David9694 wrote:mjr wrote:That was a party political broadcast by the spandex orthodoxy party. Other types of cycling in ordinary clothes and group rides starting at 10am, 11am or even 7pm are available.
I’m not top to toe, lean Castilli man, I’m somewhat overweight polyester- with Lycra string of sausages on wheels man. Ordinary clothes fine for tootling around in moderate conditions, but more than 60-90 minutes of reasonably strenuous riding and you’re likely to get uncomfortable.
Only if your "ordinary clothes" have obvious problems for any active lifestyle, such as chunky abrasive seams (often a problem on denim) and bad water-retention problems (often a problem on denim). If you pick them sensibly (for example: M+S cycling chinos, easy-care walking shirt and so on), it's easy to ride comfortably all day and still look good enough to walk into most restaurants (although a quick wash is probably a good idea after hot days or hard riding for non-visible reasons...)
If your Lycra gets wet, you’ll dry off - wet denim can be a health hazard.
Whereas dry Lycra can be a health hazard too - some people are basically allergic to some of its ingredients - and you don't have to look far for the injuries caused by some of your other clothing recommendations like cycling shoes and pedal bondage.
I've no problem with someone having an opinion - it's just that most of the opinions in the opening post are widely available elsewhere, not entirely correct and in themselves deter a lot of people from taking up the excellent activity of group cycling. How about you live and let live instead of preaching One True Way (or even The Best Way)?