Birthday

A common misconception is that chamois cream is one time use. Many of us are simply wiping our money away. Press it through a coffee filter and microwave to sanitize, then store in the mason jars you use for your urine.

Microwaving your cream is also recommended to ease application on cold mornings. Don't forget to reuse your coffee filter.

Jiggle

Don't spend money on bicycle computers or power meters. Riding without them is more pure and a lot cheaper.

cellery

You're doing it wrong. The right way is to refill your used energy gel packets with the filtered chamois cream. The minty effervescent pep gives you the kick you need after a long day of droping hamers. That way you save $$ on both cream and gels.

Team Sarcasm

On my old bike I chopped up a busted tube so it looked like bar wrap and put it under my bar tape when I was too lazy to buy two things of wrap .

Worked pretty well! I only used it on the flats of the bar for a tad bit more beef.

jerrycan42

Doesn't cocoa have caffeine? At least some amount? Is it just a negligible amount?

mprelaw

Chicken broth would probably be one's best bet for a cold weather beverage.

lyrictenor1

The Costco flavored fig bars are a great value. Wrapped in packs of two, with each package being roughly 200 calories. Perfect for use on rides.

bigdo13

yes.. the dollar tree fig newtons that are made with real fruit and don't have egg or milk in em... yup... good point...

mobilemail

When you go for a ride just leave your bike at home, or else you just wear stuff out and have to spend $$$

rousseau

Reused coffee filters? You were lucky. Oh, we used to dream of reused coffee filters.

achoo

What does Costco taste like?

lyrictenor1

The boxes come in combos of three flavors, I guess those flavors are dependent on whatever the supplier has available at the time. The one I picked up last week at my local Costco has Blueberry (my favorite I've tried so far), Apple Cinnamon, and Raspberry (meh). The previous box I had contained Blueberry, Strawberry, and Lemon. IMO, they're all good, with the exception of the raspberry... Here's the manufacturer page: All Natural Fig Bars & Snack Foods - Nature's Bakery

joeyduck

To me Costco usually tastes sour and leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Dave Cutter

What sort of cheapie doesn't like the flavor of Costco, or Sam's Club. They taste like savings.

I like buying their XLG sized tea bags (make a gallon per bag) and we brew it in the sun. Another tip I like is learning where all the parks are in the (very large) area where I bicycle. If I do need to refill a water bottle or find some shade no place is cheaper than a public park.

But the #1 way to save on cycling costs has to be doing your own repairs.

powbob

Not always. I ordered a set of wheels from Wiggle.com on a Sunday night recently. They were delivered that Tues. Weird. I can't get stuff from Amazon that quickly.

Dave Mayer

Well researched and documented response. Anyway, around here, 10-speed chains (Ultegra level) are going for about $15. Cassettes less than $50. Entire Ultegra cranksets for less than $200.

I don't see anything close to this pricing in 11-speed. The extortionist pricing of 11-speed chains is strange, in that Shimano 10 and 11 speed cog spacing is very close. Can you use 10-speed chains on 11-speed drivetrains? Not that you'd want 11-speed; it is just part of an absurd arms race planned obsolesence designed to make you pay for a whole bunch of expensive new stuff every few years.

Disk brakes - to reiterate, expensive and unnecessary. I noticed that in this weekends UCI 'cross race in Belgium there was young guy using disks. Everyone else was on 'cantis. Despite the significant performance disadvantage of disks (weight) he placed rather well, although he ran out of gas near the end.

Jiggle

I do, easily, except for the chain price you quoted, because that is very near cost on Shimano brand 6700 chains. If the cost of 10 speed components is lower, it is because of reduced demand and retailers putting them on clearance. The cost from Shimano is slightly less for 5800 and 6800 than their 10 speed predecessors.

Shimano has increased chain durability in every generation from 9-11 speeds. So the cost per mile is probably the same.

telebianchi

Don't go on vacation and rent a bike much nicer than what you already own.

September 2013. Girdwood, AK.
2013 Trek Domane 5.2 rental.


February 2014. Skyline Drive, VA.
My 2014 Trek Domane 5.2 bought less than a month after returning from Alaska. And it's 11-speed!



I would have saved a bunch of money had I never rented that Trek.

wphamilton

The path to thrifty roadiehood lies in the 8-speed drive train. Cheaper, longer lasting chains. Cheaper cassettes and shifters. Since you don't care that much about shifting, taking this path, bell cable sets do well enough, and after a certain point don't seem to get any worse. For thousands of miles anyway.

This is presuming that we've skipped the carbon fiber frame, a no-brainer for cycling thriftiness. So the bike is heavier, and shifts only "well enough" - presumably the thrifty cyclist is not into time trials which opens up vistas of economical tire choices. $8-$15 tires that is. If you thought $40 tires were economical you're in the wrong thread.

Beyond the basic hardware, the key is to have no sense of shame or style regarding what you put on the bike. Or on your person. That may seem too generic to be useful but it's actually easy to put into practice by following one rule: just don't buy it. Don't buy the $300 cycling jacket, or the $100 jerseys and bibs. Don't buy energy gels, sports drinks or pointless upgrades. Don't fall for "you get what you pay for" because that's only true for paying attention, not dollars.

banerjek

Avoid communicating with cycling nerds. Otherwise, they may convince you to buy crap you don't need.

bt

stay off the internet

79pmooney

Fig Newtons! The energy bar of the '70s. Available in any country store. (And still are.) Got me home from more than one epic ride.

To get serious - the really good, cheap hydration drink is Vitalyte aka Gookinaid aka ERG. REI sells the tub for ~$18. Good for about 40 WBs. I went just water for 15 years when the stuff disappeared, but I feel better regularly when I drink the stuff on my rides, both during and after. The creator nailed it when he formulated the stuff 45 years ago.

Ben

79pmooney

I'm a mixed bag for thrift. I own no 10 or 11 speed or brifters. (DTs work, are universal, cheap and always survve routine crashes unscathed. 9 speed wheel come up regularly at good prices.) I have one new derailleur on my 3 geared bikes. I ride mostly fixed and that saves a lot of money over the long run, although the 15 or so 1/8" track quality cogs cost a lot. I ride good tires because I like good performance and road grip. Patch my tubes. Build my own wheels (and rebuild the wheels I buy at >=$100). Regularly go to the two shops with extensive used parts bins. All my bikes are either from used frames or custom. (3 of each. All but one of my used bikes has a custom stem. Stock bikes that actually fit me are rare and I am no longer willing to compromise on fit.) So I have paid $20, $20, $70, $450, and twice >$2000 for my frames.

I have some parts that have many years/miles of use. My old Mooney has on it now a wheel built in the early '80s around one of my old racing hubs. Seatpin for that bike is off my first 10 speed ever. 47 years old! The Mooney was built with canti brakes as a cost saving measure, and wow! has it! I think the braze-ons cost me $20. About $30 for the Mafac canti calipers, upgraded with Shimano OEM cantis ~mid '80s. Cables, housings andpads, a 2nd set of levers (due for a third). Not bad for a 46,000 mile all weather bike if I do say so. (60,000 for that seat pin!)

Ben