Bicycles – meant as a healthy alternative to dino-fuel spewing cars (pfew, yech) have attracted a devoted following and a lot of attention lately as subsets (i.e. recumbents, tri-wheelers, e-bikes) develop and devotees roll with styles all their own.
Our photographers routinely spot these various groups as they pedal or hum around town, bikes decked out with attention-getting lights and sound systems, riders sporting flowing facial hair and glowing tire rims.
Most are harmless, sports and camaraderie-minded riders in search of a good time out in the fresh air. Others are attracting attention for the wrong reason and finding themselves the object of police enforcement programs. As with most things, change is afoot and the image of the California bicyclist – swathed in spandex and locked into clip-clop shoes – may be giving way to a showy new breed.
They look like 40-year-old delinquents that still live at home with their parents!
We’ve enjoyed the good-natured riders with their upbeat tunes cruising through our neighborhood on warm summer evenings. No grumpiness here.