Originally Posted by
Happy Feet
I definitely think there is a place for the "best" technology when it comes to bikes and that is when one is riding competitively. If you have already optimized the motor then any advantage one gets from optimizing the bike makes sense.
But... if one talks obsessively about the competitive advantages of one bike over another yet only rides recreationally, as most of us do here, and hasn't optimized the motor, it comes across that the "competition" is just how fancy a bike one can buy. Using a credit card is not a skill. I suspect, except for a few outliers, most people participating on this forum could not out ride the capabilities of even a mid grade fat bike. I know I just took my rigid Fatboy to Alpine Ski Resort in Fernie and the only thing limiting my progression through the runs was skill, not bike.
All that does not mean one can't choose whatever bike they want. That's fair play. But blah blah blah about how one is so much better than the other is boring to anyone who actually gets out and gives it on a regular basis. On the trails I meet few people who give a sh_t as long as you are riding.
All true. I've been driving bicycle since I was seven and couldn't even drive a wheelie to save my life. For me, its all forward motion. I drive literally every day, spring, summer, winter, fall. I drive in blizzards in temps minus 32 degrees Fahrenheit, through extreme heat and thunderstorms. I suppose my greatest bike skill is safety and reliability. I can read the path in front of me instantly and it's extremely rare I have even a mishap.
Of course if you want you can spend lots of money and have the greatest bike on the market. That's all up to you. Its your money. Enjoy. But even so, one has to spend a little to get something decent. I got my Pug used for $750.00 and built it to my liking, spending at least that much more just getting close to what I wanted. A new Pug is nineteen hundred bucks. A decent bike is not cheap any way you look at it. But personally I can spend more on bikes because we are a one car family and save tons of cash because of my bike habits.