I wish I had travel home via Manchester for the smoked salmon und champagne supper now..
But Helen Tither does say what some girlies think und the C+/CW .. fine if you enthuse over racing.. but they not really cater for the fashion conscious follower of fashion.. who .. let face it .. do not really ride to "save the planet" but do so because it the "fashion"
I ride bicycle for fun, leisure/pleasure ..sometimes for charity causes. I live too far from work to make commute by bicycle a viable option time-wise. When mad Doc und self first marry und settle .. I think we cycled to work more as work for us back then a little more "local".. but we progress .. work become further away. It not always practical or right option to "move house" either,... und why should we anyway? We LOVE the "nest" we make together here
But I do think the cycling bug has more to do with "fashionable whim of moment" than concern for planet for many... I not knocking cycling.. but am realistic enough to see human nature for the ephemeral hot air it fart out at times
I think this what worry me a little in this piece.. even though I do identify with some issues all the same
I come across in Manchester press when surfing with Mad Doc the other night for the "interesting"!
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/ ... the_saddleQuote:
Back in the saddle
Helen Tither
8/ 5/2008
CYCLING is in fashion again for the girl about town. Helen Tither goes for a test ride.
Getting on a bike brings back traumatic memories for me - and my parents.
You see, the last bicycle I owned remains covered in cobwebs in their shed, rust creeping over its once gleaming handlebars, spiders spinning a new home in its spokes.
That sad. I own a shopper with the twee wicker basket for groceries. I do have my toy boys though..
the roady.. racy lean guy.. the sturdy mountain bike.. the sassy beachy bike..
.. und the fold up who fit snugly into boot und he sometimes get awoken from slumber to ride off somewhere
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I was 10 when it arrived and in true tomboy style, I'd wanted a mountain bike, or a racer, to give the boys a run for their money. Instead I got a ladies' shopper, complete with cute basket on the front. Imagine my disappointment. And theirs, when I refused to even ride it out of the driveway after they'd saved up to buy it.
I know. parents should listen to und know their children
I do feel sorry for the bike.. being "rejected" though..
Quote:
Ladies' night
So, it was with trepidation I headed down to Evans Cycles on Deansgate to try out their latest models. Cycling is all the rage these days among city centre fashionistas who are queuing up to buy the latest models - with sales of women's cycles and accessories almost doubling at the Manchester branch in the past two years.
So much so that they are hosting a champagne-fuelled dedicated ladies night in-store tonight. The only difference from your average city soiree being the high-tech maintenance demos.
Evans assistant manager Ted Gordon says: "We've seen a massive rise in female shoppers since we opened two years ago.
"A core of those customers are proper road racers - there are a lot of competitive women out there - but others want bikes for commuting or to keep fit."
We all have different reasons for our wheels.
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Commuters
Of course, with environmental concerns on everyone's mind, cycling could soon be the coolest way to get to work and the cheapest should the planned congestion charge become a reality.
Personally, I don't fancy pedalling my way down the motorway to get here - but there are plenty of ladies closer to town who Ted says are swapping four wheels for two.
Motorway a
.. it ist NOT
LEGAL!
Und I am informed that there are plans to turn cycling route 55 into tram line too
if the congestion charge cretins get their way here
That route take half way to Manchester. It allegedly easy then to follow A routes into town instead of negotiating rush hour dash to motorway roundabout or down East Lancs per the relatives.
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"We get a lot of female commuters coming in to try bikes out. In fact, we open early at 8am so they can come and see us before their offices open. I think the eco trend will get bigger and bigger."
So, to choose a bike. What should ladies be looking for in their wheels? Haunted by visions of my old `shopper' I enlist Ted's help in picking out something chic and stylish. Turns out there's quite a lot to consider.
Different design
"Ten years ago women's bikes were just the same as men's but painted pink," he explains. "Now, whole teams of ergonomics designers work on the geometry of them to make them specifically engineered for women.
"For instance, they have shorter cranks so women can reach the pedals, there are special inserts for the handlebar brakes as women's reach is proportionally shorter. And, of course, the saddles are designed differently.
The pink bikes were just silly...
I am tall .. like rest of family .. so I bought a sassy man's bike .. but changed the saddle to something more comfy for me..
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"Overall, we get two kinds of women customers - those looking for something really girly and others who want a no-fuss action bike."
Determined not to go down the girly route, I pick out a racy little mountain bike that I hope will give me a new action girl image. Which means picking up some new clobber as well.
I'm thinking black, Prada-esque jacket, wrap-around shades, and some tough-looking gloves to help me keep my grip as I do wheelies over mud mountains. This could be the start of a whole new thrill-seeking me.
Not black.. Go to charity shoppe. Get lurex sequined shiny cocktail frock .. tailor to top or gilet.. und you have "tasteful garment which "twinkle when hit by dipped or high beam lights"
You then accentuate the "vamp" look with the fishnet tights und the Lupin lights on bike
It get you
noticed alright
I do not think my husband fully approve of this though..
He has to put up und shut up
on this one.
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But wait, as we're just about to leave the shop on our test run, what's that I spy? An old-fashioned Edwardian-looking bike in the corner, complete with retro wicker basket on the front. Absolutely the kind of thing I said I would never ride again but - now I see it - so lovely, in a vintage kind of way. I'm just going to have to try that too.
Mine ist called Dorothea. She just as sassy in her way as my other "male" toys on wheels
Her wicker basket hold lots und she ist sturdy on the hills. Not fast.. but a right solid plodder.
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Smitten
Out in the park and the mountain bike is certainly a winner when it comes to racing round, splashing in the mud and scaring old ladies. But then, the retro shopper is also fun in a demure, ladylike way.
Heavier and slower to ride, it makes you sit up straight while you gently glide around, handbag in your basket. Perfect for nipping out to afternoon tea.
Indeed . und you still wear a nice twee summery dress too. with the peepy -toe pump style shoe which match the dress ..
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Plus, it has a rather fabulous retro bell on the handlebars, which produces a Hyacinth Bucket style ring to scatter the pigeons.
After all those years of leaving my own bike stuck in the shed, it seems I'm smitten with cycling once more.
The only problem is, in true shopaholic style, I'm going to have to splash out on two sets of wheels - one for action-packed weekends, another for when I'm feeling ladylike. Perhaps bikes are like shoes - you can never have too many.
Indeed . you need one for every occasion
with the sassy outfit to match of course.
The full piece also tell us girlies what to look for in bicycle..
We need decent saddle.. shorter und wider und mor padded than a man's. We have even more delicate "bits" after all
Some women have shorter legs .. so frame und bars have to be in -line with all this .. I think everyone must test ride a bicycle to get the right one for them.
Women have smaller hands/narrower shoulders so brake levers need to be positioned nearer to bar.. most bicycles designed for girlies are so .. these days
Shorts.. Ach.. these have been nightmare in past. They have padded inserts instead of looser cut shorts .. which had a mesh insert und were a little ... errr "risque". I prefer a skort.. which ist the lycra short with a feminine frilly which make it look like a feminine skirt.
Shoes. either a trainer or cycling shoes.,. heels are
As when driving .. you wear the flats und change into the killer heels later
But .,,. ja.. bicycles as well as cars are "pals" .. "member of family" even.
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