Filed under: Advice & Tips
I’ve just been perusing the VeloNews Buyer’s Guide I was given at the NAHBS up in Indianapolis the other week. The descriptions of 7900 DA and the 11-speed Super Record are informative in a mechanical sense. But the pages of actual bike reviews are a bit much to take in. Especially the “Recession Rides” section, like I’m going to save money by buying a $4000 Cannondale as opposed to a $5500 Specialized—I guess $1500 is savings. Seems like a bunch of misleading schlock, “I guess Junior is gonna have to do without books this year, daddy has to justify a new bike every year.” To what demographic is this guide being directed? No need, I understand who. But if I were in the market for an $8855 bike, would I need a guide? Maybe some people just don’t know how to spend their money.
Is this cynicism a detriment to my career in the bike industry? Am I shooting myself in the foot because I think more people should ride comfortable, more realistically affordable bikes? Is it bad that I question the fact that most people aren’t “racers” and therefore shouldn’t necessarily be riding race bikes? I like to go fast, but that doesn’t mean I need the latest and greatest (my Record 9-speed is fine for me, even I admit it’s overkill, I’d honestly be fine with 7, or even 6). Maybe if I took a shot at racing I’d have my eyes opened to something I’m overlooking.
Don’t get me wrong, I really do appreciate the mechanics of it all, the technological advancements (some of the items in the Innovative Beauty section were cool), and I would seriously be stoked to work on any of these bikes, but it is just so much money and I guess I’m under the impression that these bikes aren’t one-of-a-kind pieces of art like we saw at NAHBS—these aren’t “custom” bikes. In that sense of the word, are these bikes really unique in any way? Are these bikes so exorbitantly priced merely because they are so severely limited in production?
My bottom line might actually just be this: that I’d hate to think people reading this guide, who can’t spend that kind of money on a bike, might devalue their own, or feel the entire enterprise of riding a bike is financially inaccessible. What do I expect though, this is America!
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I know just how you feel. What’s the price point where function turns to fashion? While I have to admit I have never ridden a custom made frame, this is the same feeling I walked away from NAHBS with. It’s such a tough issue I think. There’s nothing wrong with having a $8000 bike so long as you aren’t discrediting the guy on the beater that may love riding as much as or even more than you. It’s the assholes that think it takes a $5000 bike as well as the gear to match to be serious about riding bikes that leave me grinding my teeth.
Comment by fuckgas 03.18.09 @ 9:01 pmLeave a comment
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