# How long is your hair?



## Fiona (Aug 21, 2005)

Alright, I'm having a debate with one of my girl friends. I say most bike riders have longer hair and just pull it out of the way(ponytails and braids). She says most have really short hair (bobs). I know my hair gets shorter everytime I come out of the salon, but that's just my need for attention and I like to keep cool head when I ride. Well, what say you? 

Fiona


----------



## aword4you (Jul 25, 2005)

My hair is at a decent length to put up (some strands still fall loose), but I don't like my hair no matter what I do. If I had a decent head shape I'd consider shaving my head


----------



## Christine (Feb 11, 2004)

Yeah, someday.........bald with a different wig for each day of the week hthumb

Just got mine cut, qualifies as medium length now. It's a little fussier but I keep it in a ponytail most of the time.


----------



## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

Mine's at least to the small of my back/navel long.

I can't STAND how much extra work short hair is. I know it depends on your hair, but my mom convinced me to cut my hair short ONCE, when I was on the diving team in jr. high. Good God. I couldn't leave the house without half an hour with a curling iron and hairspray or it was standing straight up on one side and flat on the other. Never, ever, ever, again will I have a hairstyle that I can't throw in a 5 second flat ponytail or french twist for work. 

Not to mention - long hair can be braided to keep it out of my face for riding. For me - pigtail braids work best - keeps it off your neck and nice and cool. And untangled. And I also like that people can still identify me as a female when I'm all armored up in my DH or moto gear.


----------



## mtbcraig (Mar 17, 2005)

*Longer is better*

Hey Fiona -

I think you want a lurkers comment here. If not please ignore.

There are some really hot short haired girls out there. However almost no women / girls look better with short hair.

You know?

Craig


----------



## brg (Sep 7, 2004)

*mine is waist length*

I do 1 long braid when riding my road or mtn bike. Once i did the pig tail braid thing and one of them got caught in my brake lever! yikes! So now i just do 1 long braid down my back.

When I ride my moto - I braid my hair and tuck it *into my helmet*. I find even with a braid - motoing down the street @ ~70mph the wind really damages my hair.

I'm like Connie and would I'd prefer to leave it out and flapping in the wind so people know I'm female -but the wind damage to my hair isn't worth the price of looking cute. YMMV


----------



## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

brg said:


> I do 1 long braid when riding my road or mtn bike. Once i did the pig tail braid thing and one of them got caught in my brake lever! yikes! So now i just do 1 long braid down my back.
> 
> When I ride my moto - I braid my hair and tuck it *into my helmet*. I find even with a braid - motoing down the street @ ~70mph the wind really damages my hair.
> 
> I'm like Connie and would I'd prefer to leave it out and flapping in the wind so people know I'm female -but the wind damage to my hair isn't worth the price of looking cute. YMMV


The only motos I ride are on dirt. I can see how street riding would be different because of the speed.


----------



## irieness (Feb 22, 2004)

mine's about to the middle of my back right now...saw video of myself from 3 years ago when I cut my hair off when it was longer than it is now...my friend's a stylist and colorist and I actually just saw her tonight and I think I'm going back to the pixie cut again this summer...then another three years of growing it out again...and repeat...seems to be the trend for me anyways...I get so bored with long hair and just pulling it into a ponytail...


----------



## NJ_DD (Oct 17, 2005)

Mine qualifies as medium right now, I grow it out a bit in the winter.

Usuallyin the spring I tell the stylist - "I have to be able to fix it in the morning in less than 5 minutes, and it has to look ok when I take the bike helmet off"...For the past 3 years it had been shoulder length or a little shorter. I wear it 'messy'...it is super easy  But I guess it also depends on the type of hair you have. I have alot of it, but it is straight and fine.


----------



## oldbroad (Mar 19, 2004)

mtbcraig said:


> Hey Fiona -
> 
> I think you want a lurkers comment here. If not please ignore.
> 
> ...


Oh no! I absolutely _disagree_ with you! It all depends on the bone structure of the face and the hair cut. Lots of women look fantastic with short hair.

I've had my hair down past my shoulder blades and as short as 2 inches and with out a doubt, I look better with short hair. I'm lucky though because my hair has a wave to it, so I just need to put in some gel, muss it bit and it's good.


----------



## Scubee (Apr 11, 2004)

NJ_DD said:


> Mine qualifies as medium right now, I grow it out a bit in the winter.
> 
> Usuallyin the spring I tell the stylist - "I have to be able to fix it in the morning in less than 5 minutes, and it has to look ok when I take the bike helmet off"...For the past 3 years it had been shoulder length or a little shorter. I wear it 'messy'...it is super easy  But I guess it also depends on the type of hair you have. I have alot of it, but it is straight and fine.


I'm just the opposite - mine is medium right now and I usually grow it out for the summer. In the fall/winter I'll have my stylist lop off 3 or 4 inches then I start to let it grow for summer. I find that the longer it is, the easier it is to pull back - and cuter too. However, last month I had her cut two inches off instead of the usual end trim. Now I'm regretting it because I can't get a decent braid going. Just a short stubby one.

The problem I have with short hair and bangs in particular is I have two massive cowlicks that cause my hair to want to stand straight up on one side and lay flat on the other if there's not enough length to weight it down. Years ago my hair was long but I had bangs - my kids called my bangs "the golden arches" ala McDonald's. My cowlick means bangs don't lay on my forehead. All of that means WAY to much work and hair products to style it when it's shorter.

I agree with the other posters that I can't stand curling irons, gel and hairspray. I do spend 10 minutes a morning with my hairdryer but otherwise it's wash and comb. My hair is thick and stick straight. I'll stick with longer hair although I'm afraid as I age it won't be so stylish anymore. I find the grey that's creeping in is a different texture and presenting new challenges. Sigh....


----------



## litespeedchick (Jan 13, 2004)

Word to everything Connie said.

Does anybody but me have problems w/ helmet breakage? I keep breaking hairs off around my forehead. They break about 1 1/2 - 2 inches long and I'm starting to look like I've got "wispy bangs" from the 80's. (the horror)


----------



## SheFly (Aug 11, 2004)

My hair is actually much longer than normal at this point, but is still considered short by your poll. Like most of you, I need a cut that lets me get out the door in 5 mins, and still looks great after removing the helmet (bike, ski, snowmobile....). I grew it out past my shoulders once, but ended up always wearing it in a ponytail, so cut it all back off.

The new cut is good - sort of mussy, and REALLY easy. We'll see how long it gets on this endeavor.

SheFly


----------



## Lucky (Jan 12, 2004)

mtbcraig said:


> Hey Fiona -
> 
> I think you want a lurkers comment here. If not please ignore.
> 
> ...


I've heard this from guys before. Sigh, I may never get another boyfriend, but I keep my hair short for convenience. I don't like the way my hair looks or feels when it's long, and less is more when it's 90F and 90% humidity, like most of our summer.

Kathy


----------



## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

super short chiming in here.

While it certainly depends on the kind of hair that you have and the cut you get, I cast my vote for short. I've got what I guess you'd call a layered boy cut... have had it for years, ever since I had kids and they were grabbing it. I make sure to keep it in a "wash n go" style- no muss, no fuss. My hair person totally understands this. My hair care involves running a comb through it after a shower, and walking around until it dries. No product, no hair dryer, curling iron or anything else. 

When I did try to keep it a little longer... it was like Connie said, total PITA with trying to keep it looking decent. I keep hats around for post ride helmet hair.

formica


----------



## EpicEm (Nov 4, 2005)

I always go for the crew-cut.
I now live in Greece - its rather wam here, so its great.
I cycle every day pretty much, so its really easy.
When its gets a little bit long, like an inch or so, it is really annoying and I get mad helmet hair.
My hair is very thick and I get a warm sweaty head even in the cold weather.

I like my short hair and my BF does too


----------



## witchypoo (Sep 19, 2005)

i shave my head; i've been doing so since i was in university. it's easy, easy to manage, and i've been told it makes me look hip (or like a boy, depending on one's point of view).


----------



## IttyBittyBetty (Aug 11, 2005)

*Long Hair*

I have had my hair both ways - very short and long (and, of cource, the awful medium length in between). Medium is horrid for an active woman - I felt like that grunge rocker whose face you couldn't see because it was covered by hair. Short was easy to maintain for me (no wacky cowlicks) and long is also very easy. I wear mine long now and have no plans to cut it, even as I get older. I'm with Connie and braid mine when I ride - I like to look like a girl. I wear 2 braids, not 1 like BRG. BRG - you will never be confused with a man - maybe a small boy, but not a man. You are too tiny!

I must say that every male friend (i.e., not boyfriends who may not be honest) has said that he prefers long hair on a woman to short hair. Every one! And, I must admit I turn more guys' heads on the street with long hair. It seems other women like short hair on women more than men do.


----------



## *rt* (Jan 15, 2004)

Fiona said:


> Alright, I'm having a debate with one of my girl friends. I say most bike riders have longer hair and just pull it out of the way(ponytails and braids). She says most have really short hair (bobs). I know my hair gets shorter everytime I come out of the salon, but that's just my need for attention and I like to keep cool head when I ride. Well, what say you?
> 
> Fiona


i cut my waist-length hair off about 15 yrs ago and have not had hair longer than my chin since then. occasionally i miss long hair but not enough to grow mine out.



rt


----------



## *rt* (Jan 15, 2004)

mtbcraig said:


> [sinp] However almost no women / girls look better with short hair.


in your opinion. i think my boyfriend would beg to differ.

rt


----------



## brg (Sep 7, 2004)

IttyBittyBetty said:


> . BRG - you will never be confused with a man - maybe a small boy, but not a man. You are too tiny!


well that's good i'll never be confused with a man. uhhh - thanks - i think!


----------



## irieness (Feb 22, 2004)

*rt* said:


> in your opinion. i think my boyfriend would beg to differ.
> 
> rt


yeah, cuz we all know Halle Berry looks like complete crap with short hair...no one could look good with short boy/pixie hair...


----------



## aword4you (Jul 25, 2005)

irieness said:


> mine's about to the middle of my back right now...saw video of myself from 3 years ago when I cut my hair off when it was longer than it is now...my friend's a stylist and colorist and I actually just saw her tonight and I think I'm going back to the pixie cut again this summer...then another three years of growing it out again...and repeat...seems to be the trend for me anyways...I get so bored with long hair and just pulling it into a ponytail...


That's exactly what I do. I've gone from the longest ever, to really short, back to long, back to short. I don't like it either way. I think a little longer than it is now is nice; I can blow dry it to look decent, or put it up to get it out of my face.

The problem with shorter hair is the amount of time. It only takes about 5-10 mins longer for me to dry/style, but that's 10 mins of sleep I'm not getting!


----------



## Maida7 (Apr 29, 2005)

Longer hair is more femine. But short haired chicks can be just as hot or hotter. I think a smile is more important. For me a good happy smile can make a huge differance in how attactive a women comes off.


----------



## scubaklook (Apr 20, 2005)

Super short here. I've had it long and it was too much work drying it and all that. Then it was alittle shorter and my husband who cuts my hair messed it up so I ended up with a crew cut and really like it. No work to maintain. I do agree with one of the above poster though, when it starts to grow out around an inch or so I end up with like 12 different spikes sticking up where my vents are.


----------



## Dwight Moody (Jan 10, 2004)

mtbcraig said:


> There are some really hot short haired girls out there. However almost no women / girls look better with short hair.


Disagree. I'd almost go the opposite. I'm into the shaved heads, most women look great with a shaved head.


----------



## velocipus (Apr 27, 2005)

*male lurker... couldn't resist topic*

Is this a what-looks-better or a what-works-better thread?

Personally, I swing both ways (like girls with long or short hair looks wise)

I know women who keep their hair short so their helmets fit better (that what they say at least)

I was hoping this would be a pic post thread

Sorry... creepy guy leaving the women's forum now.


----------



## Neen (Sep 27, 2004)

litespeedchick said:


> Word to everything Connie said.
> 
> Does anybody but me have problems w/ helmet breakage? I keep breaking hairs off around my forehead. They break about 1 1/2 - 2 inches long and I'm starting to look like I've got "wispy bangs" from the 80's. (the horror)


_Its from the helmet?! _:madman: Duh. Never realized thats what was doing it. :madman: I have enough trouble with "wispies" without the dang helmet making it worse!


----------



## Drewdane (Dec 19, 2003)

IttyBittyBetty said:


> I must say that every male friend (i.e., not boyfriends who may not be honest) has said that he prefers long hair on a woman to short hair. Every one! And, I must admit I turn more guys' heads on the street with long hair. It seems other women like short hair on women more than men do.


Not me - I don't think I ever even dated a woman with long hair in my single days. Of course, I shave mine, and my wife has kept hers short since childhood, so maybe my input's a little skewed... :skep: .


----------



## tink bell (Mar 24, 2004)

i've had my head shaved & now it's down past my bra strap. i actually got hit on more when it was shaved! so, i go against 'gerls don't look good w/short hair.' the only reason i don't shave it again is b/c it was such a pain to grow out. i looked like a qtip for awhile!


----------



## CycleMainiac (Jan 12, 2004)

formica said:


> super short chiming in here.
> 
> While it certainly depends on the kind of hair that you have and the cut you get, I cast my vote for short. I've got what I guess you'd call a layered boy cut... have had it for years, ever since I had kids and they were grabbing it. I make sure to keep it in a "wash n go" style- no muss, no fuss. My hair person totally understands this. My hair care involves running a comb through it after a shower, and walking around until it dries. No product, no hair dryer, curling iron or anything else.
> 
> ...


Change Super short to medium short and formica wrote my response.

Don't hate me, but sometimes I don't even comb/brush it after the towel dry and it's fine.

My daughter has had long long hair for years. At 7 she had a bad accident involving a round hairbrush and cut it out before I could help her. At 19 she did one the the bravest things for her. She cut it off short and it's HOT!!!


----------



## rzozaya1969 (Nov 28, 2004)

oldbroad said:


> Oh no! I absolutely _disagree_ with you! It all depends on the bone structure of the face and the hair cut. Lots of women look fantastic with short hair.
> 
> I've had my hair down past my shoulder blades and as short as 2 inches and with out a doubt, I look better with short hair. I'm lucky though because my hair has a wave to it, so I just need to put in some gel, muss it bit and it's good.


Ok, from a male's perspective, I think some women just look great with short hair. I think that, esteticaly speaking, some women look better with long, and some with shorter hair. Also, when I've looked at family pics, or vintage movies, it's weird how some styles go with each time.

I don't know how hard is it too keep a long hair  When I was in highschool I had a sort-of-rebel stage and tried to have a long hair, funny thing, it just grew like a mushroom


----------



## ferday (Jan 15, 2004)

i had hair down to my waist while in university (i'm a guy...) but it was too much inside the helmet, kept whipping me in the face so it got shaved.


----------



## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

CycleMainiac said:


> Change Super short to medium short and formica wrote my response.
> 
> Don't hate me, but sometimes I don't even comb/brush it after the towel dry and it's fine.
> 
> My daughter has had long long hair for years. At 7 she had a bad accident involving a round hairbrush and cut it out before I could help her. At 19 she did one the the bravest things for her. She cut it off short and it's HOT!!!


I've always wished I had straight hair so I could do that when it's short.

But I guess I'm lucky that I can just towel dry, spray in some leave-in conditioner stuff, run my fingers through my hair and it dries in nice waves. Virtually no effort whatsoever - as long as it's long enough to have the weight to keep it from standing straight up, it's easy.


----------



## Fiona (Aug 21, 2005)

velocipus said:


> Is this a what-looks-better or a what-works-better thread?
> 
> Personally, I swing both ways (like girls with long or short hair looks wise)
> 
> ...


The funny part is that I CAREFULLY made my question gender-neutral with the thought that the guys who lurk here might chime in with their hair lengths also. As for pics, I guess I'm due for a new one, but I haven't one handy to post yet.

I completely understand the short-long-short thoughts. When I was 12 or 13 I cut my hair from sitting on it long to confuse me with the boys short. I let it grow out until it got to low on my back and then wacked it off again at about 20. Grew it out to mid back and now I'm in the very short (4-5 inches above my neck) category and thinking of going shorter. The problem I have is not with the length. It's with how thick my very fine hair is. I can't seem to keep my head cool enough. After my last ride I told my husband "I'm ready to go Shane O'Connor(sp)" with this heat.

Thanks for the replies. Keep them coming.

Fiona


----------



## Bikergal (Oct 10, 2005)

Mine is in the middle of my back, but its in layers. I've had it short (bob cut) too and it was super nice little work. My grandmother is the one that actually likes my hair long so I have chosen not to cut it. Current boyfriend likes it long too. When I ride I put it in a pony-tail and wear a girly headband to keep the little hairs from flying all over the place. 

I think often about cutting it but haven't made that decision yet.


----------



## wadester (Sep 28, 2005)

*Well if guys are "allowed"*

I thought at first this was a "ladies-only" question, but apparently not.

I tried to be a long-hair back in high school - got it to jaw length in front and mid-shoulderblade in back. BUT! Here in the southwest, it is just too hot to do anything outdoors with thick long hair. Even shoulder length is too hot - tho I never tried braiding/etc to try to let air get in under it.

Back in college, fashion came up with "tails". My hair is naturally wavy - "wash&wear", and I saw a guy with similar hair and a long tail - the wavy texture looked good long, and it was a way to have long hair w/o heat. The wave doesn't show so strong on me, but its down to the small of my back now. I'm trying to see where it stops (or whether I get tired of it first).

Bottom line - short is practical. How short depends on hair type. Long gives more styling options. Either looks good if done well. Do what suits you. See you on the trail.


----------



## gabrielle (Jan 2, 2005)

Mine was long enough to tuck into my pants until a few months ago. I chopped 8" off, and now it's mad at me & isn't growing back. 

I personally can't have short hair without looking like I'm 12. Would love to do the shaved-head thing though.


----------



## Whafe (May 27, 2004)

gabrielle said:


> Mine was long enough to tuck into my pants until a few months ago. I chopped 8" off, and now it's mad at me & isn't growing back.
> 
> I personally can't have short hair without looking like I'm 12. Would love to do the shaved-head thing though.


My thoughts are, it is hard to really tell what someone looks like, a hair style etc hides loads, not hides in a bad way at all. But hides what we see. My bestest friend, she shaved her head, she looked stunning. What I am trying to say is, you can really tell what someone looks like with a shaved head. I think generally females with shaved heads look fab..................

Us males are weird I think, I liked my GF´s hair short, then as it grew I liked it, then she cut it and it freaked me out for a few days.................... Oh hair, amusing topic............All I can say, living in Spain now, getting a haircut is cheap compared to New Zealand, very odd, about the only thing that is cheaper mind you.....:thumbsup:


----------



## pfunk (Jan 12, 2004)

*never happy*

I'm never happy with my hair no matter what I do I can never decide whether to let it grow or cut it off.

Right now it's somewhere between medium and short. Just got it cut, and it was supossed to be wash and go. Yeah right! If I don't blow dry it, it's just all wrong. Having just had a baby, I wanted something easy. Just didn't get the right cut I guess, but I do prefer it shorter just for the sake of comfort.

As far as the long hair goes, my problem is that I wore it up 99 percent of the time because I can't stand to have it in my face. I have allergies and it just makes me itch like crazy. I also got headaches from having my hair up all of the time. I don't have really thick hair, but I have a lot of it. Almost everytime I go for a hair cut, they so "wow, you have a lot of hair" and I say "I know"

I kept my hair about and inch to 3 inches below my shoulders for a long time, because my husband likes long hair. But to him, that's not long. He'd like to see it at least half way down my back. Talk about headaches, so I gave up and cut it.


----------



## corporatehippy (Feb 24, 2006)

*ugh ... hair*

Last summer was my third summer as a mountain biker. I've had shoulder length or longer hair since falling in love with the sport (I did used to have really short, spikey hair, but I agree that its a terrible pain to manage) ..

With the long hair, I always had problems fitting a pony tail with my helmet .. and it was always too hot and sticky to leave the hair down. I'm not patient enough for braids, although I did manage a couple of braids for some longer races here and there. I finally got fed-up and so I went for dreadlocks.

Really.

At the time, I worked for a Tier 3 Automotive Supplier - corporate office job. I know work in the corporate offices at a Catholic Health Care organization (I managed to get this job with the dreadlocks and my two eyebrows pierced :thumbsup: ).

A couple of weeks ago, I did a 24-hour race, and the temps that day shot up to nearly 90 degrees and ridiculous humidity (it had been so cold and rainy for weeks before the race) and I couldn't have been happier with my dreadlocks. I don't pull them back when I put my helmet on, but they're not hot. I don't have any whispy hair sticking to my neck or flying around and strangling me.

Dreadlocks and mountainbiking are a great combination - I highly recommend it.


----------



## irieness (Feb 22, 2004)

what a cute picture Corporatehippy...

I used to have dreadlocks about 10 years ago...my hair was completely straight and about 2 inches long when I started them...I did them the rasta way by twisting them to get them to lock up...I ended up cutting them off after about 2 1/2 years...talk about the biggest pain in the butt hairdo for me...I was CONSTANTLY twisting them and working them to make them look nice...I'm not into the nappy, un-unified slept on dreads...so I cut them off and my hair is now wavy instead of straight...


----------



## valgal (Jun 9, 2006)

*Long*

I have long hair. Past my shoulder blades. I thinks it's hot when you see a chick with a long pony tail shredding on a mountain bike. My husband loves my hair, and the way I ride a mountain bike. People recognize me by my hair, I'll never cut it.


----------



## corporatehippy (Feb 24, 2006)

irieness said:


> what a cute picture Corporatehippy...


Thanks 



irieness said:


> I used to have dreadlocks about 10 years ago...my hair was completely straight and about 2 inches long when I started them...I did them the rasta way by twisting them to get them to lock up...I ended up cutting them off after about 2 1/2 years...talk about the biggest pain in the butt hairdo for me...I was CONSTANTLY twisting them and working them to make them look nice...I'm not into the nappy, un-unified slept on dreads...so I cut them off and my hair is now wavy instead of straight...


I used the knottyboy method ... and its taken some work .. more than I would have liked .. its been almost a year now and they're just starting to become really sweet ... I've wanted to cut them off many times, but the past few months have pretty much been mainetance free.. i found that washing them ALOT really helps, my hair gets too oily otherwise and they want to slip out .. And I really can't beat the ease for riding (other than to go with a crew cut, but my husband already does and that'd just be weird  )


----------



## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

This is my "short" length. About where it is now and I had about 3-4" taken off a few weeks ago.


----------

