Guangzhou Youth: Cycling opens up a new social world
The reporter visited and found: cycling drives bicycle sales, some high-end bicycles are hard to find
At night, on University Town, Ersha Island, and Linjiang Avenue, there are often cycling enthusiasts wearing cycling helmets and goggles, wearing tight cycling clothes or sportswear, and enjoying the scenery on the road while riding.
Cycling has become a new way of play that citizens love.
On major social platforms, many citizens have posted their cycling equipment and routes, making "cycling" one of the hottest words at the moment.
Why did the cycling suddenly "out of the circle"?
Recently, the reporter interviewed a number of cycling enthusiasts and visited a number of bicycle merchants in Guangzhou.
Many respondents said that under the normalization of epidemic prevention and control, the multiple attributes of cycling, such as sports, leisure and social interaction, are the reasons for its recent popularity.
A number of business staff said that the current bicycle sales are hot, and some bicycles above 10,000 yuan are affected by the large market demand and shortage, and it is difficult to find a car.
Cycling from Ersha Island to the suburbs breaks the circle
At about 8 pm, on the Haiyin Bridge in Haizhu District, six cycling enthusiasts wearing bright cycling clothes stood out in the non-motorized traffic.
They rode across the bridge, ready to meet their teammates ahead.
"I arrived at the bottom of the Haiyin Bridge, waiting for you to catch up." Cycling enthusiast Cai Jiahua and six cyclists set off from Huangcun, Tianhe District to Shamian, during which they rode across the Haiyin Bridge and admired the two sides of the Pearl River along Binjiang Road. The night scene, and finally arrived at the destination Shamian.
Cai Jiahua, 23, came into contact with cycling through social media at the beginning of this year, and it has been more than three months since he joined the cycling army.
"We invite riders to ride two or three times a week." Cai Jiahua said that he mainly rides in areas such as University Town, Bio Island, Ersha Island, and Linjiang Avenue.
"The road conditions in the university town are good, with fewer people, cars and intersections, so it is more suitable for cycling. Many riders choose to ride in the university town." Cai Jiahua said that the cycling in the university town and the bio-island is mainly based on zipper training and cycling. The speed is faster, while riding on Ersha Island, Linjiang Avenue, and Binjiang Road, where there is a large flow of people and vehicles, is mainly leisure, and the riding speed is slower.
The way of group riding is very popular among cyclists, especially on weekends.
"Sunday morning ride: South China Botanical Garden-Tianlu Lake-Niutoushan-South China Botanical Loop, if you are interested, come and participate!" Just last Saturday, Zheng Weicheng, the head of a cycling group, initiated a call in a group of more than 430 riders .
This time, the riding route is in the direction of Zengcheng District, and the whole journey is more than 40 kilometers. You can enjoy the natural scenery of Niutou Mountain on the road.
Zheng Weicheng organizes cyclists to ride once or twice a week, usually in areas such as University Town, Libo'ao and Ersha Island.
In addition to cycling in urban areas, many cycling enthusiasts also put their riding destinations on the outskirts of cities, or even ride across cities and provinces.
Zheng Weicheng said that long-distance riding in the suburbs will go to Nansha, Huadu, Zengcheng and other directions, which is also the main direction for Guangzhou cyclists to ride in the suburbs.
University Town, Ersha Island, Linjiang Avenue, Binjiang Road, Li Bo'ao... In Guangzhou, more and more cycling enthusiasts like Cai Jiahua and Zheng Weicheng set off in groups. The beautiful scenery all over the place has also harvested its own happiness.
Fitness, socializing, and decompression cycling are all-age play methods
"After insisting on cycling, you will be healthier and seldom get sick." For 64-year-old citizen Lao Huang, exercise is the main reason why he chooses to ride.
He has been riding for more than ten years, and riding has become a part of life.
"Except for special weather, I cycle ten laps along Ersha Island every morning, about 50 kilometers, at around 6 am." Lao Huang said that he gets up early every day to exercise before the commute peak.
Different from Lao Huang's exercise, Cai Jiahua pursues speed and passion.
"Cycling is the pursuit of speed and passion." Cai Jiahua feels that road cycling is a very handsome thing. You can feel the speed of the car while riding. This unique feeling makes him deeply fascinated.
At the same time, the social nature of cycling has allowed Cai Jiahua to meet many riders.
"I like to meet different riders, ride and chat together." Cai Jiahua said that through riding, he met a lot of new friends and expanded his social circle.
"Cycling is more free than other sports, with a wide range of motion, and you can enjoy different scenery during the ride." Zheng Weicheng, who has eight years of riding experience, said that every ride is like a trip. The beauty on the road is the most attractive.
Talking about why cycling has become popular on major social platforms, Zheng Weicheng believes that cycling was still a relatively niche sport before the epidemic.
Under the normalization of epidemic prevention and control, many citizens have reduced their long-distance travel. Cycling with its own attributes such as leisure decompression, sports fitness, sports socialization, etc. is favored by citizens, and it has become popular.
The ride is cool, but the prep work isn't easy.
What route to take, where to eat and live, what kind of cycling clothes to wear, what goggles and helmets to wear, and purchase insurance for cycling... As the team leader, Zheng Wei is "fine".
Zheng Weicheng reminded that there are certain thresholds for riding. Novices need to learn the basic knowledge of safe riding and obey the traffic rules in order to enjoy the joy of riding.
Less spot demand, more than 10,000 yuan bicycles are also hard to find
Has the Rise of Cycling Affected Bicycle Market Sales?
The reporter randomly visited a number of bicycle merchants in the city.
The reporter found that the "popularity" of cycling has led to a sharp increase in the sales of the bicycle market, and some bicycles above 10,000 yuan are hard to find.
"Some road bicycles over 10,000 yuan are out of stock, and some models even need to wait a year." A salesperson at a bicycle franchise store said that the market for road bicycles over 10,000 yuan is in great demand, but currently there are only two high-end road bikes left in the store. bike.
The staff member said that the supply of vehicles was in short supply, and in addition to the increase in demand, it was also affected by the longer logistics time.
Bike sales are also booming at chain sporting goods stores, and high-end bikes are also out of stock.
"There is only one high-end road bicycle left in the store." A staff member of the Decathlon store said that some important core components of bicycles need to be imported, and the manufacturer's production capacity has not kept up, which is also an important factor for shortage.
High-end models are hard to find, and consumers who plan to buy bicycles have a deep understanding.
"I asked seven or eight car dealers if they didn't have any stock, and finally I bought the ideal model from a car dealer in Nansha District." Cai Jiahua told reporters.
As far as he knows, this model of road bike is very popular, and the supply is very tight. Until now, many car dealers have no stock, and the purchase still needs to be booked in advance.
Li Yongcong is the head of a bicycle company and has been in the business for almost 6 years.
Li Yongcong told reporters that the price of mountain bikes and road bikes currently sold in the store ranges from several thousand yuan to tens of thousands of yuan. Although the price is not very "people-friendly", the demand is very tight.
The people who buy cars in his store range from 13 to 60 years old, which can be said to be a favorite exercise method by all age groups.
In addition to bicycles, riding requires a variety of riding equipment.
Li Yongcong introduced that the large pieces of cycling equipment mainly include helmets, stopwatches, cycling glasses, cycling clothes, cycling shoes, etc., while the small pieces include cycling gloves, ice sleeves, water bottles, backpacks, etc. From thousands to tens of thousands of dollars.
"The rise of cycling has led to higher and higher requirements for riding equipment." Li Yongcong said that now, many cyclists pay more attention to the design of equipment styles.
Regarding the buying impulses of some consumers due to the popularity, he suggested that rational purchases should be made according to their personal budgets. After all, what suits them is the best.
Text/All media reporter Ye Zuolin (except signature)