Originally Posted by
BluesDawg
I don't have to justify it to anyone else. Wife knows I'll be buying and selling bikes for at least as long as I can ride them and maintain them. She knows I wont do anything we cant afford.
For a long time I added bikes by defining niche roles that each bike would fill. No two bikes were for the same type of ride….
So I guess the justification is 1-Do I want it? 2-Which bike will it replace and do I want it bad enough to part with that bike? 3-Can I afford it?
Hi @BluesDawg,
Nice to see a post by you; haven’t in a while. Your current one summarizes IMO, the thread, and generalizes my situation.
For the past few years I have been entirely satisfied with my carbon fiber road bike, aluminum road bike as a beater that accepts 30C studded tires, and a previous moumtain bike beater, now in storage.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
...I'm very happy with my
Specialized S-Works for dry weather riding, but my
Cannondale Mountain bike was pretty heavy and cumbersomeas a Wet/Winter beater. So I recently bought a
Specialized Diverge Elite aluminum bike as a wet weather beater, and it rides nearly as nicely as the
S-Works, so I'm very happy with the
Diverge.
Now, the Cannondale is reserved completely for miserable studded-tire riding,and now I'm happy about that, and my riding needs are completely met.
I liken my three bikes to a Lamborghini, a Lexus, and a Humvee.
This year however has been a bust because this winter I developed a weakness in my neck muscles supporting my head upright (perhaps due to a two month unavoidable layoff) on my previously well-fitted bikes.
I had a subsequent fitting on both, with some handlebar adjustments. I recently got an exercise consultation for neck, shoulder and core muscles, and was given an exercise routine, that takes a big chunk of 50 minutes to perform. Exercise may fix it, but that’s a long-term solution.
All these remedies have barely allow me to ride my minimum 14 mile one-way commute with slight discomfort near the end. By this time of the year I'm doing weekly 50-60 mile rides easily, and even training for a Century. Just yesterday, I rented a hybrid style bike with flat handlebars, and was comfortable on the commute, even with a moderately heavy backpack
So now I’m giving in to the idea of a flat bar bike. I’m in a quandary if I should replace the drop bars on my aluminum beater (with endurance style geometry) with flat bars, see if I can buy this relatively cheap hybrid since it seems to work, or buy a new quality hybrid to my specifications. The Diverge is already set up as a nice all-weather commuter (see photo). I’m going to my trusted LBS on Saturday to make a decision.
My wife and I were together ardent cycle tourists for a long time, so she understands the bike mentality. Furthermore with me as as a relatively Car Free commuter, she has total priority for the single family car, as does our adult son (see PS).
Her only demand is no more than two bikes allowed out of storage in our rather small downtown condo. A new hybrid would displace the aluminum road beater.
PS: I had previously requested to use the car this Thursday (tomorrow) to run an errand during business hours. Two hours after my post, she called and asked if I really needed it (can do without, with difficulty). 
.
Last edited by Jim from Boston; 09-05-18 at 07:18 AM.
Reason: added PS