves a work of art without the tattoos. Why, why why?

On men I find they just look tacky.

But whatever floats yer boat I guess...

The 50+ crowd is a wee bit older than the skin art peak. I got through my 1970s-'80s Navy tour without a tattoo, so I wasn't tempted when they became mainstream over the past 20 years.

Most of the cyclists I meet are my age, so I don't see many tats. The younger folks do tend to have 'em.

Why not chat with a few women and find out whether appealing to a man's sense of body aesthetics is among their primary concerns.

No fan either, to me they seem like human graffiti, but as you say, to each his own. :)

I often have a chainring tat on my calf, but washes off... eventually

My tat says "USDA grade Prime" but it's not where you'll see it.
It's an understatement.

I am with you. My biggest objection is that they are so permanent, in the sense that removal is reportedly an expensive and painful process. Add the chances of getting an infection or worse from someone's needle and my aversion to injecting dye into my skin, and I'll continue to pass.

I have three tats - radiation targets. :D

One look at cycling advertisements and one would think that every cyclists is covered with tatoos. At a minimum, your position in the peloton is directly proportional to the number and complexity of your tatoos. Non-tattooed riders always struggle to keep up.

The stereotypical fully bearded, tatooed man in desperate need of a haircut is sure to appear whenever gravel or trail bikes are brought up.

Specialized is especially fond of advertisements featuring tatooed men in their late twenties.

It all seems divorced from the reality of middle aged and older men with real disposable income looking to get out of the house and get some exercise. My suspicion is that it is all driven by the fantasies of women in the New York City advertising industry.


-Tim-

You're probably right, most are frivolous, childish and tasteless.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sX7X0W44yB...123_091822.jpg
Here's mine.

Marc

I have one. Women cyclists seem to like it, as they comment on it often. One very pretty young lass rode up to me and told me she had been 'admiring' my tattoo. I have to admit it was a boost to my ego. Didn't make the Mrs. very happy.

I think I still have some gravel under my skin ... I really need to keep a sharper eye out for loose gravel in the corners!

Nothing else, though. Probably the result of watching a fellow Marine get a tattoo removed by "derm-abrasion". Basically, they sanded the tattoo off. That was a good lesson that fashion changes and people change their minds about tattoos.


Steve in Peoria

I suspect that the percentage of cyclists sporting tattoos pretty closely matches the general population and age groups.

If there is any difference, it might relate to age. Cycling participation these days is skewed to older folks, and this group aged beyond the primary tattoo years before it became trendy.

Perhaps being stuffed into over-tight lycra and spandex screams out "I am white trash" sufficiently to the world.

Bingo. That and there really isn't any kind of design I like enough to permanently etch it to my skin.

Scars are tattoos with stories. And I have plenty of those.

Nice cycling tatoo. What does the red on the right side signify? Would have been just as good without it, IMO. But everyone's an art critic... :rolleyes:

I also don't see many of my cyclecommuting peeps with tatoos. Maybe more folks in the city might have them. They have been around for at least thousands of years, no?

Edit: More like 12,000 years or more: http://www.powerverbs.com/tattooyou/history.htm

This, 100%.

True story:

Daughter (in first year of college) speaking to my wife and me - "Are you guys really serious about not paying for my school if I get a tattoo?"

Me: "Please, please, please get a tattoo! The money in your 529 accounts is just enough to buy me a brand new Porsche Boxster."

That pretty much ended that conversation.

In all seriousness, I think people should decorate themselves however they wish. However, my wife, who is a virologist and has spent her professional life working with live hepatitis and HIV, is extremely concerned about tattoos from the standpoint of public health and the spread of hepatitis C in particular (which is a lot more robust than HIV and survives in dried blood). There is little if any health regulation of tattoo parlors, and she has successfully convinced me (and hopefully our kids) to stay far away from anything like this, body piercing places, nail manicure places, etc.

Tattoos fade due to an immune response, so there is an issue of long-term side effects from the ink, and although I am unaware of a link between tattoo ink and skin cancer, I am very skeptical from that point of view as well.

I live in California. It's a trick to find people without tattoos, cyclists included.

It is interesting to see the sentiment against tattoos remains constant by age, and not by generation. I'm closer to 50 every day, but still listen to music too loud, and have a few tattoos. If you can't imagine something you'd want on your body permanently, that's fine. But the judging of people that have... that's a bit distasteful, isn't it?

I think mainly an age-gap issue, perhaps regional as well.
I wonder, how many people with tattoos would put that same artwork on their walls at home? Or would they think it was too tacky to be cluttering up a wall in a nice house?
And, it seems to me, that if a person had a choice of losing 50 or a 100 lbs or getting a tattoo, that the 50 lbs would be a way better investment in the cosmetics department. But not everyone thinks that way.

No judgement here, it's just a matter of personal taste (and age I suppose). I know a lot of great people with them and had some great employees with them as well. And of course in some cultures it is routine.

I'm 59, mention tattoo and I visualize an old grizzled Navy vet with an anchor tattoo. About as far an image from a beautiful woman's body as is possible.

Different strokes as they say.

I didn't see any judging of the people. Just saying that they're not fond of the tattoos themselves.

But saying that people doing so is distasteful ... that's judging, isn't it?