Originally Posted by mooder

I just spent ~500, new shoes, pedal, tire and clothing. I am broke as hell and still student for a while. I carefully manage the few bucks I have but when it comes to biking I CAN'T CONTROL MYSELF! And it is far from being accessible...just changing from spd to spd-l is a good 200$! Would have been 300 if I did not find my shoes on clearance. Conti GP4000 are 100$ the pair! The rest went on clothing as I only had a cheap bib+ jersey from ebay.
I shopped around (local) every piece of clothing retail at around 100$. Shoes are nearly twice the price and the gp4000, 75$ the tire.
I love this sport but my wallet is telling otherwise. Every time I order, I need to order big to save on cost. There is a minimum for free shipping and I get charged extra fee at the custom. Sucks to be canadian!