funny the same question is going on in the road forum as well. same answer-- it's way easier to wash the stank out of a cap than it is a helmet. they look dorky off the bike, but... who cares?

The caps in this thread are fine since they're fashionable and don't necessarily scream "cyclist." Now the elastic ones with the cardboard brims (ala Snipes) kinda look stupid off the bike, partially cause they're always rocked brim up. Brims up are just way too Cali '89.

hey everybody...i just got back from a 50ish mi ride

the brim on my cycling cap was turned up
sleeveless cotton t-shirt
wore my mtb shorts without chamois & went commando

don't any of you fixie fashionistas dare try telling me that what i had on was not only functional in this heat but looked dam fine too or i will thlap you thilly...

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...C/100_4136.jpg

watch out or i might just xpost this in the newly repopularized "buying cycling clothes " thread just so i can say commando again :D

Oh dang, my caps work great to keep the sun out of my eyes. I also soak my cap on hot days which works just like a radiator or swamp cooler for my dome and works great. Also keeps the rain out too and bugs while touring.

The two that I have both have a thin piece of plastic for the bill (fabric edges wore through) and warped badly the first time I ran it through the wash. I can't remember if I ran it through the dryer or not - most likely the latter which would explain the warpage. Note to self, hang dry from now on.

My head is far too big and I have way too much hair to wear cycling caps. Angie made me an extra huge one once and it looked like I was wearing a giant salad bowl with a tiny visor on my dome.

Cycling beanie? :p

That's why I wear a skirt.

same here.

I think cycling caps are pretty cool; that being said I can't wear them. I have way too much hair.

i'm not necessarily offended. i just think the question was really getting at something other than cycling apparel.

if a cycling cap indicates some sort of accomplishment (like your boston marathon example), then maybe you shouldn't be wearing it. if it says "nacc 2009" and you didn't participate, then you probably shouldn't be wearing it. but who's to prevent you if you are?

i still find it odd with this binary roadie/ssfg talk. i wear the same damn cycling cap when i'm riding a stupid ss/fg around town as when i'm tooling on my road bike. really, the cycling cap is the least of your worries. why perpetuate that? don't assume people are static one-bikers (this isn't really aimed at you, just a general gripe).

but really, why don't you get more involved with your local cycling scene? everyone starts somewhere. sometimes i feel like this forum attracts people who are too afraid to meet people who ride bikes in their respective areas...

wore a cycling cap today, tilted down and angled right it blocked the sun until it was gone :D then it was a pro at grabbing all my sweat from dripping on me for the rest of the ride. my head is massive though so it looks something like scrod is mentioning, only I don't have dreads as an excuse

I wear one backwards under my helmet, it absorbs sweat and keeps it out of my eyes. Also the brim covers the back of my neck from the sun. I buy the cheapos from nashbar because they get pretty nasty after a few rides

I wait until I'm placing an order at realcyclist or something then add a few of the $5-$10 so I don't have to pay to ship them. got a really cool castelli one for $3.99 last time I had to order some bib shorts

I don't generally like people very much. I don't mean that as a joke. I guess I'm a smug jerk like that. I'm not looking to make friends or meet new people. I don't have enough time to hang out with my current friends and do all the things I want to do.
About a year ago my little sister was murdered. Sorry to lay that on you guys, pretty heavy stuff, but I don't trust anyone anymore unfortunately.

I ride because it makes me feel like a kid again. I'm only 30, but riding a bike instantly takes me back to the days when you could call up your buddies or go to their house and say "hey, let's ride bikes" and that was all the entertainment you needed.
I also ride because it's faster than driving (most of the time), parking is easier to find, it's a good workout, and it's fun. I only have one bike, mostly because I don't have room in my apartment for more than one (my wife has one too). I live in a flat metro area so a SS fits the bill perfectly, so that's what I ride.
I also like working on bikes and tuning them and all that. But yeah, long story short, I don't really ride to make friends or meet people and so I don't typically get involved in group rides or whatever. I enjoy the Tour De Fat that comes to town every summer, but that's about as far as I go. For now. I'll think about it and maybe try to get more involved - any suggestions on places to start? Critical Mass or what?

this.

Wore a cycling cap today on my 5 mile run. No gears FTW!
Modern Hincapie one.
I wore it brim down.

So?

Well, for starters you could go on a ride with me and jimmytango and see if it clicks. :D But beyond that there are SOOO many different cycling groups in Chicago. The Chainlink is one place to find any variety of rides/meetups/etc., and their monthly bar nights are pretty fun.

The Chainlink events aren't totally inclusive because they refuse to let you promote races other than officially sanctioned ones there, so for example my bike gang couldn't post our alleycat/poker race last month. Technically alleycats are illegal, so I get it, but it's a shame because we're specifically trying to organize events that are not only fun for the messenger types but that are inclusive and don't require running red lights and such to win/participate. Our plans for the summer include a bike-in movie night, something for the week of the Cycle Messenger World Championships, a bike bar hop during Bike Film Festival Chicago, and probably other random "ride your bike to this bar and hang out" type events.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm pushing my crew too much, it's just I happen to know a lot about our kinds of events/hang outs. I'm sure there are lots of other groups of bike people like us throughout the city. CM is fun and a surprising mix of different types of riders. I personally would feel a little intimidated going alone and trying to meet someone but I can be surprisingly shy sometimes.

Cyclocross is also SUPER fun and a really great group of people, if you're ever interested in that and can make room for another bike. :)

But don't feel like you have to get involved if you don't want to -- I totally have more friends than I can make time for and I know how that is. #humblebrag :) But there is a really cool cycling "scene" in Chicago, much as I hate using that word. Most people that I've met are about as far from being snobby/judgey ******** as you can get, even if they look like your typical hipster fixie d00ds/chicks. One of the things I love about my friends is that some of them (like me) are reaaaallly into bikes, but a lot of them are just people that happen to ride for transportation or fun and it isn't any more than that. It's a nice mix.

Edited to add: Oh, if you're on Twitter, my friend runs the account @ChicagoHoldup which posts about bike events. It's kind of messenger/hipster event heavy because my friend is dating a messenger and that's kind of her scene, but we (I help out sometimes) try to post anything we know about. There are a lot of bike peeps on Twitter.

@misskaz - right on. looks like you guys have a lot of fun. and in my neighborhood too haha i opened your link and the very first picture is taken in front of The Bike Lane. I live literally right there just one block down Francis. And then the Boiler Room pics... been there a bit lately too. They sell this slice/pizza called "The Purist" and it's super delicious. I've lived on the same block since 2001. Cool area, but used to be much rougher. Glad it's gotten more fun and enjoyable around there. if you see a very tall skinny guy on a big brown singlespeed with red taped bullhorn bars... wave! =^)

I guess cycling as a group or a team is fun, but a lot of times it's kind of a personal thing for me. Biking in the city is not for joyriding or sightseeing IMHO. I'm on constant alert, looking ahead for doors, peds, jacka$$es, potholes, timing the next light, etc. In the burbs or the country you can leisurely wheel around without much care, but especially since I don't wear a helmet, I don't screw around at all while biking in the city. I guess the most fun I've had biking with others is when I bike with my buddy ken. He rides as fast as I do and we can just tear a$$ around and get where we're going and have fun along the way. A big slow bike parade could be fun too I guess but I feel like people wanna chat. And I don't have much to say.
I have a nice little hammock rig (ENO Singlenest) that packs down to the size of a softball, and it's super adjustable and quick and easy to put up. So a lot of times I bike around with that and after a good long ride or whatever, I find a park with trees and lock the bike up and setup the hammock and just chill for a bit. Maybe some snacks or some sweet sweet ganja. Stuff like that.

Anyone interested in that hammock rig...
http://www.amazon.com/Eagles-Nest-Ou...lenest+hammock
And then the straps...
You need one set of these
http://shop.whoopieslings.com/Whoopie-Slings-AWS.htm
And one set of these
http://shop.whoopieslings.com/Tree-Huggers-TH.htm

Doesn't damage trees and takes literally less than 5 minutes to setup. Hammock packs into itself about the size of a big softball, weighs very little and can go in your sling/pack no problem.

I hear ya dude. That said, I find riding in the city much more enjoyable and it feels safer when in a (smallish, not so big it gets difficult to contain) group. We can more assertively take the lane if necessary, and there are more people watching out for cars and doors and pointing out potholes and the like. We don't screw around, though we do chat and laugh a bit.

Anyway, I love the hammock idea. I've been thinking about a Tiny Fix bike picnic or something this summer. We've done them before on Logan Blvd and it's fun.

(P.S. Love the Purist, the PBJ deal at Boiler Room is the best food/booze combo going in the city that I know of. Also did you know if you use their ATM you should save your receipt b/c you can redeem it for a shot of Jaymo? I pretty much plan on that + a PBJ which gets me nicely tipsy and makes for a cheap and pleasant evening. I can't get too drunk cause I have to ride waaaay north to West Rogers Park at the end of the day.)

Haha yeah I have heard of that Jameson deal. Crazy that they have it on tap there. I'm more of a bourbon guy myself. But yeah, a free shot of whiskey, sure why not.

You made lots of good points about a small group of bikes. 3 or 4 bikes seems like a pretty good size.
I have friends that just bought a house in West Rogers Park. Like 7200 N Western-ish. Still haven't decided on the best way to get there. I usually take Cali or Damen up for a bit then cut over to Clark when it's appropriate.

I guess this thread has gone all over the place... oh well. Lots of good cycling cap info. Perhaps sometime soon we should have a "best dressed" cycling cap contest thread haha, post pics and whatnot.

Kinda already do, although it died pretty shortly after it was posted.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...t=cycling+caps

Yeah, it's annoying because Western is a straight shot but a ****ing death wish to ride on. I usually take Cali or Kedzie, cut over to the North Shore Channel Trail at Lawrence if it makes sense/is daylight (trail isn't that well lit and I don't feel 100% safe on it alone at night). I'm at 6300ish N Rockwell, so just a tad south of your friends. My husband and I own our house, it's awesome but sometimes it sucks being so far north and west. It's kind of a nightmare for public transit.

Yup. Western is a street I just plain don't ride on. No matter what. Just look at how many of those white memorial/ghost bikes are chained up along Western. Many bikers have died on that road. I also don't ride on Ashland. Basically any 4 lane road - I just don't do it. Especially Western and Ashland because drivers do 40+ mph at all times pretty much. I get so p1ssed off when I see bikers on those streets. It's so unsafe and IMO should just not be done. There are always alternate routes.