erikhaha said:I have been curious about this for a long time. As someone that does not road race or bike, except to get from point A to B, I have often wondered why people wear those tight spandex suits when they are riding. I realize that DURING A RACE they reduce drag, but why wear them when you are just exercising?
It wasn't until Lance Armstrong started getting popular that all these followers wanted to be a rider, they went down to the local bike store bought a bike and all the accessories that will make them look the part. Now you see these asshats everywhere, and the worst part about it is you can tell that 80% of them are not even putting out when they are riding. Another thing, if you are not putting out and trying to get better and faster and you just ride for leisure fine, but tell me why do you wear those tight spandex?
Curious person
1. Even if you are just exercising with no competitive goal in mind, wind drag will take a lot of the fun out of bicycling. Clothes made for bicycling--not all of which is made of 'spandex' by the way--cut down wind drag, allowing one to pedal more easily at a comfortable rate. Bicyclists should push ('crank'😉the pedals at somewhere between 60 and 80 rpms for optimal form; less than that and they risk straining their joints and muscles. Much more than that is beyond the sustained aerobic ability of most 'casual' bicyclists. Clothes that don't impede that cranking rate are a big advantage.
2. If you are putting 10 or 15 miles on a bike several times a week, in an effort to exercise, you need clothes that allow you a range of motion appropriate to your activity. It's the same reason that 'amateur' football players, who play for a neighborhood or church team, nevertheless invest in jerseys, helmets, shoulder pads, etcetera. Cycling clothes not only provide less wind drag, they also let you perspire in a way that keeps you cool; winter cycling clothes are specifically designed to minimize heat loss. Cycling shorts also are often padded, which prevents saddle-soreness and injuries to the genital area. Street clothes can restrict your motion, cause chafing, and may not be suitably cool or warm for extended rides.
3. Cycling is a social activity and there is some degree of 'cliquishness' that encourages regular, active participants to dress similarly. Nothing wrong with that: golfers, baseball players, bingo enthusiasts, and garden club members also often do or wear things that identify themselves as part of a group.
4. To some extent you are simply overgeneralizing. I see lots of bike riders--some who ride every day as their primary mode of transport--who dress in essentially what are normal street clothes. Others just wear gym shorts and a tee shirt. I suspect you are 'seeing' the bicyclists in spandex more readily because you were convinced that 'spandex' is more of an affectation than a practical form of attire. As I pointed out above, 'spandex' serves more than one purpose. And if you go to books on bicycling dating back into the 60's and 70's, when bicycling for health first became popular, you will find that cycling clothes were fashionable even before Lance Armstrong hit the scene.
