Culture
Charity rides are a common way for recreational cyclists to participate in long, organized rides. As a participant, you do good, while also creating a domain of cycling culture for a day or weekend. And it's this last aspect -- the creation of a temporarily cycling-centric world -- that I think makes these rides and events so appealing, interesting, and memorable.
When you sign up for one of these rides, the fund-raising that is required begins to shift you almost imperceptibly into the domain of cyclist vs. non-cyclist. It's a gentle nudge consisting of priorities, focus, and goals. You become a little different, a little distinct and monotonous in your focus. You have a date on a calendar that others don't, and you are tracking totals and training to that date.
Donors are often sympathetic to the cause the ride is supporting, so they donate, but they are not typically cyclists, so the point of commonality is the cause, not the cycling. This is all for the good, but begins to demarcate where the cause ends and the cyclists begin. It becomes clearer and clearer as the ride approaches that the donors will be independent of the event, while the cyclists are committed to riding on a specific date, and training for that event.
As the date approaches, the cycling culture around the event becomes stronger and stronger. Often, if it's a well-known ride, you begin to see jerseys from prior years on riders during morning commutes or weekend training rides; you get shouts of encouragement from friendly drivers and joggers; and the bike shops are filled with riders making preparations and getting their machines tuned. The momentum is building, and the cycling culture is emerging.
If the ride is a single-day event, the "event horizon" is fairly short -- usually, about 24-48 hours, with smaller pieces occurring farther out during training rides and perhaps some related events, such as team picnics or group rides. If the charity ride is a longer, weekend or full week event, the event horizon is usually much deeper. In fact, the event horizon is, I think, equal on either side of the ride to the length of the ride. So, for a single-day event, the day before and the day after the ride will usually be consumed with aspects of preparing or recovering from the ride. For a 2-day event, the entire event -- pre-event, event, and post-event activities and immersion -- will last about 6 days, given the approximate event horizon on either side. And for a full-week ride, the ride's effects can last about 3 weeks.
During the ride, and within the event horizon, you get to experience a culture in full that we, even as cyclists, only see fleetingly otherwise -- it is the cycling culture, manifest as hundreds of people with helmets, bikes, and cleated shoes all bringing the same traits together independently to form a cohesive picture of a culture. Diets and customs are similar. Gels, bars, and PB&Js are compared with often ribald remarks. Normal indications of social rank and many signals of cultural status are obliterated, so people are simply cyclists. They talk about the hills, the wind, the events on the road. They complain about their seats, or recount flats, spills, or great descents. They talk about past or planned events. They are tired, hungry, and thirsty, so everything is a bit more mellow. There's a lot of laughter and genuine discussion. It's a good culture.
It's tempting to wish the our dominant culture were more like cycling culture, and in some ways, I wish that were the case. But, instead of wishing for an ocean of cycling culture, I'll enjoy the lakes and ponds I find, and wade in whenever I can.
When you sign up for one of these rides, the fund-raising that is required begins to shift you almost imperceptibly into the domain of cyclist vs. non-cyclist. It's a gentle nudge consisting of priorities, focus, and goals. You become a little different, a little distinct and monotonous in your focus. You have a date on a calendar that others don't, and you are tracking totals and training to that date.
Donors are often sympathetic to the cause the ride is supporting, so they donate, but they are not typically cyclists, so the point of commonality is the cause, not the cycling. This is all for the good, but begins to demarcate where the cause ends and the cyclists begin. It becomes clearer and clearer as the ride approaches that the donors will be independent of the event, while the cyclists are committed to riding on a specific date, and training for that event.
As the date approaches, the cycling culture around the event becomes stronger and stronger. Often, if it's a well-known ride, you begin to see jerseys from prior years on riders during morning commutes or weekend training rides; you get shouts of encouragement from friendly drivers and joggers; and the bike shops are filled with riders making preparations and getting their machines tuned. The momentum is building, and the cycling culture is emerging.
If the ride is a single-day event, the "event horizon" is fairly short -- usually, about 24-48 hours, with smaller pieces occurring farther out during training rides and perhaps some related events, such as team picnics or group rides. If the charity ride is a longer, weekend or full week event, the event horizon is usually much deeper. In fact, the event horizon is, I think, equal on either side of the ride to the length of the ride. So, for a single-day event, the day before and the day after the ride will usually be consumed with aspects of preparing or recovering from the ride. For a 2-day event, the entire event -- pre-event, event, and post-event activities and immersion -- will last about 6 days, given the approximate event horizon on either side. And for a full-week ride, the ride's effects can last about 3 weeks.
During the ride, and within the event horizon, you get to experience a culture in full that we, even as cyclists, only see fleetingly otherwise -- it is the cycling culture, manifest as hundreds of people with helmets, bikes, and cleated shoes all bringing the same traits together independently to form a cohesive picture of a culture. Diets and customs are similar. Gels, bars, and PB&Js are compared with often ribald remarks. Normal indications of social rank and many signals of cultural status are obliterated, so people are simply cyclists. They talk about the hills, the wind, the events on the road. They complain about their seats, or recount flats, spills, or great descents. They talk about past or planned events. They are tired, hungry, and thirsty, so everything is a bit more mellow. There's a lot of laughter and genuine discussion. It's a good culture.
It's tempting to wish the our dominant culture were more like cycling culture, and in some ways, I wish that were the case. But, instead of wishing for an ocean of cycling culture, I'll enjoy the lakes and ponds I find, and wade in whenever I can.
posted by Recycled Cyclist | 7:14 PM
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