Thanks for your eloquest and thoughtful reply. I agree with almost all, the exceptions are not worth noting here.
I've beenHost for 5 years, disabled with spinal injury after riding for 40 years.(never toured though) I Love hosting and having vicarious advendures with the cyclists I host.
Gerry. Only a small percentage of WS members participate in the forums and the opinions expressed here may not be as prevalent among the membership at large. So I wouldn't worry about this too much. Just ask to be hosted and let each individual decide. You have bigger obstacles to overcome. While I don't agree with Paul or Christopher, I also don't agree that Christopher has referred to you as useless. It must be very challenging being disabled but that's a far cry from being useless.
The way I see it, your situation is fairly specific and I fail to see how you being accommodated would somehow open this site up to those who "just don't feel like cycling". That's a whole different species and pretty easy to identify anyway. When we were enroute to our Danube bike trip we did a layover in Iceland with our bikes stored at the airport while we spent three days traveling by car. We were quite clear about this and had no trouble being hosted in Reykjavik by a very lovely couple who wined and dined us and gave us a safe spot to park our car for the night.
My concern is because of what Paul Harper said: "As mentioned previously members not travelling by human powered means have historically been banned from the site." So the way I see it, as I don't hide the fact I don't travel by human powered means, my profile could be delete any time someone objects to this, irrespective of my contribution to this site, so the only way to ensure this doesn't happen is by accepting not to be hosted by WS members, which is basically unfair; why should people with whom I have many things in common (which is why I joined this site) & would like to host me be denied the opportunity to do so? Why is it OK for me to host people from this site but have to use a different site to be hosted, which would mean being seen on that site as only using it to be hosted, which many hospex sites frown on, including WS, thereby running the risk of being banned from that site for that reason. What about people who use motorised means of transport as part of their travels (plane/train/vans/cars) & not bikes EXCLUSIVELY to get from A to B? If one applies the strict interpretation of this sites as expressed by Paul then surely such members should be banned...
& you're quite right Michelle, I have far bigger obstacles to deal with but one of them is isolation, unless I go out, which is not straightforward, I don't get to interact with anyone other than by phone or via the internet; after years of very rarely meeting anyone face to face, I decided to try to break my isolation by joining sites such as WS in order to meet like-minded people, either by hosting or being hosted, but as previously mentioned, travelling is complicated for me because of my handicap, so it's not something I do very often, & in any case, being very keen on DIY & not totally useless (which even if unconsciously is how many handicapped people in wheelchairs are viewed by able-bodied people...) I converted my Fiat Punto into a camper, so I don't actually NEED to be hosted as such especially in summer, I can pull up anywhere suitable to sleep overnight & cook my meals, same as if I were cycle-touring, but this means I don't get to meet people unless I go to camp sites, which have never been my cup of tea...
The response from Paul & Christopher did leave me with serious doubts about whether WS is in fact the right place for me, but as you say, only a small percentage of WS members participate in the forums and the opinions expressed here may not be as prevalent among the membership at large; your response & that of Ole Brandt (my apologies for not thanking you before for your input) confirm that luckily for me, there are more flexible members who understand there are valid reasons why some members do not always use bikes or can't, so it's a case of deciding whether I'm going to let 2 people (who are hopefully not representative of the membership at large) drive me away from this site, or to remain & hope that common sense will prevail & I won't be banned if I do ask to be hosted, "official" confirmation of this would of course give me peace of mind & for me to prioritise this site...
Paul Harper,
Thanks for your eloquest and thoughtful reply. I agree with almost all, the exceptions are not worth noting here.
I've beenHost for 5 years, disabled with spinal injury after riding for 40 years.(never toured though) I Love hosting and having vicarious advendures with the cyclists I host.
Gerry. Only a small percentage of WS members participate in the forums and the opinions expressed here may not be as prevalent among the membership at large. So I wouldn't worry about this too much. Just ask to be hosted and let each individual decide. You have bigger obstacles to overcome. While I don't agree with Paul or Christopher, I also don't agree that Christopher has referred to you as useless. It must be very challenging being disabled but that's a far cry from being useless.
The way I see it, your situation is fairly specific and I fail to see how you being accommodated would somehow open this site up to those who "just don't feel like cycling". That's a whole different species and pretty easy to identify anyway. When we were enroute to our Danube bike trip we did a layover in Iceland with our bikes stored at the airport while we spent three days traveling by car. We were quite clear about this and had no trouble being hosted in Reykjavik by a very lovely couple who wined and dined us and gave us a safe spot to park our car for the night.
...Michelle
My concern is because of what Paul Harper said: "As mentioned previously members not travelling by human powered means have historically been banned from the site." So the way I see it, as I don't hide the fact I don't travel by human powered means, my profile could be delete any time someone objects to this, irrespective of my contribution to this site, so the only way to ensure this doesn't happen is by accepting not to be hosted by WS members, which is basically unfair; why should people with whom I have many things in common (which is why I joined this site) & would like to host me be denied the opportunity to do so? Why is it OK for me to host people from this site but have to use a different site to be hosted, which would mean being seen on that site as only using it to be hosted, which many hospex sites frown on, including WS, thereby running the risk of being banned from that site for that reason. What about people who use motorised means of transport as part of their travels (plane/train/vans/cars) & not bikes EXCLUSIVELY to get from A to B? If one applies the strict interpretation of this sites as expressed by Paul then surely such members should be banned...
& you're quite right Michelle, I have far bigger obstacles to deal with but one of them is isolation, unless I go out, which is not straightforward, I don't get to interact with anyone other than by phone or via the internet; after years of very rarely meeting anyone face to face, I decided to try to break my isolation by joining sites such as WS in order to meet like-minded people, either by hosting or being hosted, but as previously mentioned, travelling is complicated for me because of my handicap, so it's not something I do very often, & in any case, being very keen on DIY & not totally useless (which even if unconsciously is how many handicapped people in wheelchairs are viewed by able-bodied people...) I converted my Fiat Punto into a camper, so I don't actually NEED to be hosted as such especially in summer, I can pull up anywhere suitable to sleep overnight & cook my meals, same as if I were cycle-touring, but this means I don't get to meet people unless I go to camp sites, which have never been my cup of tea...
The response from Paul & Christopher did leave me with serious doubts about whether WS is in fact the right place for me, but as you say, only a small percentage of WS members participate in the forums and the opinions expressed here may not be as prevalent among the membership at large; your response & that of Ole Brandt (my apologies for not thanking you before for your input) confirm that luckily for me, there are more flexible members who understand there are valid reasons why some members do not always use bikes or can't, so it's a case of deciding whether I'm going to let 2 people (who are hopefully not representative of the membership at large) drive me away from this site, or to remain & hope that common sense will prevail & I won't be banned if I do ask to be hosted, "official" confirmation of this would of course give me peace of mind & for me to prioritise this site...
"...as a resident of another Planet, I feel for these motorcyclists here on Earth.
We have no bicycles on my Planet, so our WS is ALL motorcycles.... "
I suggest this Thread may have run its course. It sure is Alienating to an "ancient" Member ....
Traveling by pedal bike is totally different than traveling by motor bike. I hope WS is not extended to motorcyclists.
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