Originally Posted by
InTheRain
So... you spent $2000 on a $1500 bike??? Where I work, they call that mis-management. We don't get the "$500 try it and see if you like it." Most of us that cycle a lot have made the same mistake. I just think if you say you are going to do it... then do it! If you say you are going to give it a try... just recognize that it's probably going to cost you the $500 to "try it."
If you are a person that comes onto the forums and says, "I'm going to do it." Why not skip the $500 "try it" step? If you go into saying I'm going to "ride the bike around the neighborhood" and "I'm going to ride it 5-10 miles to work" then the $500 bike is fine. And if your needs change, then you buy a new bike to meet those needs. However, If you say I'm going to do fitness rides with the club, or go on cross country touring, or ride cyclocross, then there aren't a lot of $500 bikes that fit the bill. If you actually follow through and do those things, I will guarantee that you won't be doing them very long on the $500 bike.
I'm just hoping people will make a purchase based on their needs... not their budget, because in the long run... you will buy what you need (and if you know what that is now, why not buy it now?)
For me, I didn't know exactly what I wanted / needed when I got my first bike. My primary concern was "The local transit is going on strike, I want a way to get into work".
The idea of biking 100km in a day seemed silly to me at the time, and I just wanted/needed a beat around bike. Was my first time buying a bike since high-school.
So, yeah - a $500 bike at the time seemed perfectly reasonable. At the time, I wasn't looking into doing long-distance rides, multi-day touring, etc.
Then, I got peddling, and more so in the 2nd year of having my bike - I started to do longer distances, riding more often, and my needs / desires out of a bike changed. This resulted in me gifting my old bike to my friend, and buying a new bike that better fits my new needs.
I think that there are a lot of people that 'first get into it' in a similar way. They don't really know what they need / want, they mostly want a 'commuter bike', and after they get riding a bit - either their needs change, or they realize what their actual needs are.
I guess one point I'll agree on with you : If someone is specifically looking into getting into racing / cyclo cross / touring / triathlons / etc, and know "yes, I am getting this bike so I can race" -- then I do think that budget should factor a bit less into the picture.
But for someone that's just buying a bike for the first time in a few years, doesn't really know their full 'needs' yet or how they plan on biking, I don't think having a budget in mind is a bad thing