Lebowski

i spent about a grand on a decent road bike, i probably put the most miles on it, however i just don't see the need to put any upgrades on it. unlike my other bikes it's actually paid for it self in gas money over the last year.

i can see spending $450 on a suspension fork, but i cant see spending over a hundred dollars for carbon road bars.

don't get me wrong i love road cycling, its just not my forte. i only really felt the need to have one road bike, but i seem to end up collecting mountain bikes like they are going out of style.

generally a $2000 mtb is going to noticeably perform much better than a $1000 mtb. i guess i never felt the extra cash was worth it on a road bike. my road bike doesn't need the highest end derailleurs and parts. the cheaper parts aren't getting smashed around and perform just fine under the lower stress conditions that are found on the road. I've ridden a couple more expensive road bikes and i just couldn't tell that much of a difference from my "entry level" Allez.

i suppose i just see road cycling as a medium for transportation - and mountain biking is a means of recreation.

Velo Dog

I have a couple of fairly expensive bikes now--an Atlantis and a Rambouillet, and I like them a lot. But I rode for almost 20 years on a series of low-end ($150 to $400) bikes, and I don't have 10 times as much fun now. I don't even have TWICE as much fun. If you like what you have, ride it and don't worry.

AndrewP

Why would you think of spending $450 to downgrade your road bike with a sus fork. You can easily spend $2000 in new bibs, tights, arm warmers, jerseys, shoes, pedals HRM and power meter hub

Lebowski

i meant a suspension fork for a mountain bike, it would make no sense to put one on something made for pavement

sam83

one word:

Sheboygan

mawtangent

In any hobby/interest there are always those who are "pushing it to the next level" (In road biking that would include getting the lastest and lightest gear). Someone who is just "not THAT into it" wll wonder what all the fuss is about. When the personal computer was on the rise "computer geeks" would have endless discussions about computer speed, RAM, and harddrive space. Many people just want enough computer power to check their email and shop on ebay. Someone told me that before the computer it was the same with home stereo systems, some people were spending thousands for bigger/louder setups, while others enjoyed their music on more modest systems.

I have an '86 Schwinn Traveler roadbike that I really like. I have about $250 in it (original cost, shipping, and repairs). I don't have easy access to try 1000+ roadbikes and even if I rode one and was "blown away" I probably still couldn't justify buying one. Maybe someday I will try one and buy it, but right now I'm just not THAT into it.

stapfam

You want to spend money on a bike- Then get an offroad Mountain Tandem.

Started sensible at around $3,000----$5,000 later and it started working.

tntyz

One word:

Middle Tennessee

Oh wait, that's two words . . .

Retro Grouch 

There's threads that justify spending a lot of money on a road bike and there's threads that justify not spending a lot of money on a road bike.

I guess that's why they have both chocolate and vanilla.

efi

How bout a video of the tandem on some trails?

stapfam

No Vid- but something for the future. Last Long ride we did is on this link

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ht=downs+south