I am brand new to the sport, and to this forum.....but I'm no spring chicken when it comes to internet forums. There are ALWAYS going to be people who hate on others because their gear outweighs their skill (I don't know about the OP's skill, I'm just talking generally). I see it all the time in car forums - guys driving 800 HP machines only to cruise at 20 mph on a Saturday night and never see a track or strip.

But honestly, what's the motivation for dogging the OP about what bike he's on or the kit he's wearing? He asked a simple and honest question about a stem. Its not like he asked "Do these rims make my bike look faster or give me another 5mph?" Jealousy perhaps? Yeah, I'm jealous...I'm a 33 yr old skinny dude with a six pack riding $1000 aluminum bike with 2300 groupset. My point is we all start somewhere, some have more cash to blow than others - so what if the OP "grows" into his bike as he gets better. Other's do it the opposite - outgrow and upgrade.

Just give the guy the info he needs and move on. No need for this Fred nonsense.