Anyone here a cyclist? | Page 9 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Anyone here a cyclist?

I saw a bike the other day for $7k...on sale.... (and yes, I'm aware there's likely much more pricey ones than this), all the cables were tucked away to improve aerodynamics and there was a ton of blurb I didn't understand about various things on the bike. I wondered how much difference tucking cables away really makes when the human on the saddle is about the worst aerodynamic shape you can get but then I guess these bikes are for pros winning by fractions of a second or so aren't they? Or do regular Joe's go out these days and splurge $7k on something like this?

This is the point at which I babble about the good old days and how as a kid most of my bikes were Frankenstein mash ups of other failed wrecks or Raleigh bikes that felt like they were made out of Uranium in terms of weight. $7K would have bought me a bike shop. Bah.
 
jc100 said:
I saw a bike the other day for $7k...on sale.... (and yes, I'm aware there's likely much more pricey ones than this), all the cables were tucked away to improve aerodynamics and there was a ton of blurb I didn't understand about various things on the bike. I wondered how much difference tucking cables away really makes when the human on the saddle is about the worst aerodynamic shape you can get but then I guess these bikes are for pros winning by fractions of a second or so aren't they? Or do regular Joe's go out these days and splurge $7k on something like this?

This is the point at which I babble about the good old days and how as a kid most of my bikes were Frankenstein mash ups of other failed wrecks or Raleigh bikes that felt like they were made out of Uranium in terms of weight. $7K would have bought me a bike shop. Bah.
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The thing is, there's a market for it.
Some don't even have cables and are electric too. So it's done wirelessly.

The aero crowd usually will consist of Time Trial guys and Triathlon guys. Often times aero components will mean sacrificing a bit of weight (so heavier) in order to slice through the wind more effectively, so there are specific scenarios where it's more useful.

In a lot of cases, they'll got for lighter bikes and lighter components, especially people doing climbs. It's about determining what suits that person best.

And then you have the people who might be slow and think that all these marginal gains are gonna end up making them fast and/or will be awesome to show off at the next group ride.

But in the end the simple answer is, people will throw money at whatever they want, whether it be $150k car, $35k harleys, $12k wallpaper-looking tvs, $10k bicycles, $2k foldable tablet-phones or $500 scented candles.
 
LePhillou said:
The thing is, there's a market for it.
Some don't even have cables and are electric too. So it's done wirelessly.

The aero crowd usually will consist of Time Trial guys and Triathlon guys. Often times aero components will mean sacrificing a bit of weight (so heavier) in order to slice through the wind more effectively, so there are specific scenarios where it's more useful.

In a lot of cases, they'll got for lighter bikes and lighter components, especially people doing climbs. It's about determining what suits that person best.

And then you have the people who might be slow and think that all these marginal gains are gonna end up making them fast and/or will be awesome to show off at the next group ride.

But in the end the simple answer is, people will throw money at whatever they want, whether it be $150k car, $35k harleys, $12k wallpaper-looking tvs, $10k bicycles, $2k foldable tablet-phones or $500 scented candles.
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If I was dropping north of $10k I'd want that bike to go really fast under it's own power...….hey, wait a minute.
 
FullMotoJacket said:
You can drop north of $4K on a set of wheels.

Light. Strong. Cheap. Pick two. - Keith Bontrager

ENVE 2.2 Clincher Rim Brake
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I thought motorcycles were expensive... by weight my FJR cost me about $30/lb, my Vstrom about $18/lb - my wife's Trek road bike $225/lb (and she told me that was a deal)
 
jc100 said:
I saw a bike the other day for $7k...on sale.... (and yes, I'm aware there's likely much more pricey ones than this), all the cables were tucked away to improve aerodynamics and there was a ton of blurb I didn't understand about various things on the bike. I wondered how much difference tucking cables away really makes when the human on the saddle is about the worst aerodynamic shape you can get but then I guess these bikes are for pros winning by fractions of a second or so aren't they? Or do regular Joe's go out these days and splurge $7k on something like this?

This is the point at which I babble about the good old days and how as a kid most of my bikes were Frankenstein mash ups of other failed wrecks or Raleigh bikes that felt like they were made out of Uranium in terms of weight. $7K would have bought me a bike shop. Bah.
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Fundamentally you are correct. The human is the biggest obstacle to the wind (a faired recumbent bike provides astronomical speed gains in exchange for being heavier, not as manoeuvreable and non-rule compliant). As other have said, people like to spend money.

A few years ago, Canon canned their "pro" services as they realized that >50% of the people registered were dentists. The intent was to support professional photographers in their work, but many of the people that needed the most support were ineligible (IIRC you needed to own two single or double digit bodies (eg. 20d, 1ds, etc, rebels (350d) were not eligible) and two or three L lenses. Dentists had the disposable income to buy their way into the program. All you had to do was lie on the initial application and state that more than 50% of your income came from photography (with no data required to back that up). You'll probably find similar demographics on fancy bikes. Many are garage queens. I saw a >250lb guy walking a nice carbon bike with deep dish carbon rims up a hill and thought he was going to have a heart attack. He obviously bought the bike because he wanted it, not because it was going to save him time in a race.
 
Lots of money in cycling. The old dentist with a Cervelo meme exists for a reason. Last I looked the average salary for an amateur/semipro triathlete is north of $125k (day job, not winnings/sponsorship).

Though you will notice a huge difference between a $1.5k bike and a 5k road bike if you have the legs and lungs to justify it.
 
Many road bikes pushing the $7-10k mark are not even UCI legal, so technically they are only for the enthusiast market (or tri riders... though they have their own weird geometries and bars). You can get a bike that pushes all UCI requirements to their limits for around $5k and win the tour if you are good enough.

If you want a serious aero gain - shave your legs. Otherwise anything that's non UCI legal is just a flex imo.
 
A couple more cycling bits:

1. I have a friend who was into competitive cycling in a big way many years ago apparently....he got disillusioned with the amount of drugs/doping in the sport so he quit.

2. I went to see the end stage of the Tour de France in Paris about 20+ years ago. The build up was great, lots of freebies being given away, real party atmosphere. The actual race was a letdown....it was a quick blur of action over with in what seemed like a few seconds. Those buggers were fast.
 
GreyGhost said:
Fundamentally you are correct. The human is the biggest obstacle to the wind (a faired recumbent bike provides astronomical speed gains in exchange for being heavier, not as manoeuvreable and non-rule compliant). As other have said, people like to spend money.

A few years ago, Canon canned their "pro" services as they realized that >50% of the people registered were dentists. The intent was to support professional photographers in their work, but many of the people that needed the most support were ineligible (IIRC you needed to own two single or double digit bodies (eg. 20d, 1ds, etc, rebels (350d) were not eligible) and two or three L lenses. Dentists had the disposable income to buy their way into the program. All you had to do was lie on the initial application and state that more than 50% of your income came from photography (with no data required to back that up). You'll probably find similar demographics on fancy bikes. Many are garage queens. I saw a >250lb guy walking a nice carbon bike with deep dish carbon rims up a hill and thought he was going to have a heart attack. He obviously bought the bike because he wanted it, not because it was going to save him time in a race.
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To be fair, there has to be some perk to staring into stinky mouths all day although if everything was totally fair proctologists would all be millionaires.
 
MaksTO said:
Otherwise anything that's non UCI legal is just a flex imo.
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I would argue that as an enthusiast cyclist, I give a rats ass about UCI legality. If a bike part provides a noticeable improvement at a reasonable price, I might buy it as that makes riding more enjoyable for me. Many of the "improvements" to modern expensive bikes do not fit into that category for me (eg. I don't want my bike to **** the bed when its battery is dead).
 
jc100 said:
To be fair, there has to be some perk to staring into stinky mouths all day although if everything was totally fair proctologists would all be millionaires.
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Nothing against dentists here. Lots of downsides to that career (including a remarkably high suicide rate). I'm just saying that with high disposable incomes, they become targets for perceived betterness.
 
GreyGhost said:
I would argue that as an enthusiast cyclist, I give a rats ass about UCI legality. If a bike part provides a noticeable improvement at a reasonable price, I might buy it as that makes riding more enjoyable for me. Many of the "improvements" to modern expensive bikes do not fit into that category for me (eg. I don't want my bike to **** the bed when its battery is dead).
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Most people shouldn't care about UCI legality you're right (unless you plan on racing at all, I think even OCA requires UCI compliance?)

Most enthusiasts can get a bike that's way under $10k and rides like a dream. I custom built a gravel/road bike hybrid out of a Renolds Raleigh frame, decent sram groupset, spyre brakes (no maintenance unlike hydro), and some half decent slightly deep v wheels.

Comfy, fast, stops on a dime, zero work to keep it running (because steel and MTB group set).

Personally I find geometry makes the most difference. As long as it doesn't weigh like a canadian tire tank I can work with it provided the fit (and saddle) are perfect.
 
MaksTO said:
Most people shouldn't care about UCI legality you're right (unless you plan on racing at all, I think even OCA requires UCI compliance?)
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OCA follows UCI rules (14.95 lbs.). My daily is a pound over that with fairly robust aluminum rim wheels.

Now, if you don't need to worry about weight and have an extra $45K (USD) burning a hole in your pocket, Fair Wheel Bikes in AZ can build you a 6 lb. bike (the anonymous owner has put on 30K miles with no issues).

6lb Road Bike - World's New Lightest Bicycle from Fairwheel Bikes! - Bikerumor

IB_fairwheel10.JPG
 
LePhillou said:
But in the end the simple answer is, people will throw money at whatever they want, whether it be $150k car, $35k harleys, $12k wallpaper-looking tvs, $10k bicycles, $2k foldable tablet-phones or $500 scented candles.
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this right here

people love spending $$. full Ohlins suspension a street bike? love it!, brembo brakes to flex at LnL? gimme more!, carbon fibre everything to ride the Forks of the Credit? Yes please!

and why not? if you have the means and it makes you enjoy your hobby more do what makes you smile
 
I started mountain biking with a $1200 new bike and thought I had a high end bike.
Within the year I bought a second hand bike that retailed for $3400 for under 1/3.
Thought I had it made, it was night and day better bike.
Then I bought a Norco fat bike for a winter and play around the neighbourhood bike.
Now my serious x country bike is a 2012 Niner jet 9 RDO that would have a build cost around the 7G mark although again I bought used and saved a pile.
But again night and day difference. I would imagine road bikes to be the same and I doubt $7000 is all that pricey to someone riding 2 or 3 times a week.
Like others have said it’s amazing what some people will pay top dollar for.
Guy at work bought an R6 and rode 1000km in 3 years. I will put more than that on my mountain bike in 1 year and more than that on my motorcycle in 2 weeks.
Another guy at work bought a $500 golf club. I didn’t know that was possible.
 
I laugh when I read silly memes about how expensive road bikes are.

Go race a Superbike.... then road bikes are basically free. I bought my Giant Propel used. It’s so fast it feels like I’m cheating.

But most of my riding is on a trainer in the garage. Le sigh....
 
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