"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Secret purchases spouses hide from each other

I'm surprised they didn't find a bike racer here (http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/111523/purchases-spouses-hide-from-each-other?mod=family-love_money).

Or worse, a car racer.

cdr

I hid the French maid.

As I was heading out for the bike team fit kit party last night, my husband says "now don't buy a bunch more bike clothes"......

:wtf:

The best line on that chart is undoubtedly "dating websites."

I never liked having to hide purchases from my wife so every time I did buy something I'd be prepared for to justify and/or debate about said purchase. Forutnately for me my wife has discovered the wisdom in letting people be as they are provided they aren't heading down the path to ruin (or taking anyone else with them) so now she is really supportive.

The best line on that chart is undoubtedly "dating websites."

:lol: I didn't even notice that the first time I glanced at it.

I can tell you I under quoted the price of a set of wheels that I bought.

The dating website inclusion was pretty interesting.

I'm lucky as my wife supports my pursuit of my car and bike habits. I'm also not idiotic about spending money (I'm probably more conservative than her) so that helps. I was hemming and hawing on buying an SRM equipped Cannondale with Record and she's the one that said I have to buy it right now at the price of this one bike on eBay. I also get stuff for my cars and she'll come with me to get kind of stupid things like a stainless exhaust or carbon hood (I consider them kind of err flights of fancy purchases for me).

Funny story. We had a team Christmas party last year. As part of a "get to know you" thing everyone emailed something about themselves to someone who put together a quiz. You go around, introduce yourself, and ask if the person is this or that (like bingo, each square had an interesting factoid).

One square said "My wife thinks my bike cost $500". No one could fill in that square. The guy who did the quiz sheepishly admitted that he made up a few questions as random "unfillable" squares.

Well, ends up the guy who belonged in that square was there (unexpectedly - apparently he said he couldn't make it) with his wife. Not only does she think that his bike cost $500, he carefully buys black bikes each year so she thinks it's still the same bike. Apparently he does a bike each year, sells the one he has, and apparently either she doesn't know or pretends she doesn't know.

The dating website inclusion was pretty interesting.

I'm lucky as my wife supports my pursuit of my car and bike habits. I'm also not idiotic about spending money (I'm probably more conservative than her) so that helps. I was hemming and hawing on buying an SRM equipped Cannondale with Record and she's the one that said I have to buy it right now at the price of this one bike on eBay. I also get stuff for my cars and she'll come with me to get kind of stupid things like a stainless exhaust or carbon hood (I consider them kind of err flights of fancy purchases for me).

My wife has come to realize that about me as well. Recently when I bought a frame to replace the bike that was damaged when I got hit by a car, she told me to get whatever I want even if it went over the money I got back from the insurance company. Instead I got a a frame that was about half of the amount I got back and built the bike up myself and told her I'd save the remaining money to use for future bike part purchases or anything we need around the house.

I promise not to ask my girlfriend what her boots or bags cost, and in return she doesn't ask me what my bikes cost. It's a good deal.

No hidden purchases per se. We have the unspoken $100 rule. If it is under $100 and "maintenance" we just do it. It is surprising what is considered maintenance. New stuff gets discussed but usually approved subject to budget limitations. So the upstairs maid, although maintenance, is over the limit and will never get approved.

I never liked having to hide purchases from my wife so every time I did buy something I'd be prepared for to justify and/or debate about said purchase. Forutnately for me my wife has discovered the wisdom in letting people be as they are provided they aren't heading down the path to ruin (or taking anyone else with them) so now she is really supportive.
That pretty much sums up my wife as well. She is a stay at home mom, I control all the finances, we are both pretty reasonable and non-flashy people. If I can't afford it I don't buy it. She doesn't give me grief about spending $$ on cycling related things, hell I could be out at a bar dropping well over $100/nite on weekends like I once did.

I don't hide anything from her and I don't believe she hides anything from me.

The double edge sword of having a wife who also rides/races...

There is never any hiding of bike related purchases, but there also isn't someone there reeling you in when things start getting a bit out of hand :)

Hence the few things we currently have for sale :)

No hidden purchases per se. We have the unspoken $100 rule. If it is under $100 and "maintenance" we just do it. It is surprising what is considered maintenance. New stuff gets discussed but usually approved subject to budget limitations. So the upstairs maid, although maintenance, is over the limit and will never get approved.

Maybe you and Kensuf could form a co-op or something since I'm guessing this is part time work anyways.

My wife is aware that bike parts occasionally show up. Basically built my cross bike with parts that accumulated over 3 yrs, and that really wasn't the point when I bought this or that part. A whole bike would be different. Still, in the grand scheme of things, it's cheaper than golf or a health club and I actually ride my bikes.

The people in that story are Cat 5 purchase hiders. Weak sauce.

Hiding little bike and toy purchases is funny.

Not so funny when I found my wife was hiding purchases of a pay as you go phone and hotel rooms. Did I say wife? I meant ex-wife. Kind of a step above the dating website thing.

Hiding little bike and toy purchases is funny.

Not so funny when I found my wife was hiding purchases of a pay as you go phone and hotel rooms. Did I say wife? I meant ex-wife. Kind of a step above the dating website thing.

ouch

Does the check book balance? Do the bills get paid? Is there enough in our Alzheimer's fund? Are you faithful? Are you happy?

If yes to all of the above who gives a ****

Maybe you and Kensuf could form a co-op or something since I'm guessing this is part time work anyways.

We have exchanged term sheets.

The best line on that chart is undoubtedly "dating websites."

Agreed. Since that's something that would typically be hidden from the spouse, can we assume that 4% of married men and 1% of married women are signed up for internet dating sites?

I particularly enjoyed the comments attached to that article. There are a lot of cynical, bitter, and selfish people out there.

my wife has horses, which means I could never outspend her buying bicycle stuff.

Several years ago I bought a motorcycle on ebay kind of spur of the moment, while she was out of town. I forgot that she gets the emails from ebay on our shared account. Immediately following I got a whole lot of "We just won WHAT on ebay??....PLEASE tell me this is a joke!!" text messages.

I keep track of the finances in the house and my wife and I discuss any big purchases. If either of us found out one was hiding stuff or using secrets accounts it would damage our relationship.

Wife totally supports all my endeavors (cycling, music, technology, tools). I'm the same with hers. The trick is to actually use what you buy and don't just hang it up on the wall or put it in a drawer. When and if that happens we usually gently suggest looking for another hobby. GL

I am considering selling all my golf equipment and just focusing on cycling. I am terrible at golf and to get better would require lessons, playing several times a week(greens fees aren't getting cheaper)...add all that up and I could buy a new bike after a summer :P

....Several years ago I bought a motorcycle on ebay kind of spur of the moment

Friend would put in ridiculously low bids on fantasy crotch rockets. He ended up winning a something (green 1000 cc super bike kind of thing) for about $4k "by accident", complete with strobe lights and such. He did drive it around a while but the wife never really got over it. He ended up selling it about a year later.


Wife totally supports all my endeavors (cycling, music, technology, tools). I'm the same with hers. The trick is to actually use what you buy and don't just hang it up on the wall or put it in a drawer. When and if that happens we usually gently suggest looking for another hobby. GL

Ditto. I didn't know yarn costs so much.

Thanks for the reminder. I have to go check my eBay and the balance of my secret pre-paid credit card.

I try to keep all my bike frames in the same basic color scheme..this way when I get a new frameset (this is important considering how often I buy new bikes) my wife really isn't quite sure if it's the same one or not.

I find that lying is a great way to send a relationship straight down the pisser. ymmv.

I don't hide anything from my wife and she hides a lot from me. That works out just fine for all involved.

Spend whatever you want; small disparities in resource allocation couldn't possibly effect a relationship based on love. Attempting to measure the required financial disparity required to break the bonds of love would be as foolish as trying to count the stars in the night sky. ;)

My wife bought a 125 lb anvil. It wasn't until she couldn't lift it out of the trunk that she mentioned she had bought it. An anvil? At least I'll use my $75 powertap.

My wife bought a 125 lb anvil. It wasn't until she couldn't lift it out of the trunk that she mentioned she had bought it. An anvil? At least I'll use my $75 powertap.

Let me guess which one is you and which one is your wife:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0kfkQ_dZqII/TOkp2N7Q76I/AAAAAAAAAYs/agBnrh4Tc6s/s1600/coyote%2Bunder%2Banvil.jpg

My wife bought a 125 lb anvil. It wasn't until she couldn't lift it out of the trunk that she mentioned she had bought it. An anvil? At least I'll use my $75 powertap.

So your wife is blacksmith who rescues cats in her spare time?

/\ lol

125 anvil? where the heck do you get one of those things?

Let me guess which one is you and which one is your wife:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0kfkQ_dZqII/TOkp2N7Q76I/AAAAAAAAAYs/agBnrh4Tc6s/s1600/coyote%2Bunder%2Banvil.jpg

:lol:

So your wife is blacksmith who rescues cats in her spare time?

She fancies herself a modern day Laura Ingalls. Except her cooking would incite prison riots.

/\ lol

125 anvil? where the heck do you get one of those things?

I'm not sure, but she said it came with a stump. Fortunately, the stump wouldn't fit in her trunk.
You'd be suprised how small the anvil is - about 18 in long 4 in wide and 7 in tall. The ones you see on television have to be 500 pounds.

/\ lol

125 anvil? where the heck do you get one of those things?

McMaster Carr (http://www.mcmaster.com/#anvils/=a5ibud). It's got everything else, right? Why not a 125lb anvil? You know, so you can, like, make horse shoes or swords or something.

McMaster Carr, of course. I have some collar thingies from there for my sway bars, keeps them from sliding left/right. It's an amazing site.

Anvils are heavy. I have a "normal" bench vise and I think it's about 50 lbs? It's heavy as crapola. I call it "dense". Like me. I'm "dense" too (I said that to the nurse after she took my weight and she'd underguessed my weight by 25 lbs - I told her "I'm just dense" and she wasn't sure if I knew what I was implying so she kind of did one of those unsure grins and walked away). haha.

And I read the whole Laura Ingalls series (17 books?) when I was 10 or 11 or 12. I don't recall any rave reviews of her cooking though.

Laura wasn't the domesticated type. That was more her sister. Laura was out running around in the fields picking up frogs & stuff.

I'm not sure, but she said it came with a stump. Fortunately, the stump wouldn't fit in her trunk.
You'd be suprised how small the anvil is - about 18 in long 4 in wide and 7 in tall. The ones you see on television have to be 500 pounds.

Well that makes sense. Why would anyone try to sale a 125 lb anvil without a stump in the first place?

Both my wife and I are retired and living on pensions. I returned to work in my former job which gave a nice boost in income. I can pretty much buy anything I want with no repercussions on the home front. When the guy in the brown truck leaves something on the door step my wife will only say "your buddy in the brown truck left you another goodie package".

I know a guy who has some $9k fancy bike. He leaves it at a freind's house full-time as his wife doesn't know about it.

McMaster Carr, of course. I have some collar thingies from there for my sway bars, keeps them from sliding left/right. It's an amazing site.
...

True story: I wrote that post out before even bothering to look at their site. Then I decided to actually search to see if they sold such a thing, and sure enough... added the link.

I know a guy who has some $9k fancy bike. He leaves it at a freind's house full-time as his wife doesn't know about it.

I bought a $1k frameset and had it built up for a week just sitting on my stand in our garage without my wife knowing about it. I finally decided I couldn't take the pressure and fessed up out of the blue. That old saying about permission or forgiveness? Good stuff, that, but you need a good read on your partner's temperament.

We each have our own personal bank accounts and credit cards. Bills and whatnot get paid out of a joint bank account that we each put half our paycheck into.

This is good.

I know a guy who has some $9k fancy bike. He leaves it at a freind's house full-time as his wife doesn't know about it.

I tried hiding a bike under some stairs in the basement. I had planned on slowly integrating it into the stable at a later date. An exterminator's visit resulted in a call at work.

Now it's just.

"Honey, have I told you how much I love you lately?"
"What have you done now?"
"They were practically giving them away."

I'll buy anything at 40% off.

We each have our own personal bank accounts and credit cards. Bills and whatnot get paid out of a joint bank account that we each put half our paycheck into.

This is good.

That's pretty much what we do too. So far so good.