Sexing the cyclist

A colleague of mine recently had a baby which she and her husband had been assured was going to be a girl. So I'd like everyone to give a worldwide welcome to Ewan. Yep, the she was a he and much-loved he is too, I'm sure. The thing is, if only his mum and dad could have waited a few years there would have been a surefire way of determining sex. It's what I call the folded arms test.

Have you ever walked down the road with your arms folded in front of you much as you might do if you were sitting in a chair waiting for something to happen. If you have, then almost certainly you're a woman. I have seen countless women walk down the road like that, but no men. Ever. Well, possibly one or two gay men. This is not some sort of battle of the sexes thing or a little dig at gay men, it's just an observation. You do not see (straight) men walking around with their arms folded in front of them. Or if you do, they look a bit odd.

So that is how I knew from quite some distance the sex of the cyclist who was approaching me along the Tarka Trail the other day. Arms folded across chest, yep, that's a woman. I have to say I was slightly in awe of her being able to cycle like that. The minute I lift my hands from the handlebars I wobble alarmingly, so doing what she was doing is something I will never do for safety reasons, let alone gender. Truth be told, she looked a bit fierce, but she was definitely a woman.

Anyway, that's my contribution to medical science. I know there are other, more scientific approaches, and my way often tells you something that's glaringly obvious on account of the womanly shape etc, but I offer it up for what it's worth. (Bugger all).

Anyway, I now have bigger fish to fry. The thought has entered my head - and won't go away - that I need a better bike. A lighter bike. One that will not be so hard to get moving. I think I'm entering an obsessive phase. The trouble is I know so little about bikes and cycling that I'm venturing in to a whole new world about which I know nothing. I think some research is in order. But where to begin?