|
Very much so. Or who is starting an attack
|
Originally Posted by practical
(Post 18439804)
It's too bad that mirrors got the bad "fred" rap. Certainly early mirrors did not work well, but today since there are so many that do work well, I believe everyone should use one. Help make mirrors "cool" but using one yourself.
Originally Posted by datlas
(Post 18440115)
I think a true Fred likes the "take a look" mirror mounted to eyeglasses or helmet.
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
(Post 15468661)
I use both left and right rearview mirrors, in my case Take-a-Look eyeglass mounted ones… The additional right hand mirror affords a pretty good rearward view, but is particularly useful for:
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
(Post 9027712)
… I thought: certainly there are the roadies, who are indeed “Beautiful People” and are splendid in their spandex and peletons; and there are Freds, kind of clunky but sincere and loveable. But there is IMO, a large segment of noble cyclists, e.g. tourists and commuters who are neither BP’s nor Fred’s, but certainly serious cyclists….
…my manifesto is, "I am not a Fred you are not a Fred, we ought not be treated this way". So I propose a new name, currently applied to frequent business travelers—ROAD WARRIORS. I AM A ROAD WARRIOR—think Mel Gibson… IMO, the society which exalts roadies and scorns road warriors will have roads only built for cars. |
Originally Posted by Hypno Toad
(Post 18440168)
I would like to submit this photo for reference for the Fred conversation.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=496973 Missing the mirror, otherwise complete-Fred. This picture is one of a person proud of his bike, not a 'Fred'. Fred is indeed dead...RIP. |
Is this thread about disc breaks?
|
Wait, who is dead?
|
Originally Posted by Rollfast
(Post 18441250)
I would submit that photo in a 'great looking bike' thread myself. The Nuclear Yellow jacket alone is no big deal. If you don't favor mirrors or whatever, leave the subject alone. It's not the Bike Forums Way. I won't do it, even if I have poked fun at it in the past in some fashion. Wear and use whatever you please as long as it doesn't cause problems for others in traffic and your path.
This picture is one of a person proud of his bike, not a 'Fred'. Fred is indeed dead...RIP. I hope you know I'm making fun of myself while making the same point as you (that's the Hypno Toad in the yellow jacket). I honestly have no *****s to give about Fred or anti-Fred. I see too many riders get hung up on "the right look" and "the right bike". I've laughed out loud at 'cyclists' looking down their noses at me (reference the yellow jacket and orange bike) while talking at stop lights. I had a B-Group do this to me on my PM commute one day, I kept with them for about 2 miles, at the next stop light, they had some new respect. Me... I'm a chameleon with bikes, some days I'm a Fred, some days I'm a lycranaut, some days I'm a hipster, some days I'm a lumberjack, some days I'm riding in a suit on a Divvy.... So what?! Ride what you love, don't judge what works for others, and enjoy the ride. |
I was taught that a Fred the guy who shows up with the best gear but can't ride - $300 helmet on backwards, titanium clipless pedals but doesn't clip in the whole ride, Dura Ace but stays in one gear, etc.
|
1 Attachment(s)
Originally Posted by TimothyH
(Post 18441337)
I was taught that a Fred the guy who shows up with the best gear but can't ride - $300 helmet on backwards, titanium clipless pedals but doesn't clip in the whole ride, Dura Ace but stays in one gear, etc.
At the risk of being a total a-hole... So this guy qualifies as Fred for you: http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=497048 It appears both definitions are 'correct': fred 1) n. a person who spends a lot of money on his bike and clothing, but still can't ride. "What a fred -- too much Lycra and titanium and not enough skill." Synonym for poser. Occasionally called a "barney". 2) n. a person who has a mishmash of old gear, does't care at all about technology or fashion, didn't race or follow racing, etc. Often identified by chainring marks on white calf socks. Used by "serious" roadies to disparage utility cyclists and touring riders, especially after these totally unfashionable "freds" drop the "serious" roadies on hills because the "serious" guys were really posers. This term is from road touring and, according to popular myth, "Fred" was a well-known grumpy old touring rider, who really was named Fred. (this pic is a screen-capture from my helmet mounted GoPro, I honestly didn't realize what I was seeing until I was well past him. If I'd hit a red light and he caught up, I would have kindly helped him with proper use of the helmet... cause I'm not 100% a d!ck) |
Originally Posted by Hypno Toad
(Post 18440226)
Maybe it's regional, round here, Fred is the dorky utility biker (not the posers, cause posers are posers).
|
Originally Posted by "Fred"
(Post 18441299)
Wait, who is dead?
|
Originally Posted by Hypno Toad
(Post 18441367)
At the risk of being a total a-hole... So this guy qualifies as Fred for you:
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=497048 It appears both definitions are 'correct': Reference - BicycleSource.com (this pic is a screen-capture from my helmet mounted GoPro, I honestly didn't realize what I was seeing until I was well past him. If I'd hit a red light and he caught up, I would have kindly helped him with proper use of the helmet... cause I'm not 100% a d!ck) As for the first definition, that would be a poser, or as BikeSnobNYC calls it: a Nu-Fred. Definitely getting the right "look" according to "the rules" but totally out of their element in every way possible. Mashing a higher gear and appearing totally destroyed while other guys in the group cruise at 18 mph and chat, really blowing themselves up in the first few miles of a 30 mile group ride to show off, riding erratically in a pace line because they've never seen one, etc. I will never accept that this sort of rider can be called a Fred, but for a lot of people, it's completely interchangeable with Poser. I think the important thing here is the we nail it down so that we can continue to classify and put individuals in a box so they seem less human to us, therefore making ourselves feel more important and exclusive. |
Originally Posted by Seattle Forrest
(Post 18440404)
Fred isn't just a term for a certain type of cyclist.
Fred was a guy. Who rode his bike around the world. He was a bit of a weight weenie, tried to ride across the desert, in Syria maybe, bonked and needed help because he didn't bring enough food - to cut down on weight. Story has it the guy won a race he didn't enter in Italy; lots and lots of miles. The Smithsonian had an exhibit dedicated to him. I'd rather be thought of as a guy who rides his bike a lot than as a poseur. Not that there's anything wrong with posing... Fred Birchmore?s Amazing Bicycle Trip Around the World | History | Smithsonian http://www.libs.uga.edu/blog/wp-cont.../04/clr050.jpg |
Originally Posted by WalksOn2Wheels
(Post 18441403)
I think the important thing here is the we nail it down so that we can continue to classify and put individuals in a box so they seem less human to us, therefore making ourselves feel more important and exclusive.
|
What a shame. I didn't even know he was sick.
|
1 Attachment(s)
Originally Posted by indyfabz
(Post 18441479)
What a shame. I didn't even know he was sick.
On a serious note: I'm seriously considering a helmet mirror. Didn't need them or want them in the 80s. But the distractions of cell phones, texting, Facebook, Twitter, etc has changed my mind. Seriously. |
I thought the title was a Harry Potter spoiler.
http://i991.photobucket.com/albums/a...umbrl/Fred.jpg |
Originally Posted by Hypno Toad
(Post 18441367)
|
Originally Posted by f4rrest
(Post 18441032)
a mirror is useful to watch those trying to hold the wheel as you ratchet up the pace. Heheheh.
My bar end mirror is used for watching people behind me on group rides. |
|
Originally Posted by caloso
(Post 18443058)
I thought the title was a Harry Potter spoiler.
http://i991.photobucket.com/albums/a...umbrl/Fred.jpg |
Nobody calls me a Fred. NOBODY!! :mad:
|
Originally Posted by f4rrest
(Post 18441032)
A mirror is useful to watch those trying to hold the wheel as you ratchet up the pace. Heheheh.
I use a Take-A-Look on my (sun)glasses. Feels weird to ride without a mirror these days after more than decade with one. |
Originally Posted by joejack951
(Post 18444209)
On a serious note, when riding with someone of lesser ability than yourself (for everyone here, that means anyone aside from Pros), a mirror is quite useful to help you maintain the max pace that your riding partner can manage. It's very easy to keep constant tabs on their gap to your rear wheel without losing focus on the road ahead.
I use a Take-A-Look on my (sun)glasses. Feels weird to ride without a mirror these days after more than decade with one.
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
(Post 15468661)
I use both left and right rearview mirrors, in my case Take-a-Look eyeglass mounted ones...The additional right hand mirror affords a pretty good rearward view, but is particularly useful:…
Addendum: This past weekend I rode with a companion on a low-riding recumbent three-wheel trike. I just deflected my right-hand mirror slightly downwards so I didn’t have to crane my neck upwards to see him. The left-hand mirror was still in place to monitor rearward traffic. |
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
(Post 18444366)
I had added as an Addendum to my post about wearing two rearview mirrors.
|
Originally Posted by Doctor Morbius
(Post 18444127)
Nobody calls me a Fred. NOBODY!! :mad:
Somebody called me Fred, once. ONCE! GH |
| All times are GMT -6. The time now is 11:00 PM. |
Copyright © 2026 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.