# Online Dating Experiences

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [November 25, 2012, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072 "2012-11-25T16:49:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 12

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![2ManyTacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/3da27b/32.png) [@2ManyTacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2ManyTacos)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/221 "2012-12-03T18:12:05Z")

</div>

Unfortunately, my job prevents me from going out and meeting women the conventional way at bars and clubs. I hate the fucking graveyard shift, believe me.

Keep in mind that I’m 21, so resorting to online dating seems a bit iffy to me, but what else can I do really. I opened up a profile on okcupid and so far I’ve messaged about a dozen girls.

Out of those messages, I’ve had all of ONE person reply back to me, and since then she has either changed her name or deleted her profile because I can’t find her anymore. I’m going to keep at it and message some more women, but I gotta tell ya that so far my experiences with online dating have been less than heartening.

Any advice is welcome I guess.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/222 "2012-12-03T18:17:52Z")

</div>

> [@Brynda](#):
>
> Hey, **Bosstone** , did you see the first sentence of this? Page 1 of this thread, and quoted a couple of times.

Fair enough, I did miss that sentence.

She’s right though, except it’s that humanity is full of exceptionally bad people. You just notice them more on the internet because it tends to be where folks go when they have difficulty fitting into society. (Though it should always be noted that that’s not 100% of the people who choose to spend their time online.) Plus, their thoughts are written out for anyone to see, rather than just being another face in the crowd at the bar who doesn’t say anything to you but will masturbate while thinking of you later that night.

And if you’re not very attracted to the sort of person who would like online dating, it probably looks even worse. I want someone who quotes internet memes and plays World of Warcraft, but **MOL** probably runs screaming from that kind of person. Doesn’t mean they’re bad people, just that she’s not interested in them.

I dunno, I could be misreading badly. Maybe **MOL** is the sort of person to think someone is genuinely a worse person just because they’re not personally attractive to her. I know there’s some folks like that floating around, but she never struck me as one.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/223 "2012-12-03T18:34:18Z")

</div>

> [@Bosstone](#):
>
> Did she? I mean, **MOL** is pretty awesome, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that “I am not in the group that would find online dating useful” is intended to imply that the group she’s not in sucks.

She has said a lot more than that. And most of the people I’ve known who’ve had good luck with online dating don’t fit the stereotypes in your second post. I also doubt that 17% of newly married couples are geeks.

Mol is a pretty cool poster on here, ime, but my experience differs wildly from hers on this.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/224 "2012-12-03T18:44:22Z")

</div>

> [@sisu](#):
>
> yep free sites are worth every cent you pay, In Australia I moved from POF to RSVP and I found myself talking to professional woman instead of the great unwashed masses. Sounds nasty and judgmental but it is not meant as such, I have a preference for professional educated women.
> 
> Oh the less messy comment is spot on, well said.

Oh crap, I was supposed to _pay_? Good grief. May have gotten better results. Well whatever, glad that’s over now and there’s no longer the need.

> [@Loach](#):
>
> Much easier? Really? I am 45 years old. I don’t meet women in class anymore.

I get that. I’m out of school, don’t meet folks through school or work these days, and even moved to a new town somewhat recently. Meeting people (friends too, not just dates) was hard when I first got here, but it came together. If dating online is easier for you, have at it. I could see how it’s different for someone with children and a second job, but I don’t have either of those getting in the way of my free time or ability to go out. Online dating seemed like it would be easier to me too, which is why I tried it, but it turned out to be much harder to weed through OKC than it was to throw myself outside.

> [@SciFiSam](#):
>
> What about my GF, who spend very little time online (reading Facebook every other day or so)? I really don’t think you’re going to accuse me of making her up.

Yes. I am going to accuse you of making her up. Seriously, can you please not pretend there’s no difference between “There seems to me to be a relationship between how much one likes to dick around online and how favorably one views online dating” and “There is no such thing as a person who’s found a partner online who doesn’t also spend a lot of time online in general”?

> [@](#):
>
> It is utterly bizarre that, by saying that all online daters are losers …

You know, I didn’t think this at first, but considering how easily these people cry when you criticize this medium of dating…

> [@Brynda](#):
>
> Hey, **Bosstone** , did you see the first sentence of this? Page 1 of this thread, and quoted a couple of times.

I’ve also said that I’ve dated online and have meet several men who were nice, smart, good looking people, but that we didn’t connect in real life. I guess this means I thought of myself, a lot of my friends, and everyone I met up with who was fine, but not for me, as losers too? Or do you just like that sentence because it offends you? I’m not going to say everyone on [Match.com](http://Match.com) is a loser, but there is a whole lot off chaff out there, and getting through it to the people you might actually connect with in person is extremely difficult. It’s not like a huge party where you may only know something like 25% of the people in the room, but they’re all connected somehow, so will probably be at around the same age, have similar interests, education, personality types, and you’re much, much more likely to have an interesting conversation with the first person who talks to you than you would with the first person who messages you on OK Cupid. Online, you just have this whole sea of people, most of whom are nothing like you, and you wouldn’t date in a million years. I double dog dare any straight woman, even the ones who think dating online is so cool that it wears the cat’s pajamas, to tell me they were not inundated with gobs of terrible messages every single day, and that the percentage of quality exchanges with folks they might be interested in was not vanishingly small.

Edit: Bosstone, ha! Yes, I would run away screaming from someone who spoke in internet memes and played a lot of World of Warcraft. Doesn’t make him a bad dude, just not for me. I actually dated a pretty serious gamer once. It… did not work.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/225 "2012-12-03T18:46:15Z")

</div>

> [@SciFiSam](#):
>
> She has said a lot more than that. And most of the people I’ve known who’ve had good luck with online dating don’t fit the stereotypes in your second post. I also doubt that 17% of newly married couples are geeks.
> 
> Mol is a pretty cool poster on here, ime, but my experience differs wildly from hers on this.

And that’s all we’re trying to say. Nobody is saying that internet dating is a superior form of dating, or that it works for everyone, or anything like that. If it’s not your style, cool, not your style. But plenty of perfectly everyday average people meet online these days.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/226 "2012-12-03T18:59:55Z")

</div>

> [@2ManyTacos](#):
>
> I’m going to keep at it and message some more women, but I gotta tell ya that so far my experiences with online dating have been less than heartening.
> 
> Any advice is welcome I guess.

Honestly, if you want to continue giving it a shot, I would at least give a pay service a chance for a month or two. Like I said, _for me_ the difference was very apparent, although some prefer the free sites. I just think there’s a lot more garbage floating around in the free sites since, well, they’re free. Your mileage may vary. And the generic advice: have someone go over your profile, write specific, interesting things about yourself not just shit like “I like to laugh”, don’t lie, include a current photo as your main picture (I think you’re allowed to put in older photos deeper in the album), etc.

Oh, and when you do get a date, don’t dick around for weeks writing back and forth. Set an in-person date early on, so you don’t get wrapped up in some kind of fantasy only to discover you don’t “click” in real life.  
And if it doesn’t work, the more traditional dating routes might work better for you.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/227 "2012-12-03T19:18:13Z")

</div>

Mol, you can’t be reading your own posts. Never mind.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/228 "2012-12-03T20:58:08Z")

</div>

> [@Modern\_Master](#):
>
> One of the problems with dating sites is that it makes cheating easier. I would say that you can never tell someone’s relationship status by the fact that they are on a dating site.

I’d modify this a little bit and say that one of the things about the internet, in general, is that it makes not only cheating easier, but all sorts of dishonesty, including self-deception. It’s very easy to write on a profile that you’re a kind, thoughtful person who enjoys great conversations. And even when it’s not true, often the person saying it really believes that’s it’s true. And that’s assuming people want to be honest. I just got done with a woman, utterly out of her gourd, who came on strong (practically sat in my lap at one of the places we went on our first date, was kissing me by the end of the first drink we had that night, had her hand on my inner thigh and her nails dragging down my back for much of our date, which went till 4:30 a.m. etc), talked about how awesome I was, how she believed in me, etc… and then later revealed that she was on a break from the love of her life, a man who was “the exception to a great many rules” (:rolleyes:), that she’d just recently ‘broken up with’ him a handfull of weeks earlier, and was still suffering “epic heartbreak”. And, by the way, they were getting back together.

As for my story in general, I’d been with the same woman for 8 years and we recently mutually decided to split, about a year ago. As I’m a teacher, I really don’t have free time for dating much. As I’m an INFP, it also generally takes me _at least_ one time meeting someone and observing them until I figure out how I want to relate to them. For me, online dating tends to ‘solve’, or at least, ameliorate both of those problems. I can send/receive emails while grading papers, and set up dates for nights I happen to be able to clear from work obligations. I can also learn enough about a person (assuming they’re honest and open) that I can tell whether or not it makes sense to meet up in a romantic context.

Of course, as has been repeated very, very often: you have no idea at all if you’re really compatible until you meet in person. None. So I try to chat up/go out with as many women as possible. In general I’ve had the most luck with OKC. Met some awesome women who are still friends, a whole bunch of FWB’s, and one short relationship. [Match.com](http://Match.com) is a fucking joke, considering that it’s “matching” ability is anemic to the point of fainting. Other sites like AdultFriendFinder are useful for casual hookups, and NSA and, less commonly, FWB stuff, if that’s what you’re looking for.

I think that, in general, online dating has some significant advantages over meatspace dating, including but not limited to a greater ability to gain minor background information about someone you’re considering approaching. It’s also got significant drawbacks, including but not limited to the “Guys’ inboxes vs girls’ inboxes” situation. Another thing I’d point out is that it’s tremendously seductive to buy into someone’s persona before you meet them. It’s often a tremendously bad idea to go into a first date with any expectations about the person at all, but online dating tends to encourage people to think that they have an accurate, and complete, picture of another person’s mind.

Cognitive dissonance is a bitch.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/229 "2012-12-03T21:13:37Z")

</div>

^ And that kind of shows how variable the dating sites are, and how some personalities click on one and not others. For me, it was OKC that was the joke with their stupid quizzes and Match that worked great. Vice versa for **FinnAgain**. So if one doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t mean they all won’t work for you. But I think we can all agree eHarmony sucks, right? 😉

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Modern\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@Modern\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Modern_Master)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/230 "2012-12-03T21:29:21Z")

</div>

> [@FinnAgain](#):
>
> I’d modify this a little bit and say that one of the things about the internet, in general, is that it makes not only cheating easier, but all sorts of dishonesty, including self-deception. It’s very easy to write on a profile that you’re a kind, thoughtful person who enjoys great conversations. And even when it’s not true, often the person saying it really believes that’s it’s true.

That is very true. I have a difficult time believing that my experiences were uncommon in regards to meeting deceptive women via online dating.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Modern\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@Modern\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Modern_Master)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/231 "2012-12-03T21:32:39Z")

</div>

> [@Loach](#):
>
> Much easier? Really? I am 45 years old. I don’t meet women in class anymore. At work most of the few I work with are lesbians. I meet people who have either criminals or victims and I refuse to use my position for personal reasons. On weekends I’m either with my kids or at my second job. The opportunity just isn’t there. I guess if you are an attractive woman that men seek out in public it’s easier. But as the guy who is expected to do the seeking its not easier. I met my ex-wife before online dating. But my circumstances were much different.

Yes, really. Would you rather meet someone who you’ve actually met or someone you’ve never met?

You don’t have to be an attractive woman to meet men in public. You really don’t.

It’s also not easy to use online dating to meet people if you’re a guy.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/232 "2012-12-03T21:33:56Z")

</div>

> [@Modern\_Master](#):
>
> That is very true. I have a difficult time believing that my experiences were uncommon in regards to meeting deceptive women via online dating.

Personally, I was disgusted by the number of not-at-all dishonest women who had no compunction at all about admitting they wanted to cheat on their boyfriends or husbands. “Do you want to meet for drinks Friday?” “yeah, Friday is perfect. My husband works late Friday nights!”

Forget about trying to hide it from me, they never even thought to ask if I was ok with it.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Modern\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@Modern\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Modern_Master)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/233 "2012-12-03T21:40:51Z")

</div>

> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#):
>
> Personally, I was disgusted by the number of not-at-all dishonest women who had no compunction at all about admitting they wanted to cheat on their boyfriends or husbands. “Do you want to meet for drinks Friday?” “yeah, Friday is perfect. My husband works late Friday nights!”
> 
> Forget about trying to hide it from me, they never even thought to ask if I was ok with it.

That’s horrifying!

At least, they were honest. However, the women I met lied about their appearance (the biggest lie), interests and occupations. It’s troublesome and awkward when you have to ask random people this (due to the fact that the picture was taken 5 years ago): Are you soandso114?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/234 "2012-12-03T22:05:47Z")

</div>

I was to meet a woman one time, I swear, for a walk on the beach. I saw her pictures and she was blonde, fit, early 40’s and very attractive. I get to the meeting place and a woman comes walking towards me and gives me a smile. Well, she was blonde but flabby and a good fifteen years older than the pictures. I was not pleased at all. Luckily, my real date was following a few yards behind her and looked exactly like the pics.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Modern\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@Modern\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Modern_Master)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/235 "2012-12-03T22:32:46Z")

</div>

> [@hajario](#):
>
> I was to meet a woman one time, I swear, for a walk on the beach. I saw her pictures and she was blonde, fit, early 40’s and very attractive. I get to the meeting place and a woman comes walking towards me and gives me a smile. Well, she was blonde but flabby and a good fifteen years older than the pictures. I was not pleased at all. Luckily, my real date was following a few yards behind her and looked exactly like the pics.

Looks like you won the lottery. I thought a requirement of online dating was a basic understanding of photo shop.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/236 "2012-12-03T23:04:26Z")

</div>

> [@Dr.Colossus](#):
>
> there are 35 million people on match/eharmony alone.
> 
> 17% of couples that were married in the last three years met on an online dating service. (Chadwick Martin Bailey Study - April 2010)
> 
> Online Dating is the third most popular way for singles to meet, behind school/work and friend/family member. ( Chadwick Martin Bailey and [Match.com](http://Match.com) Study - April 2010)
> 
> there are more than 280,000 marriages a year as a direct result of people meeting on an online dating service (Online Dating Magazine - January 2011).  
> 20 % of all current committed relationships are two people who met each other online. (from Reuters, Herald News, PC World, Washington Post.)
> 
> haters and failures gon’ hate–but online dating is nothing more than just another place people can go to meet other people.

going to repost these stats, as MM and MoL still act like you have to get some kind of lucky to have success at online dating.

it’s fine to have whatever opinion you have, but you can’t ignore reality. there is a metric for the \*actual \*success of online dating.

are all these people just getting lucky as well?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/237 "2012-12-03T23:15:49Z")

</div>

> [@hajario](#):
>
> I was to meet a woman one time, I swear, for a walk on the beach. I saw her pictures and she was blonde, fit, early 40’s and very attractive. I get to the meeting place and a woman comes walking towards me and gives me a smile. Well, she was blonde but flabby and a good fifteen years older than the pictures. I was not pleased at all. Luckily, my real date was following a few yards behind her and looked exactly like the pics.

Great story.

Well I may take back my comment about POF and free sites, I met a lady 3-4 months ago on POF and we had a few dates and clicked pretty well but alas she and I were not in the right head-space at the time to continue it. So 3 months later a phone call out of the blue and well it looks like it’s on.

She went on the free site to test the waters so to speak and then went off the site and did some soul searching and realized that well I’m a decent bloke and remade contact.

Some people it seems jump on these sites and are bowled over by the responses and to be honest they aren’t ready for it. So be a gentleman, play nice, don’t be a freak and you never know what may happen.

But the best advice I can give you is be yourself but be your best self, don’t spend 6 weeks on line (1 to 2 weeks for me is maximum before IRL meeting) and when sending an email read her profile first.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/238 "2012-12-03T23:16:03Z")

</div>

> [@Modern\_Master](#):
>
> Looks like you won the lottery. I thought a requirement of online dating was a basic understanding of photo shop.

Every woman I met through online dating, without exception, looked accurately like her profile picture. There is a caveat–I did not go for woman with “too good to be true” looking photos or with “glamour” style shots, and I went out with women that generally had at least three different kinds of photos: a head-and-shoulders picture, a full-body or three quarters shot, and a “personality” shot. OK, my approach wasn’t quite THAT scientific, but I’ve found in retrospect, those were the commonalities. I was not disappointed by any of them physically.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jayrey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/47e85d/32.png) [@jayrey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayrey)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/239 "2012-12-03T23:16:23Z")

</div>

Back story: several months ago, I put a profile on Match and, later, eHarmony. I sent over 20 “hey, you sound like an interesting person. I’m intrigued by the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ on your profile. Let’s get chat” messages and got NOTHING but “no, thanks,” and very often, not even that.

Now, I admit that at 55 years old, I’m no smokin-hot babe, but I’m very presentable. Tall, not overweight, fit, blonde, good features. Good job, friendly, smart, funny, have an interesting life. I didn’t sound desperate (at least I don’t think so) but got nowhere. Zip. Nada. I’m not so good with that kind of blanket rejection, so I cancelled my memberships.

Time goes by. Okay, so I ginned up some courage this weekend and put a profile on okcupid. Took new photos and everything. I was honest that I’m looking to date, am not really ready to get married again right now but would like to have a “steady guy.” If it leads to more, great. I was honest about my height and weight (5’8", 160), my interests and activities, and my “non-negotiables”: no smoking, no hunting, no devout/preachy Christians.

There are exactly SIX men who met the basic criteria of 53 to 65 years of age and living with 25 miles of me, and, no, I don’t live on the far side of the moon. I sent messages to two of them; two of the others couldn’t pass one of the non-negotiables; and the other two looked at my profile but didn’t contact me. One of the ones I contacted wrote back immediately and said that I wasn’t thin/fit/buff/athletic enough for him. I emailed back and forth with the other and we met on Sunday for coffee but concluded that there’s no connection.

Obviously, the pickins are pretty slim for me on okcupid, but Match and eHarmony are huge. So, any guess what might be wrong? The only thing I can think of is that I am horsewoman. I own two horses, which I regularly ride, train and show. I am NOT a cowgirl (is that the image most people have when they think of a woman who rides?) I ride dressage, which is classical and very elegant, but I don’t think most people have even heard of it.

Are men turned off/intimidated by women who ride horses?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Modern\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@Modern\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Modern_Master)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072/240 "2012-12-03T23:29:54Z")

</div>

> [@pulykamell](#):
>
> Every woman I met through online dating, without exception, looked accurately like her profile picture. There is a caveat–I did not go for woman with “too good to be true” looking photos or with “glamour” style shots, and I went out with women that generally had at least three different kinds of photos: a head-and-shoulders picture, a full-body or three quarters shot, and a “personality” shot. OK, my approach wasn’t quite THAT scientific, but I’ve found in retrospect, those were the commonalities. I was not disappointed by any of them physically.

100% of the time?

Sample size?

How do you define “too good to be true?”

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072.md?page=11)

[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-dating-experiences/642072.md?page=13)
