Is drinking PBR required to be an "urban cyclist"?

So yeah, last night I rode out to meet a buddy for a beer, and a fellow in the bar commented to me how the lack of clipless pedals and the "loud" lighting on my road bike precludes me from being a true cyclist. Also, he mentioned that I ordered a Newcastle instead of PBR, so I wasn't "keeping it real".

I didn't want to get into a whole debate with the guy because since he had obviously had a few too many PBRs, the discussion would go nowhere. I did ascribe the pedals and the lights to the same factor, my almost getting hit by cars in the past. My bike does have SPDs, but I choose to ride with the adapters on them so I don't have to lock my feet to the pedals as doing that makes me nervous about close calls with cars. The lights are somewhat obnoxious I guess, but they have the same effect as that laser bike lane thing, so for me, the tradeoff is a good one.

The one thing I couldn't even counter on, was that not drinking PBR makes me a fraud as a cyclist. Most of my bike-related choices are very pragmatic, I don't drink PBR not to make a political or social statement, I just happen to prefer various other beers. Not to knock anyone who enjoys that beer of course, I just didn't realize it was such a hot button for some people.

So then, should one compromise a bit to be official in the cycling community, or was my next-stool neighbor last night just a blue ribbon snob?

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Permalink Reply by Joe Studer 8.0 mi on February 18, 2009 at 9:58am
I presume by "loud" lighting the guy was talking about your Down Low Glows. I think those things are fantastic. My wife rocks a set (in hot pink) on her bike. Having those makes you an urban biker by definition, even if you live out in the middle of Wyoming. But for the hassle of having to remove them when I lock up, I'd use them every day when I ride to work.
Permalink Reply by Vondo on February 18, 2009 at 12:46pm
Yeah, it had to be the DLGs, they do draw attention though, which to me riding at night, is ALWAYS a good thing. Anything I can do to minimize odds of being hit by cars.

Joe said:
I presume by "loud" lighting the guy was talking about your Down Low Glows. I think those things are fantastic. My wife rocks a set (in hot pink) on her bike. Having those makes you an urban biker by definition, even if you live out in the middle of Wyoming. But for the hassle of having to remove them when I lock up, I'd use them every day when I ride to work.
Permalink Reply by Vondo on February 18, 2009 at 2:56pm
It runs on a rechargeable nickel metal hydride battery that is included. I get about three to three and a half hours at full brightness per charge, then it starts dimming. It is a bit pricey though, if i remember right it ran about $120. More info at rockthebike.com

BK said:
This is the first I've heard of the DLG. I found a couple of YouTube clips on them and they look pretty convincing. I'm lazy, Vando, what was the $, what kind of batteries power it, and how much run time will you get out of your batteries? Thanks.
Vando said:
Yeah, it had to be the DLGs, they do draw attention though, which to me riding at night, is ALWAYS a good thing. Anything I can do to minimize odds of being hit by cars.

Joe said:
I presume by "loud" lighting the guy was talking about your Down Low Glows. I think those things are fantastic. My wife rocks a set (in hot pink) on her bike. Having those makes you an urban biker by definition, even if you live out in the middle of Wyoming. But for the hassle of having to remove them when I lock up, I'd use them every day when I ride to work.
Permalink Reply by Jason Ward on February 19, 2009 at 6:55am
Doesn't having brakes make you not a real cyclist these days too?
Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on February 19, 2009 at 8:16am
No, that makes you not a dead cyclist these days.

START SARCASM
Oh snow, how I missed you!
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Jason Ward said:
Doesn't having brakes make you not a real cyclist these days too?
Permalink Reply by Jon on February 19, 2009 at 8:35am
I heard having handlebars that are longer than than the width of both your hands makes you not a real cyclist too.
Permalink Reply by Vondo on February 19, 2009 at 12:34pm
And if you have drop bars, they have to be at least a foot lower than your saddle, mandatory, son.

Jon said:
I heard having handlebars that are longer than than the width of both your hands makes you not a real cyclist too.
Permalink Reply by Kyle on February 27, 2009 at 9:22am
I hate PBR. I think it tastes like piss. I would rather pay the extra two bucks for the New Castle. Good Call. I don't get it either. I honestly think trust fund college kids drink it to feel cool. I mean, like whatever you want, but to seriously enjoy PBR I feel like you have to have brain damage.

this kid sounds like he just had too much to drink. ha.

-kyle
Permalink Reply by GabeW (not the other Gabe) on February 27, 2009 at 11:41am
ok, enough about the pbr, what I want to know is was your Newcastle served room temp? Last time I ordered one they gave me a cold bottle with a chilled glass. Morons.
Permalink Reply by Vondo on February 27, 2009 at 12:16pm
Not to get too OT, but this is a good question. It is hard to get the ideal temp for beer. Too cold and the taste kinda flattens out, too warm and most people find it unpalatable. Purists say "real" ale should be at what they call "cellar storage temperature", which is colder than room temp but not as cold as a typical beer from the fridge.

To answer your question, the Newcastle was served cold. Not to blame the barkeep though as most people would send a beer that is just cool back. They have to serve it that way because in the US, mainstream drinkers prefer their beers and ales colder. For the record, this is so pervasive that I have just learned to enjoy my Newcastle cold. I may not dig PBR but I'm not a total beer snob either. :)

GabeW (not the other Gabe) said:
ok, enough about the pbr, what I want to know is was your Newcastle served room temp? Last time I ordered one they gave me a cold bottle with a chilled glass. Morons.
Permalink Reply by GabeW (not the other Gabe) on February 27, 2009 at 12:32pm
I only ask because I used to wrench on an old MG midget (how I miss that car) and would enjoy a newcastle in the hot summer garage. I used to joke that the reason British beers were served warm was because Lucas (company that made the electrics for british cars) also made refrigerators.

And their vacuum - only thing Lucas made that didn't suck.

Now were really off topic.

But your right, cold is king in the US.
Permalink Reply by S on February 27, 2009 at 1:52pm
GabeW (not the other Gabe) said:
But your right, cold is king in the US.

I think that's because it doesn't really matter or even helps when drinking Bud, Miller, or Coors. They don't really have any taste so there's nothing to get hidden when they are served chilled.

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