What does your bike say about you.

I am a firm beleiver that you can tell a lot about a person by how their bike is set up, and the gear they use. Sometimes they will fool you if they just bought the bike second hand from someone and haven't had time to modify it to their own personality, but usually you can have a look and learn a lot about the person.



Sometimes this is easy. If you spend enough time at the races you know that single-speeders are a breed of their own. If you can count the number of gears on a bike on one finger, you know you have a special kind of nut on your hands. But there are often more subdle things that you can note, even on a brand new bike. Which accessories if any did the person go in for? Did they go for flashy looking bits on the bike (disc brakes on an entry level bike) or did they stay basic (entry level bike). Did they opt to get all the little safety bits (saddle bag, tube, tire iron, multi tool), or did they shell out for the upgrades that would increase the quality of the ride (clipless pedals). Or did they just walk out with the bike as is? All these things tell you a little about how a person goes about their life.



As the bike ages, you can see what parts get replaced when. Is the bike ridden into the ground or is is kept fresh. How clean in the drive train? How clean is the bike? (By the way I love seeing bikes that are all muddy and dinged up, and then you look at the drive train and it looks like it has been washed with a diaper and lubricated one link at a time) Did the person go in for the latest bit of technology or did they stay with the tried and true.



Most important is the frame material. Seeing a steel hardtail tells you almost as much as seeing only one gear. Ti riders have a similar mentality, but they either have more cash to throw around or they are obsessed with quality. Carbon riders tend to be techno-weenies. Aluminum is either a financial decision or a simple decision that all that other junk isn't worth it, and that aluminum can be made just as light and stiffer anyway. (You will know which from the other parts on the bike)



So what is my point here? Well I just had a scary realization. My son is a much more hard core rider that I will ever be. I checked out his rig the other day, and there were two glaring indicators. "Steel is real" and "No Brakes".