Originally Posted by
Machka
+1
In these forums there are a lot of
assumptions made about people who own and ride high end bicycles ... the main ones being that the people who own and ride high end bicycles think the bicycles will make them faster, or think that they are better than people who don't ride high end bicycles.
Chances are the people who ride high end bicycles do so because they like those bicycles and enjoy riding those bicycles.
I'm one who has and enjoys relatively high end bicycles, beater bicycles, and everything in between.
Do I think my high end bicycles will make me faster ... nope. In my dreams!
Do I think I'm better than other cyclists because of my bicycles ... nope. I'm just out there enjoying the ride.
Are my higher end bicycles more comfortable ... yes, I'd have to say that in general they are. But that's probably because I've purchased them with the right fit in mind, and a geometry I like.
Generally speaking, I don't even notice what other cyclists ride ... unless there is something about it that stands out as particularly eye-catching.
All my life I have been interested in technical things and mechanical things. I like understanding how something works any why it does what it does. When I was building cars and motorcycles, no one seemed to assume anything about anyone's ability or level of knowledge.
Now, If I am interested in, or talk about something that will improve my $6,000 Titanium race bike, I am considered to be, and treated as, a bike snob. It's just as much fun for me to travel 10 mph with the dog in the 1973 trike and be the slowest thing on wheels, as It is to be the fastest. If I tell how a little old lady passed me riding the trike, it's funny and interesting. If I out sprint someone half my age on a good bike, I don't mention it. That makes me a jerk. Does anyone understand that racing is fun?
Shoot me if I start treating people like that.