That's so Bay Area... (Oakland, Berkeley: eat, suburbs, yard)

[ketch89]

Originally Posted by clongirl

One thing that drives me a bit crazy about some Bay Areans (and not much else does, really), is that anyone/and everyone that rides a bicycle looks like they're pros. You know, they all have the little speedo pants,the most expensive and fancy bike gear, and look like they're racing in a sponsored competition all the time. Whatever happened to just tucking your jeans in your pant leg and having fun?

Get out of your suburb there are plenty of normal people that ride bicycle in SF, SJ, Oakland, and Berkeley

[04kL4nD]

Originally Posted by sliverbox

I love wine but many people assume that good wine has to cost a lot of money or come from boutique producers. I've had wine that was excellent which only cost $3. Wine is made in abundance here so no need to pretend its all special and so on.

This is so true. It's funny, I've been wine tasting all over in places inside and outside of CA like Washington State, Oregon, Arizona, North Carolina, etc I always think it's hilarious that they they try to get away with $50+ for a bottle of their local vintage, which usually isn't anything special. Do they assume that if they list ad outrageous price, people will automatically think that it's great quality and worth the cost?

Sorry, but I can go to Trader Joe's and buy a mass-produced $5 of wine that tastes a million times better than what they're offering. So can everyone else across the country...

[pch1013]

Originally Posted by ketch89

Get out of your suburb there are plenty of normal people that ride bicycle in SF, SJ, Oakland, and Berkeley

Yep. Few of the bicycle commuters I see match that stereotype. For one thing, no one in their right mind would ride a high-end road bike downtown, at least not without a secure place to park it.

[04kL4nD]

Pretty sure the people riding expensive bicycles with the racing gear are actually racing enthusiasts and are training for a race...

Usually see them around Lafayette, Berkeley and the Oakland hills in packs.

[pch1013]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

Pretty sure the people riding expensive bicycles with the racing gear are actually racing enthusiasts and are training for a race...

Usually see them around Lafayette, Berkeley and the Oakland hills in packs.

Or they're just "training" for their next KOM on Strava. Like that guy who killed a pedestrian at Castro & Market.

[04kL4nD]

Not sure about you, but I don't think I could cycle up and down Grizzly Peak or Canyon road without hurting myself, and I'm in semi-decent shape. Maybe some of them are just fronting, but most seem to be in pretty good shape. I don't typically see these people cruising around the flats of Oakland, Berkeley, etc...

[pch1013]

Last year at this time I was training for a big fundraising bike ride from SF to LA. I hadn't ridden a bike in years, but like anything else, you start slowly and build up. Eventually I was able to tackle the biggest hills without keeling over.

[04kL4nD]

Well, another thing to consider is the demographics. Most of these people are white, 30-50 years old, and obviously have money to spend on an expensive racing bike and designer riding gear. Not really shocking to find them using their bikes in the aforementioned areas.

[mayorhaggar]

- Techie people who act like everyone in the Bay Area is in IT and makes over $100,000 a year, and are shocked when you tell them you make more like $35,000. Also they insist that it's so easy to get a 100k+ job in IT, even though they have PhD's from Berkeley.

Originally Posted by socalinnorcal

I personally love chain restaurants. Wish we had more of them.

You enjoy heartburn and gas? Ok.

[pch1013]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

white, 30-50 years old,

That would be me But I bought my road bike on Craigslist and my gear on eBay. Very Bay Area of me, I know.