From the latest edition of A to B magazine

[eddieo]

Funny guy and what a nob...Yes real sourer grapes and typically po faced English upper class I would hazard a guess. They just dont like the lower orders taking control of what they believe is their preserve......astonishing arrogance.

In the last month I have had two women members PM me regards our experience with the 705.....They where both petite, so I said try a wisper folder (as well as other bikes) as it may be easier to handle and more comfortable. I also suggested posting a thread as its a friendly bunch. Truth is a mag can never compete with a web based OPEN resource on any level let alone for fast responsive assistance, and in the words of Corporal Jones "they just dont like it up them"

 

[fatts]

Hi there
It was Corparol Jones who said they dont like it up them
regards
fatts

 

[Barry Heaven]

I have had a reply from the editor of A to B magazine to my email. It shows what he thinks about this and other forums and their denizens, and, I think, rather proves my point about his self-righteousness:

How good of you to let us know that you will no longer be grappling with our stream of relentless self-righteousness! And I hope you continue to take pleasure in the outpourings of the tedious wind-bags on the pedelecs forum! To be honest, I don't agree that forums are remotely representative of society at large. By their very nature, they attract few women, and very few technophobic men. As The Mole suggests, they have a tendency to wind-baggery.

Best Wishes


David Henshaw

Blimey, everyone's prejudices are really coming out on the back of this. As for the reply from A to B I see no mechanism by which women are discouraged from using this forum and I've seen no comments that would scare women off. I suspect double standards from them. I'm guessing that if there was a women's only forum they would have no problem with that. In the same way that there is a women's only gym near me. It gets no comment, but imagine if there was a men's only gym! As for forums not representing society at large, that is pretty obviously true as this is a forum for a specialised interest; can't see the problem in that myself.

How the Guardian has got dragged into this discussion is a little beyond me except that in some peoples eyes they represent something they resent. Apparently all Guardian readers belong to some sort of a lefty, middle class stereotype who wouldn't know an honest days work if it slapped them in the face.

 

[NRG]

Well perhaps Eddie would like to modify his 'descriptive' language of the person in question because not everyone will understand it in the same way It also might help to not deter any potential new female members or put off our existing ones....

 

[lemmy]

Apparently all Guardian readers belong to some sort of a lefty, middle class stereotype who wouldn't know an honest days work if it slapped them in the face.

No, not all of them. Around 10% of the paper's 'circulation' is give-aways and promos. Only the people who buy it

 

[neilmeansneil]

This is more like it, there hasn't been a good 'keyboard rattling' rant on the forum for ages

 

[oriteroom]

Having read the latest A2B magazine I had already decided that it seemed to be going a bit off topic for me in recent editions and that perhaps after a couple of years or so this year's will be my last subscription. In the early days there seemed much more technical assessment of pedelecs and folders but I've found little of particular interest over the last 4 months or so. That combined with the attitude displayed in David Henshaw's reply have convinced me that I shall not be renewing my subscripton.

Far from being a forum of wingbags I've found this forum friendly and EXTREMELY helpful on all sorts of technical issues on pedelecs and is always the first place I turn to to get answers aand insights.


Mike

 

[Alex728]

There are more liberated 30-40+ something females on this forum regularly posting than on unpowered bike forums and even some eco-friendly/hippy forums, and some of them have technical skills which put many of the men to shame!

There is another obvious reason why there aren't as many younger females or even their male partners posting - many have children. These are high maintenance and expensive particularly from age 0-10 and leave very little time and money for such things as bikes costing over £1000, and the current transport situation means many feel kids are safer being driven to school. environmental issues aside, I wholly understand why parents feel like this!

A trend I've noticed here is rather than 20-somethings getting on bikes, an extended family downsizing the amount of cars by older folk passing down their car to their grown up children (who use it for taking grandkids to school) and then the older people returning to cycling.

 

[Rab C Nesbitt]

To be honest I couldn't give a flying feck what "the mole" or yer man David Henshaw says about the forum conributors.

There are indeed some windbags and preachy pompous contributors amongst us (you know who you are ....) but there are also some very ordinary, helpful and funny contributors who are quick to bring the windbags back into line.

Having viewed contributions to the forum over a fair old period of time, I can safely say that all human life is here - we have our bright shites and our thickos, our Oxbridge lads and our chavs - just like the real world.

As for the dig about women (or lack of them) on the site . . . I see that AtoB also prints a Miniature Railway Monthly or something like that . . . now tell me David, is Miniature Railway Monthly giving Playgirl a run for its money with all those female buyers.

You'll need to lighten up son . . ..

 

[flecc]

Blimey, he sounds a po-faced prat.

I'm glad you've now seen why I posted as I did Lemmy. I think you may agree that I was not over-reacting, being aware of more than the superficial aspect of that comment.
.

 

[Barnowl]

Just to add my support for the "tedious windbags".

Rab C - "Miniature Railway Monthly" heh heh.. nice post...

 

[Eddie F]

Sorry but no one has mentioned Bromsgrove for a while. I like it when we are mentioned, just like the Monty python sketch.
I have searched the forum about Tour De Presteigne and moving it to Bromsgrove or not as is probably the case. but cant find anything.

Well that’s 2 more mentions for Bromsgrove, oh 3 now.

Off for a ride from Catshill to the Monument on the top of the lickys to look down on the big brown scar on the landscape that once was Rover, longbridge. And the rest of the Beautiful views of Worcestershire and Birmingham.

 

[Cyclezee]

What about Milton Keynes as a venue Centrally located, great communication links by rail and road. It also has hills believe it or not

Zoom in and check out the traffic free cycle routes Map | Sustrans

J hn

 

[flecc]

I have searched the forum about Tour De Presteigne and moving it to Bromsgrove or not as is probably the case. but cant find anything.

That's because the censor struck the moment Bromsgrove was mentioned!

Here's the post by the Administrator when removing the mentions:

Hi Folks,

Please keep this thread just about Presteigne 2010, i.e. news about the event, exhibitors etc..

And a post from Bode confirming:

When was the last time the Tour de Presteigne was mentioned in this thread?

Edit: Glad to see that all the extraneous stuff has been moved out!

Seriously, it was all the posts not directly about the actual event that were removed from the thread, which was about the 2010 event only.
.

 

[Pedalo]

There was a bit of discussion about Presteigne location in this thread which presumably is the one that provoked the comments in AtoB :

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bicycles/5965-tour-de-presteigne-anyone-go.html?

 

[Barnowl]

Bromsgrove, Bromsgrove, Bromsgrove. Easy(ish) access for up to millions of potential buyers.

Hills, central location, loads of commuters just down the road - what could be better.

 

[Bandit]

Hills, central location, loads of commuters just down the road - what could be better.

I like Presteigne - and not just because it's nearer for me than Bromsgrove. I'm not sure that e-bikes are ever likely to be a mass market in the UK, because mainstream cycling here is largely a leisure activity indulged in by enthusiasts, who are no more on the lookout for power assistance than dinghy sailors. Meanwhile non-cyclists are difficult to get on any kind of bike, electric or not. So I see no imperative to hold the festival in a major population centre - this isn't the World Cup final. Besides, it makes a change to go somewhere small and rural with clean air and lowish noise levels.

 

[Mussels]

I like Presteigne - and not just because it's nearer for me than Bromsgrove. I'm not sure that e-bikes are ever likely to be a mass market in the UK, because mainstream cycling here is largely a leisure activity indulged in by enthusiasts, who are no more on the lookout for power assistance than dinghy sailors. Meanwhile non-cyclists are difficult to get on any kind of bike, electric or not. So I see no imperative to hold the festival in a major population centre - this isn't the World Cup final. Besides, it makes a change to go somewhere small and rural with clean air and lowish noise levels.

I don't think the call was to have it in a major population centre but to have it somewhere central to most of the population. Bromsgrove isn't all that far from Presteigne but the access roads are far better.

 

[bode]

Never mind Bromsgrove! When was the last time A to B magazine and its odd editor were mentioned in this thread?

 

[Mussels]

Never mind Bromsgrove! When was the last time A to B magazine and its odd editor were mentioned in this thread?

The windbags are regrouping.