Bike Snob: Systematically & Mercilessly Realigning the World of Cycling

by BikeSnobNYC

Chances are if you can’t say something calmly you’re probably wrong on some level.

While it’s commonplace to see expensive purebred dogs in cities, it’s rare to see these purebred dogs actually engaged in the activities for which they were bred.

On a given day, you can decide you like, say, eighties hardcore music. You might have woken up that morning not having ever heard a single hardcore song, but after a few hours of search engine jockeying you’ll know more about it than you would have in a year had you actually been living in the eighties and forced to learn about it by experiencing it firsthand. (Experience is totally overrated.) And by the end of the weekend, you’ll have acquired a period-correct wardrobe and maybe even a tattoo to underscore your newfound authenticity and commitment. There’s not a single brand, style, lifestyle, or art form that isn’t readily accessible, and there’s no limit to the energy people have for uncovering new ones in order to appropriate them for the purposes of self-expression.

In America, what people call “culture” is really “style.” That makes the idea of “style culture” especially ridiculous. Style is not culture; it’s the opposite of culture.

When you obstinately make a poor equipment choice in the name of purity you’re not being pure; you’re being reactionary.