How to Talk to a Conservative about Transportation: What Not to Wear

This post is part of a short series inspired by and responding to How to Talk About Cycling to a Conservative by BikeWalk Virginia’s own Tom Bowden.  Part one, “Defending Europe,” can be found here.

Though Tom Bowden does a fair job of pointing out some of the pitfalls more liberal supporters of cycling stumble into while making the case for cycling and cyclists, he does indulge in one unfortunate stereotype that deserves a little gentle rebutting:

If you must meet a conservative face-to-face, wear a suit! It won’t kill you. Think of it as camouflage – you may find them nodding their heads in agreement even before you open your mouth. Note: Some business suits actually contain trace amounts of Lycra and Spandex.

First, and I don’t necessarily fault Bowden for this, this statement reinforces the idea that the “standard” outfit for a cyclist is lycra and spandex, an assumption I have railed and railed against.  As more and more people ride bicycles for utilitarian reasons – commuting, shopping, errands – or even lighter recreational rides, such as along the various Roanoke Valley greenways, the idea that cyclists are all lycra-clad road warriors is increasingly an outdated stereotype.  People wear what’s comfortable or what’s appropriate for their destination.

Does this suit-wearing man work for a conservative think-tank or a liberal elite university? We may never know. | Wikimedia Commons

Second, and more importantly, is simply this:  not all conservatives wear suits, and not everyone wearing a suit is a conservative.  OK, I admit I’m being a bit nitpicky for what was no doubt intended to be a funny little line, but to the extent that Bowden makes some pretty good points about breaking down the (strange) political barriers that cycling advocates face (and, to Bowden’s point, occasionally reinforce), it’s worth recognizing that the vast majority of conservatives are not bankers and lawyers and other suit-wearing types, but blue-collar workers, homemakers, clergy members, construction workers, and every other kind of vocation you could imagine.

Just look at a map of so-called Red State America – you’re looking at the great plains, at the sprawling and flat midwest and frigid north.  This is country where the most common uniform is a pair of jeans, maybe some overalls, a good pair of warm boots, not a business suit.

If cycling advocates are going to make strides in growing the use of the bicycle, it will be precisely in these audiences, particularly since so many of the benefits and values of cycling – freedom, self-sufficiency, frugality, simplicity – mesh very well with their existing values.

I will give Bowden this, however; I have seen an unfortunate tendency in some bike advocates who are dedicated to the lycra uniform do all their business in it, regardless who their audience is.  They’ve attended planning meetings in skin-tight spandex.  They’ve accepted government proclamations in city council chambers wearing their one-piece racing outfits.  It’s a little embarrassing and inappropriate, and does seem to suggest that cyclists think they’re in a class of their own.  It may not be true that wearing a suit would be the answer, but for God’s sake put on some pants.