Utility vs. Sport
Because I bike everywhere and that is odd to many people, I get a lot of odd questions.
Explaining the difference between utility cyclist and sport cyclist has gotten old. So I’ve just started playing dumb and asking them if they do this when they drive:
Just for the fun of making them explain the difference between a utility motorist and a race car driver.
And on a related note
http://kentsbike.blogspot.com/2012/09/so-i-went-automobile-shopping.html
There are good alternatives to race style clothing out there. I’ve done multi-week tours wearing Schoeller fabric pants / shorts by Swrve and Outlier and Merino wool shirts from Outlier and Ibex. Found the attire very comfortable and did not experience chaffing.
These were credit card tours. I especially liked being able to go into restaurants without becoming an instant curiosity.
The beauty of riding an electric bike is that you can choose your level of effort (irrespective of the terrain or wind) – you can put enough effort in to keep warm but can avoid getting hot and sweaty (so you can commmute in your work clothes). It’s brilliant!
This is the future of bike riding for utility trips. Anyone can do it, you don’t have to be a ‘cyclist’.
Flip-flops, clogs. Riding in whatever shoes you have saves you a lot of money in the winter, because winter “biking shoes” are fantastically expensive (I did once buy a pair, back before I knew better).
And I did buy myself some new boots today, and I did have biking in mind when I bought them — which means, I wanted them to look nice enough, fit well, not be too heavy, and have room for nice warm socks.