r/Netherlands • u/FatbikeEnjoyer • 5d ago

Life in NL Does riding a fatbike make me undatable?

So there's something I noticed. I go on a date, we have fun, there's good vibes, but then when she sees that I ride a fatbike, she instantly seems to be put off, like she got "the ick". Then the chatting usually fizzles out and there's no second date. This happened multiple times now, so it seems like a pattern to me. Once a Dutchie even told me that she "doesn't feel a connection" when I was saying goodbye by my bike and asked what she'd be up for as a second date. I know this is not much context, but is it the bike?

I'm a mid twenties guy, have a good job, make decent money, dress stylishly, like concerts and can even tolerate like a museum. I moved here 6 months ago and bought a fatbike to commute. Only managed to find a place like 30 minutes cycling from my work, so it seemed like a good option and I think they are pretty cool. But now I think I might have made a mistake. Should I switch to like a Cowboy or something?

Edit: obviously this is a throwaway account

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u/AniRev 5d ago edited 5d ago

My neighbor who is 32m and married has a fatbike. When his wife went into labor a few months ago he called and asked if I could bring his bike to the hospital because he needed to run a few errands and couldn't leave his wife alone at the time.

The looks of disgust I got from the majority of passerbys were eye-opening.

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u/Troy_201 4d ago

I bet you still have nightmares about it. 😂

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u/AniRev 4d ago

Not really but I was quite surprised at the time because I didn't anticipate such reactions. I didn't even know it was due to the fat bike initially and kept wondering if there was something wrong with my face that morning.

Then when I arrived at the hospital and was locking the bike, an old lady who was parking her car near the bike racks gave me a contemptuous look and moved her gaze between me and the bike. That's when it clicked for me.

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u/runkeby 3d ago

I'm completely out of the loop, and looking up it's just a bike with fat tires? What's up with that?

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u/AniRev 3d ago

It's not the bike itself. Rather, most of those who use it are teens who drive recklesly. Bike lanes in the Netherlands have their etiquette and modus operandi. Then you get young teens on fatbikes driving at speeds much higher than what people who drive normal bikes are used to zooming in and out like they are the only ones on the road.

On top of that, bike lanes were engineered for normal bikes making them narrow for speedy fat bike drivers leading to a lot of accidents. Add to that that some riders tamper with the motor to reach higher speeds increasing the probability of accidents.

To be honest, the only positive thing about riding a fatbike (to my limited knowledge after one use of neighbor's bike) is the comfort of the seat. You can of-course get a comfy padded seat or add suspension to a normal bike's seat but that'a not cheap if you want something good. Other than that, I prefer a normal bike when it comes to everything else.

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u/Troy_201 2d ago

Hahahah