Cyclist Group Identity As Expressed Through Folk Art, Folk Events, Narratives, and Community Spaces
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Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 5-2015 The Underground Gang: Cyclist Group Identity as Expressed Through Folk Art, Folk Events, Narratives, and Community Spaces Anna P. Christiansen Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Christiansen, Anna P., "The Underground Gang: Cyclist Group Identity as Expressed Through Folk Art, Folk Events, Narratives, and Community Spaces" (2015). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 4467. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/4467 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE UNDERGROUND GANG: CYCLIST GROUP IDENTITY AS EXPRESSED THROUGH FOLK ART, FOLK EVENTS, NARRATIVES, AND COMMUNITY SPACES By Anna P. Christiansen A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in Folklore Approved: ___________________________ ___________________________ Dr. Lisa Gabbert Dr. Melody Graulich Major Professor Committee Member ___________________________ ___________________________ Dr. Lynne McNeill Dr. Mark McLellan Committee Member Vice President for Research and Dean of the School of Graduate Studies UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY Logan, Utah 2015 Copyright © Anna Christiansen 2015 All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT The Underground Gang: Cyclist Group Identity as Expressed Through Folk Art, Folk Events, Narratives, and Community Spaces by Anna P. Christiansen, Master of Arts Utah State University, 2015 Major Professor: Dr. Lisa Gabbert Department: English This thesis is a study of the “underground” cycling community in Ogden, Utah. Countercultural cycling micro-communities exist across the United States, if not the world, but have not yet been thoroughly studied by folklorists. This research establishes a foundational understanding of the nature of underground cycling culture, particularly in relation to identity. Using folkloric definitions of identity and subculture as my foundation, I examine four different facets of cyclist activities: folk art, folk events, narratives, and the community’s use of space. These four facets provide a variety of lenses through with to examine actualized, expressive cyclist behavior. Each facet also illustrates the different levels (personal, community, and global) at which identity is performed. The most personal performances of cyclist identity are through the folk art of modified bicycles. Modifications tend to reflect the personality of the cyclist, and iv consequently a bicycle comes to hold much symbolism for the cyclist. The community- level studies consisted of examining group events where I observed how the group interacted with itself. The performance and participation in activities are what constitutes an actual cycling community, rather than a series of individual cyclists. The examination of narratives moves outward to contextualize the cycling micro- community within the larger Ogden community. This chapter explores the role of conflict, illustrates how cyclists think of themselves, and illustrates how cyclists define themselves in opposition to motorists. The community spaces examination looks at the use of physical space versus digital space. These spaces illustrate how the community behaves amongst itself versus how the community behaves amongst the larger, online, Utah cycling community. The physical space reflected the creativity and utilitarian needs of the group. The restrictive digital spaces manage to be expressive through images and language. Internal group conflict occurs more often online, however, due to infractions of implicit group etiquette, possibly as a symptom of a less personal form of interaction. The marginalized, cyclist identity seemed to hold the greatest rewards at the more intimate, personal levels. Moving outward towards broader community-level contests, cyclist identity seems to become a source of conflict. (166 pages) v PUBLIC ABSTRACT The Underground Gang: Cyclist Group Identity as Expressed Through Folk Art, Folk Events, Narratives, and Community Spaces Anna P. Christiansen This thesis is a study of the “underground” cycling community in Ogden, Utah. This thesis establishes a groundwork understanding of the nature of underground cycling culture, particularly in relation to identity. Using folkloric definitions of identity and subculture as my foundation, I conducted fieldwork with the Ogden cycling community to examine four different facets of cyclist activities: folk art, folk events, narratives, and the community’s use of space. Each of the four facets also illustrated the different levels of identity, shifting from individual levels, outward to the performance of identity as an individual and group within a larger local and global community. Countercultural cycling micro-communities exist across the United States, if not the world, but until now have been, relatively unstudied. This serves as a foundational a study of cycling culture and contributes to folkloric understandings of identity performance. vi DEDICATION This one’s for you, Dude. vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, a tremendous thank you to Professor Lisa Gabbert for her insight, patience, and support during the process of writing this thesis. Thank you to my committee members, Professors Lynne McNeill and Melody Graulich, for their assistance and expertise. Thank you to Crystal Stephens and the USU Writing Center for guiding me through the tricky parts. Thank you to my English department colleagues for constant moral support. I would like to thank the cyclists of Ogden that assisted me in this thesis. Thank you to Gage Jacobson, who introduced me to the community and served as my first informant. Thank you to JP Orquiz, Berk Tuttle, Candace Northrop, and Chase Christiansen for patiently answering my interview questions. Thank you to the numerous others, who allowed me to tag along and research at bike events. A special thank you to my family for their support and encouragement. Thank you to Chase, I could not have done this without you. Anna P. Christiansen viii CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii PUBLIC ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................ v DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................ vii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY ................................................................. 1 2. BIKE ART .................................................................................................................... 22 GAGE W. JACOBSON ................................................................................................ 29 JUAN PEDRO (JP) ORQUIZ ....................................................................................... 39 THE BICYCLE ............................................................................................................. 47 3. RECREATIONAL EVENTS: PERFORMING COMMUNITY ................................. 51 BIKE POLO .................................................................................................................. 55 ALLEY CATS .............................................................................................................. 68 CRUISES ...................................................................................................................... 74 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 80 4. CONFLICT NARRATIVES: THE TROUBLE WITH IDENITTY ............................ 87 SPANDEX IS QUEEN ................................................................................................. 93 CRAZY AS BE-ALL .................................................................................................... 95 SHARE THE ROAD OR ELSE… ............................................................................... 96 NEAR MISS ................................................................................................................. 98 SALT CYCLE ASSAULTS ....................................................................................... 100 CONCLUSIONS ........................................................................................................ 103 5. COMMUNITY SPACES: PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL ........................................... 108 6. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 142 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 149 ix LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1 Draisine ..................................................................................................... 21 2 Bicycle diagram .......................................................................................