HOW DO YOU AFFORD THIS SPORT???

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

Maggie wrote:
I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

Bikes cost from about $10 to about $10,000 . . . just as cars can be bought
for anywhere from $500 to $700,000 and motorcycles cost between $100 and
$50,000.

Rubber suits are more commonly associated with scuba diving than cycling --
unless you're talking about triathlon suits which are not required for
day-to-day cycling.

Operating a bike is cheaper than operating a car, generally.

Many, many accessories are totally optional. Those of means can spend a
lot. Those on a budget can ride quickly, happily, and far for a very modest
outlay.

Neil

31 Oct 2004 10:34:40 -0800,
,
(Maggie) wrote:

HOW DO YOU AFFORD THIS SPORT???

For myself, bicycling is not a sport. It's a lifestyle.

During the past four years I've kept all my bicycle related receipts.
Averaged out it totals around $1440 per year.
I have ten bikes, lots of spare parts and enough clothing for awhile.

Last week a barely worn bright salmon pink Sugoi jersey cost me $3.96
and a nice pair of ESGE fenders for the fixie were free.
--
zk

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

You almost had me until you brought up the examples of skydiving, snowboards
& motorcycles.

Skydiving- Very expensive lessons, and, if you become addicted, a continuing
expense not just in skydiving, but also in going around the country to new &
interesting places to skydive.

Snowboarding- What some people spend on snowboards, which they use sometimes
just once/season... one wonders why people (including my daughter) don't
rent the equipment. They fantasize that they'll get all manner of use out of
them (and a few do), but so many people spend a ton on ski & snowboard
equipment that rarely gets used.

Motorcycles- You have *got* to be kidding. The amount of money some people
spend on a motorcycle is obscene, yet I don't quarrel with it. If that's
their idea of a fun thing to do (which is really what all of this is about),
who am I to argue? I've still got my 1984 Interceptor VF500, which cost
about $2500 when new (equivalent machine would probably be about $7k now).
Many will spend upwards of $20k for a nice Harley, and what they'll spend on
leathers & helmets makes bike accessories look really cheap.

You *can* spend a fortune, if you *want* to. Or not. We sell bikes from $250
to $7000, and they're all wonderful bikes for their intended purpose, but
what really makes the expenditure worthwhile (to me) is that one actually
enjoys riding them and finds the time to do so. One can be an Avid cyclists
without spending a lot of money though. The only thing that, I'll admit,
really gets to me sometimes... the people who claim the only thing in the
world they really love doing is riding their bike, and yet they've got
something that's 20+ years old, being held together with duct tape, and
rather nasty about any suggestion that they might make an improvement on it
that would make it work better. OK, personal choice, shouldn't be a problem
for me, right? Wouldn't be a problem if that same person bought a brand new
$30k+ car every two or three years, and claims they hate cars. I say, spend
your money where your heart is, and not where it isn't.

Which is probably why I've never personally owned a car my entire life. Not
to say I don't have them at my disposal, but I've never had a car that was
actually mine (but if I did, it would probably be a Minicooper).

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

"Maggie" wrote in message
om...
I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

On 2004-10-31, Maggie wrote:

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike.

Well, bikes don't wear out as readily as other things. If you don't mind
not always having the latest and greatest, a decent bike can last you a
lifetime.

--

-John )

Maggie wrote:

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

I bet they spend many, many times as much. At least with cycling, once you have
all the stuff, it doesn't cost anything to go for a ride. Over the years, the
cost of replacing worn out equipment and clothing is trivial, unless you get
your kicks from shopping sprees (as many do, but that's their problem). Plus,
you can start a ride right from your house.

You can't say the same about any of the sports you mention, which cost money
every time you do them, on top of the initial equipment cost (which is far more
than cycling's, IME).

One winter I started going mountain biking on all the days I would have been
skiing. Not because I cared about the cost, but because the activity itself was
more appealing. At the end of the season I had a couple thousand more dollars
than usual. And through friends in the ski industry, I always got a lot for
free, or at huge discounts, so I skied a lot cheaper than most people.

Besides, you don't need all that fancy stuff to ride a bicycle. A good used
bike can be had for a couple hundred bucks, and a complement of inexpensive but
decent clothing for under a hundred. Voila, you're a cyclist.

I know this was probably a troll, but it's a point that should be made.

Matt O.

"Matt O'Toole" wrote in message
...
Maggie wrote:

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.

I bet they spend many, many times as much. At least with cycling, once
you have
all the stuff, it doesn't cost anything to go for a ride. Over the years,
the
cost of replacing worn out equipment and clothing is trivial, unless you
get
your kicks from shopping sprees (as many do, but that's their problem).
Plus,
you can start a ride right from your house.

You can't say the same about any of the sports you mention, which cost
money
every time you do them, on top of the initial equipment cost (which is far
more
than cycling's, IME).

One winter I started going mountain biking on all the days I would have
been
skiing. Not because I cared about the cost, but because the activity
itself was
more appealing. At the end of the season I had a couple thousand more
dollars
than usual. And through friends in the ski industry, I always got a lot
for
free, or at huge discounts, so I skied a lot cheaper than most people.

Besides, you don't need all that fancy stuff to ride a bicycle. A good
used
bike can be had for a couple hundred bucks, and a complement of
inexpensive but
decent clothing for under a hundred. Voila, you're a cyclist.

I know this was probably a troll, but it's a point that should be made.

Agree, if the poster stop and *thought* about it, he would realized that
people around the the world ride bikes and probably 95% or more ride in
normal clothes. You don't need to get fancy clothing or a any of the STUFF
you saw in a bike shop to enjoy riding.

The key to a "good" ride - get a bike that fits. Everything else is really
secondary....

On 31 Oct 2004 10:34:40 -0800, (Maggie)
wrote in message :

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes.

Not a problem: according to research cyclists are more likely to be
house owners, car owners, have above average income, and have just
about every other indicator of wealth.

And those that don't ride old bikes which they keep going with chewing
gum and string for a fraction of the price of running a car.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

"Maggie" wrote in message
om...
I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.
I have 3 fairly new bicycles and they cost a tiny fraction of
what I spent on my Corvette.

It all depends upon what you mean by expensive. I do not
intend to do any competitive racing, so I have no need
for a $3,000+ racing bike. I have 2 Treks that each cost
about $1,000 and they are plenty good enough for me.

The 3rd bike is a Raleigh that cost about $325 and it is
a good bike, but it is kind of heavy compared to the
newest Trek.

In article ,
(Maggie) wrote:

I just arrived home from a Bike store. How in the world do people
afford to ride bikes. The rubber suits cost a fortune. The prices on
some of the bicycles were ridiculous and I walked out of there in a
daze. I never in my life saw so much "STUFF" to ride a bike. I did
buy a new seat for my bike. It was reasonable I guess. I guess you
have to be quite well off to take up the sport of cycling. My sons
skydive and snowboard and also ride motorcycles....I don't think they
spend half as much money as it would cost to become an avid cyclist.


Rubber suits? Not recommended for bicycling.

Are you sure this was a bicycle shop? There are quite a few rubber suits
at the O'Neill surf shop in Capitola but that's across the street from
the bicycle shop.