This advertisment is meant to offend. It is meant to insult everyone who rides a bike as having made an inferior choice to driving a car, and to insult cyclists' ability to pay for driving as if they were too poor.
It also insults cyclists' aesthetic sensibilities for wearing spandex. And it suggests that there is little or no choice for cyclists but to wear spandex. As is if the fashion industry has never before looked at cycling fashion, and there there is lack of choice of clothing that is comfortable and looks like anything resembling "normal". Or that cycling "sport" fashion is all there is for cyclists.
State Farm insurance has a reason for running an ad like this. They are scared that many people will actually like cycling, and that they won't have as many drivers/cars to insure. Since they don't have an insurance plan for cyclists, that means 100% lost revenues.
Driving, car ownership, even car culture is starting to wane. For many cycling has taken it's place. Cyclists are becoming better organised and are starting gain a voice. We are now the threat.
And I think that we will see more of this kind of defensive behavior from various areas of the motoring industry.
What do you think?
Comments
David Topping (not verified)
Not all that bad, actually
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 11:00I was expecting something a whole lot worse than what that ad was (something like: man is biking down the street, gets hit by a car, cut to his funeral, voiceover says "this wouldn't have happened if he had owned a car like he should have"). I'm not sure that this is all that big of a deal. I bike (and drive/run/walk/TTC), and I found it sorta funny.
Svend
If my car or home insurance
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 11:58If my car or home insurance was with State Farm, I'd switch and let them know why.
It's small things like this that makes cycling seem like an even dorkier choice to the average person. I consciously ride wearing the same outfit as I would when walking, driving or taking the TTC for this reason. No fluorescent Lance Armstrong wannabe here.
The only exception I make is wearing a bike helmet since the public has already bought into the "cycling is inherently dangerous" idea and it's too late to change that.
Peter (not verified)
I actually don't see what
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 13:05I actually don't see what the fuss is about.
Cycling insurance will probably pick up soon, anyways.
Annie (not verified)
Heh. I like being a
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 13:11Heh. I like being a threat!
Anything that brings biking to mind as an alternative to driving is a good thing. Besides, Jim looks too cool to make biking seem dorky (despite the shorts). It's the snarky car-driving Sheilah I wouldn't want to emulate.
Andrew
State Farm has taken quite a
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 13:25State Farm has taken quite a bit of flak about this ad from the cycling community. I've seen it mentioned in lots of places, and I'm sure that SF has got lots of hate mail about it. There's a response to some of this posted on the Streetsblog LA: http://la.streetsblog.org/2008/04/07/state-farm-looks-to-engage-cycling-...
anthony
but andrew
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 22:29You still havenet told me what you think of this? Is it good or bad or art? Why do think that?
Andrew
I just can't get myself
Wed, 04/09/2008 - 22:40I just can't get myself worked up to be offended by it. shrug Just another stupid commercial in an ocean of stupid commercials.
I do wear cycling shorts for longer recreational rides, as I find them more comfortable. I wear wool cycling jerseys, when I wear cycling jerseys however :)
Andrew
Ad yanked
Fri, 04/11/2008 - 15:52Treehugger reported that State Farm is discontinuing the ad.
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/04/state-farm-cyclist-bike-bicycle-...
The voices seem to be heard, and heeded in this case :)
Luke Siragusa
Annoying but innocuous. A
Mon, 04/07/2008 - 22:54Annoying but innocuous. A little self deprecating mirth is a sign that you're secure in yourself and your customs; I've found that if you can't laugh at yourself others will do it for you.
Let State Farm take solace in trivial mockery, we can recognize it for what it is. Ridicule is often the only weapon left to the powerless and Big Money, powerless to extract a profit from lowly cyclists, takes to deriding them. Keep 'em driving instead so they'll keep paying...and paying...and paying...
Well the joke's on the cagers. Yes, some cyclists may look like fools, shrink wrapped in day-glow spandex; but they are overwhelmed by the number of drivers that, by virtue of their subscribing to the drivel of State Farm and its ilk, ARE fools.
Hopefully, they'll realize the joke's on them. Meanwhile, I'll keep laughing -- and pedalling! -- all the way to the bank.
Ben
Spandex
Tue, 04/08/2008 - 09:14Who wears spandex anyways?
Within the past few weeks I've been seeing all these strange cyclists appearing on the streets during rush hour, dressed as if they were competing in a triathlon or something.