As a kid I always thought spandex or whatever bike riders were huge dorks who got scammed into wasting their money. If you’re driving around your home area a few times a month (or even week) I doubt that you’re anywhere near good enough that your clothing matters this much.

Similar with people who suck at guitar but own a $3000 Gibson or whatever. I feel like good equipment while you’re bad just makes you look like a joke. Perhaps this is a blue collar ethic though

> If you’re driving around your home area a few times a month (or even week) I doubt that you’re anywhere near good enough that your clothing matters this much.

From the social signaling angle, being clipped in and wearing spandex also says "this ride cannot possibly be for transportation," because it's quite impractical to go anywhere but back to your house dressed like that.

The performative act of being seen while doing an activity is more important than the activity itself for these folks.

I see it all the time while out hiking. The group of 20/30 somethings who just went to REI, spent $300 on an outfit to go hike 3-4 miles while downing a couple beers. No trail etiquette, only there for the appearance. It's truly wild.

By the same token, you cannot avoid making a statement. Just by being at a place and doing a thing, you're expressing some kind of value judgement. Like when I'm wearing office clothes on my bike, I'm saying, "this is a perfectly valid mode of transportation for a commuter."

Likewise, the guy who wears ordinary casual clothing on a hike is saying, "let's enjoy the nice place we've walked to," instead of "I'm on an adventure, just look at my gear!"

It is a pity that English doesn't have the distinction between people riding bicycles and people riding in lycra, the Dutch Fietser vs Wielrenner

That's a good distinction -- perhaps I'll start calling them wheel-runners. It might catch on.

And to be fair to wheel-runners, it could be that what I'm reading as haughty disregard is actually the same kind of abstraction one sees in foot runners, a kind of meditative absorbtion in the experience of exercise. This might also explain why they appear unable to see stop signs.