I am helping with final edits to the Active Allegheny Plan. We are debating the use of nouns to describe a person (or people) who ride bicycles in Allegheny County. We need a single generic term. So, I am asking your opinion. Whatever you folks recommend by the end of today (Monday) is what I will recommend to the project team.
Which term do you feel most appropriately describes YOU: bicyclist, biker or cyclist?
Would you feel comfortable using the plural of whatever word you have selected (bicyclists, bikers or cyclists) to refer to other readers of this message board?
Thanks! Simple question, but all options seem fraught with associations that may or may not be flattering/universally applicable.
I use cyclist.
I'm 100% comfortable with bicyclist.
Biker has other connotations. I would not object if you used it, but I think it might confuse people. When you see bars promoting "Bikers Nite Tuesday!" you sort of figure you'd look out of place in spandex.
bicyclist is my vote
I vote cyclist.
1. cyclist [edit: this term can be inclusive of uni- and tri-cyclists]
2. bicyclist
x. biker
I use cyclist... but it is absolutely about laziness. I'd much rather use 2 syllables than 3.
I agree about biker, I think 75%+ of people picture people on motorbikes when they hear that.
+1 Cyclist.
bicycler or cycler
Cyclist.
"Biker" can be interpreted to mean "person on a motorcycle" or "person on a bicycle." (more often the former)
The meaning of cyclist is pretty clear.
bicyclist, bike riders, people on bikes.
"cyclist" conjures a bit of a lycra-clad image.
Or maybe you should use pedalcyclist.
I think there is a difference between people who do something, and people who care greatly about it. I'm not sure which connotation you want to capture.
I prefer Cyclist, but Bicyclist has a more definitive meaning. XXX = biker
bikeist
I like cyclist as it's short and simple without the "biker" issues. For a long report like you're doing cyclist seems easiest with the least need for explanation.
Cyclist is efficient and accurate.
Cyclist, Bicyclist. In that order.
Believe it or not this has been a topic at conferences I've attended.
Funny enough in the comments I submitted on Friday for the Active Allegheny plan, I advised they remove use of "cyclist" for the reason I gave earlier in favor of bicyclist.
I actually really like "bicycler." I'm going to start using that more often.
Bike Driver.
As opposed to other types of drivers- truck, car, pile..... any others?
Who is the intended audience of the Plan? If we're talking "general public", then I'd suggest worrying more about avoiding confusion than fostering precision.
'Bicyclist' may technically exclude our other-than-two-wheeled brethren, but very few people will not understand what it is intended to mean. 'Cyclist', as far as I know, doesn't have any lycra-connotations to the wider world. 'Biker' has obvious potential for misunderstanding. Other terms, apropos as they may be, are less apt for communication purposes if they're not immediately recognizable.
O' course, I'm one of them nutty velocipedistas, so what do I know?
People drive their bikes. On the other hand, people ride in their cars. Yet....
Anybody who sees the word Bicycler is going to instantly know what that is, even if they've never seen the word before. And because its use is so rare, it doesn't have any connotations associated with it.
Cyclist
For what it's worth, from the free online dictionary:
cy·clist (sklst) n.
One who rides or races a bicycle, motorcycle, or similar vehicle.
bicyclist - a person who rides a bicycle.
bicycler - a person who rides a bicycle
If you look up Bicycler in the OED, you find that it exists, and also find this lovely term
Bicyclian
Which would mean nothing to anyone.
@reddanWho is the intended audience of the Plan? If we're talking "general public", then I'd suggest worrying more about avoiding confusion than fostering precision.
+1
I didn't see anybody recommending Bicyclian ... The general public is going to know what a Bicycler is. There is no confusion with the term Bicycler. If the general public sees the term Cyclist , then that is confusing because they're apt to think you're taking about sport cyclists. ie. they're likely to think your making trails etc. for sports cyclists rather than just anybody on a bike.
Bicyclian makes me think of those Darwinian progressions, but this would show the evolution from reptile to primate to bicyclian - a truly higher form!
To add confusion, if it's the general public perception that has priority, then maybe the term is just "bike rider". "Cyclist" does have a bit of an "aficionado" connotation to it, I don't know if that's a real concern, but there it is.
"Bicyclist" returns 1.6M hits on google, while "cyclist" returns 12.1M.
I vote for "cyclist."
As an aside, I can't believe anyone would consciously choose to use a 2-syllable word over a 3-syllable word because he/she was lazy. If laziness were your motivation, you wouldn't put that much thought into saving that puff of breath.
Also, the OED is a British reference source, so that needs to be taken into consideration. Though "bicycler" or "bicyclian" may be recognized across the pond, they are not in general usage in the U.S.
Ok, with me ready to head home, I find that of the comments received, 11 people identified cyclist as their preferred term, and that others found it acceptable. Bicyclist had a few fans, but was the less preferred option. Bicycler is a nice option, but to my ear works less well as an adjective (as in bicycler rights v. cyclist rights v. bicyclist rights).
Thanks for the input. It's been fun, informative and surprisingly educational. I need to work both velocipedista and bicyclian into conversation sometime soon.
I don't think it's lazyness, 2 syllables just feel stronger. Is someone a lawyer, or an attorney? Doctor, or physician? And my fav, which I get as well as give, assxxxx.
I'm sure a linguist could explain it.
"fag".
@edmonds - I assume you're referring to asshole, but why waste the extra letter, I like to shorten it to asshat.
I use the term biker, but it's kind of only around my friends. I agree it could confuse people
Cyclist makes me think of spandex
i think you should go with "get off the road". I seem to get called that alot 
seriously, I vote bicycler
side note: Bicycler is in my spelling corrector for mac YAY!
I much prefer "bicylist" to "cylist" although I'm not sure exactly why.
I think "bicycler" is pretty good.
+1 for cyclist. I agree with others that biker is most likely associated with motorcyclist by the majority of non-cyclists.
'cyclist', for linguistic reasons.
pros:
-- 2 not 3, syllables: easier to speak
-- productive: variants and inflections look/sound better
con:
-- not as punchy as "biker" (which starts with a plosive)
opinion:
-- whatever, people will get used to it over time
We're not the only ones having this debate:
http://www.streetsblog.org/2010/01/08/a-cyclist-by-any-other-name/
Bicyclian might be a good tag for the level above bossanova since it seems like the message board might need a higher level... you know since there are so many bossanovi.
+1 Boazo
Interesting link. Kudos to all Bikepgh peeps for keeping a civil and intelligent discussion.
BTW, I am also a motorcycle rider, though I have never been a biker. And no-one has ever referred to a motorcyclist as a "cyclist".
I am also a mammal. I think.
I am also a mammal. I think.
If you have fur and bear your young live, you are a mammal.
warm blooded, furry and mammary glands in the females are the requirements. remember mammals can lay eggs too.
hehehe mammary glands...
MANIMAL.
If you have fur and bear your young live, you are a mammal.
Crap. I don't bear live young.
Crap. I don't bear live young.
I suppose that makes you a meat popsicle.
I have caught myself unconsciously using "cyclist" more than "bicyclist" in most cases, either thought or spoken. Written, I usually use "cyclist".
OTOH, last night, rolling through Millvale, some kid yelled "Hi there, biker!" at me. Intended pleasantly.
Bikaholic.
"bikaholic"
+1
