Commitment.
Things just land on our desk in the V-Bunker. This is one of them. Not really knowing what to do with it, it seemed best to share it with our fellow Velominati. @del loves his cycling and @del gets “misty”. Though I don’t know what that means I hope I never get that misty. I’d have to get highly misty to end up with my first tattoo, beside the greasy chainring tattoo I rarely put on my right calf.
VLVV, Gianni
After a great ride out I conform to the Rules to the best of my ability, however on this one occasion I appear to have misinterpreted these Rules slightly. What should of been Rule #93 seems to have joined forces with Rule #47 resulting in me not conforming to Rule #52. As you can imagine things started to get a little misty, I have always wanted some more ink (tattoo for those not down with the kids) and I have always struggled with what to have done. I didn’t want the normal stuff you see, I wanted it to be bike related.
It was during the misty moment that I had my flash of inspiration. The Rules book caught my eye. That cool orange glow got me. I wanted the V and the cog on my leg. However I wanted to take it one rotation further, so the following day I knew I had to follow Rule #81. I went to my fellow cyclist who also happens to be a tattoo artist and set him this challenge. I explained that my legs were my machines for cycling and that I wanted the V and the orange cog incorporated into the design.
After six hours of me repeating Rule #5 to myself in my head I was done, All I need to say is Rule #72.
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The only people who don't like tattoos are the people that don't like them. Same goes for polo shirts, walk shorts, moustaches and lift heels. But I'm not going to waste my time telling people who don't share my taste in those things that I don't approve, because everyone is different and I'm not so damned arrogant as to believe my taste is superior to anyone else's.
I can imagine this same conversation as carbon fiber was taking over. Or masseusses after a stage. Or the first video coverage of your favorite tour.
@Uncle V
Completely agree and here we have the (Specialized!?) crux of the issue. People with tats can't remove them like an EPMS or buy a new lid to stop their head looking like a piece of fruit. They are stuck with it.....and thats what everyone said to them when they first extolled the virtues of tats. So they have painted themselves into a corner and thats why the defensive stance when someone says they're shit. If anyone here is surprised that personal opinion has but put forward I question how long they've been visiting the site. The problem again is that they can make most of the changes to fit it (herd followers?) but those permanent choices can't be hidden, removed or forgotten.
By by all means have tats...it's personal choice. But if you get criticised be the tough guy you project and take it in the chin. Don't bitch like a little girl.
Something to sidetrack this conversation and bring it back to a more filosophical level (we all deserved that):
Non-conformist cycling behaviour in the Netherlands Cyclists behaving badly - understanding cyclist disobedience in Amsterdam
and Why the Dutch ride bikes
@Teocalli
Agreed.
@Velonail
Look pal, I've been around here (on and off) for a long time and I totally get that we give each other shit about various things. But how people look and how they choose to adorn themselves is their business - how would you feel if someone made personal remarks about how you looked? Your squinty eyes? Your balding head? Your shapeless calves?
Give a guy shit about his crank placement in a photo or his EPMS or his too-short socks, but I think your comments about a dude proudly showing off his tattoo are well fucking out of order and, more, totally fucking unnecessary.
Anyway, I think I've (repeatedly) made my point, and arguing with jerks just makes me look even worse than I am, so I'll shut up now. Perhaps you could follow suit.
@davidlhill
+1
It amazes me how people without tattoos can speculate (pontificate?) on how people with tattoos feel about having them or the reasons behind getting them!
I got my first two over a decade ago on my 18th birthday. Since then I've added quite a few more. The collection would be larger still if I hadn't started riding. Virtually all of my discretionary income, which isn't much, goes to the bike. I'm smart enough to keep them below my collar bone and above my wrists, but all but one is visible on a ride (and in hot conditions I might unzip my jersey on a climb, and well, there it is).
At our season-end club party this year, I found out that they've actually been a helpful identifier. You can't always ID a bike in a paceline, and riding with everyone in the same kit isn't terribly helpful, but when it came to meeting people, I'm "the guy with all the tattoos".
Why would you refuse to ride with someone who's been tattooed? Does it offend your delicate sensibilities or do you just feel threatened by some hooligan who clearly has lost his moral compass and might stab you? Doesn't matter to me because I'd fucking bury you anyway on the first climb.
Hi all,
I don't often chip in here, usually happy to lurk in the background but feel I need to throw in...
None of this really matters, get out and ride your bikes instead of venting (either way) on this forum... it's what we all need...
I barely caught this last comment, suggesting that I [ or we ] have postponed real cycling to stay online and fuss virtually about a tattoo. I plan to go cycling shortly after my daily task of looking at this website.