Rereading Dave Flynn's article about OWMTBC10 in this months Singletrack, we (those into getting out and riding old mountainbikes) were described as freaks. Which at first sounded pejorative. But I got to thinking whether it actually was. After all, what does freak mean?
There are a number of definitions, but I like this
Slang
a. A drug user or addict: a speed freak.
b. An eccentric or nonconformist person, especially a member of a counterculture.
c. An enthusiast: rock music freaks.
An eccentric or nonconformist person, especially a member of a counterculture ? Validation! I now feel part Che Guevara, part Banksy, played on screen by Johnny Depp. Like the Sugababes said, "let me lay it on the line, I got a little freakiness inside".
Freak? Damn right, and freakin' proud of it too.