The 13 Best Reasons to Date a Cyclist

From embrocation swaps to post-ride dinner dates, dating a cyclist is the best.

Molly Hurford | 15 November 2017

From embrocation swaps to post-ride dinner dates, dating a cyclist is the best. – By Molly Hurford

Dating a fellow cyclist isn’t just great because you have someone to ride with – or at least, someone who understands that weekends should be reserved for high-mileage rides, races, or serious recovery. There are quite a few other awesome but less-obvious perks. Here are some of our favourites.

Two flats, a missed turn, and suddenly it’s way past dinnertime when you finally roll back to the house on Saturday after a long ride together. The couple that sweats together, stays together—and likely, neither of you will be offended if you just throw on some sweats and head to the nearest pizza place to carbo-load, versus waiting to shower, blow-dry, and change into fancy dinner wear.

See the aforementioned “two flats and a missed turn” entry. Showing up late happens to the best of us, no matter how long we’ve been riding. That two-hour planned ride can easily turn into three—and the best part of dating a fellow cyclist is that he or she will likely understand when you come back two hours later than you initially promised to be home.

“Not tonight, I have a big ride tomorrow,” is a 100 per cent valid excuse to just cuddle, but for a non-cyclist, it can come off as a pretty lame excuse. If you’re dating another rider, chances are he or she will have an equally important ride or race coming up and welcome some extra sleep. (Just don’t fall into this as an everyday habit!)

You may not share a bike, shoe or clothing size, but wheels are relatively universal, so as a couple, it’s a great money-saver to buy one good set and use them for race days. In races this especially comes in handy when having extra wheels is a major plus. Soft goods like lotion, water bottles, gloves, helmets, and tools also can be shared, which saves you tons of money and avoids the “Oh, crap, I lost my minipump again” dilemma pre-ride.

You know you’ve found a keeper when you can help pop each other’s saddle sores when absolutely necessary. (Don’t do this for every saddle sore, but occasionally, it needs to happen.) And a cycling partner will understand your pain when you come home with chafing, back aches, or – because crashes happen – the occasional patch of road rash. He or she will be more likely to help fix you up than faint at the sight of blood.

Your non-cycling ex might have tolerated a few stages of the Tour, but a fellow cyclist will sit with you, watch avidly, provide commentary, and not switch the channel to another sport or a home decor show. Bonus points: You can also add a side-by-side trainer setup in your living room for rainy days of riding together on Zwift Island.

Need to install an ugly-but-functional bike rack in your one tiny spare room of the apartment? Your non-cycling partner might be upset, but a fellow cyclist will likely help brainstorm even more ways to fit bikes in tiny spaces. And he or she will definitely understand when you head into the bathroom with a dirty bike, ready to strip down and wash it in the shower. (Just make sure to clean the drain when finished!)

As a cyclist, you know the answer to the age-old question, “How many bikes do you need?” N+1, of course, with N being the number of bikes that you currently possess. The only problem with dating another cyclist who understands this is that any time you buy a new bike, he or she will immediately need one as well. It can get expensive.

Any cyclist who’s used chamois cream knows that it’s only a matter of time before some of the warming balm gets transferred from your legs or hands onto more “sensitive areas” of skin. Two cyclists both sporting embrocation is a recipe for disaster, unless you’re really hoping to (ahem) spice things up, but at least a fellow rider will understand.

When you’re a cyclist dating a cyclist, it’s not stalkerish to add each other to Find My Friends or permanently share your location on your smartphone. It’s actually a great way to stay safe and keep track of each other, whether you’re both on different trails in a park or doing different road rides. It also cuts down on the “where are you?” texts and terrible descriptions (“on a trail by a rock!”) that follow.

You don’t mind the massive grocery bill that the two of you rack up, and neither of you complains about the fact that you’re running through three dozen eggs every week. You’re hungry cyclists, burning through thousands of calories. Whey protein powder and pricey in-ride snacks like gels and bars are also understandable parts of the budget.

The bane of every woman’s existence is her cyclist BF stealing her razor for his yearly leg-shave in March. The razor gets destroyed by the massive amount of hair clogging it, and to be honest, it’s a little unsanitary. Keep your razors separate, and if he really thinks he needs a women’s razor tell him to get his own.

Daily laundry is pretty much guaranteed when you’re both riding, especially if you have a smaller washer and dryer or the weather is bad. Expect your water bill to go up, and your detergent usage to increase significantly. But if that’s the worst part of dating a fellow cyclist, it’s a pretty sweet deal.

The 13 Best Reasons to Date a Cyclist

Going Straight to Dinner Without Showering

Showing Up Late

Understanding the Fatigue

Sharing Wheels and Soft Goods

Gross Stuff is Par for the Course

Two-Person Tour de France Viewing Parties

Apartment Dwelling Couples Can Tolerate a Lot

N+1 Makes Sense

Not Being Mad When Chamois Cream Ends Up in …Places

Tracking Each Other Isn’t Creepy

The Food Budget Is Understandable

You Can Share Razors (But Shouldn’t!)

And the Other Downside: All. That. Laundry.

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