One word for a whole lot of attributes

Class.

There was a time when the best thing you could say about a rider was that he had class. "He's a classy rider." Maybe not the fastest guy in the bunch, but still somebody everybody looked up to.

His bike was always well-maintained, his water bottle full, two tubulars strapped under the saddle. His clothes were clean, too. Real bicycle clothes, not just a cotton T-shirt over a pair of bike shorts.

Once the ride started, his class showed through. He could hold a wheel, and if you were on his wheel, he did not do anything to put you in danger. You knew about the glass, the potholes and the cars up ahead. If he accelerated, it was smoothly so you could stay on his wheel. He would let you know when he was slowing down.

The story on the Earle Wheels Website comes from my friend Maynard Hershon. People who have been around cycling and/or motorcycles for a while know Maynard's writing. Classy.

Maynard wrote a lot about classy bike riding, and he embodies it on and off the bike. He wrote a lot about saying "Hi" to other cyclists. He wrote about sharing the road. And then he quit writing for bicycle mags.

Despite the grace of his writing and his popularity, most people ignored his message. And when his writing disappeared, so it seems did the last voice advocating class on a bike.

I wish my words could convey more about what it means to be a classy rider. And I hope when I am out on the road, I can still be a classy rider.