good morning all: as I read through this post with a few of my 'snob' ideas, I realize that someone may also abhor snobbishly my procrastination for reading this thread and posting so late.
But nonetheless, I agree wholeheartedly and unapologetically admit I too am a snob. In fact, if we all self reflect honestly for a nanosecond, we all really are, that's exactly why we ride what we ride after all, and that is perfectly ok.
My wife and I have said something many times to the point, life is too short for bad food, bad shoes, and bad friends. She doesn't ride, but I have adopted much the same taste in my bikes.
I will offer what has not been so far as to not be redundant, as there are so many good points already
First, its in my genome, I am a snob and perhaps a skeptic, as I lament the advertising and marketing that perpetuates the current cycling culture, who receive it like a fish to a seal...clapping all the way. What do I mean? Like as mentioned by so many, carbon fiber, I've ridden it, many in fact and each leaves me with a sense of deadness, as compared to my Reparto Corse Boron steel Bianchi...which is lively, light and snappy. I scratch my head and ask...why CF? You'd think by the ads its the newest best, most perfect medium, but it is far from it. The corporate companies don't want to pay for the craft any more, like in so many other skills as well and simply said, the craft overall to make the steel bike is dying. Specialized et al brands, can make a mold, lay up the carbon, press it, and wala....you gotta frame. No skill, no finesse, no craft. Oh, yes, some quality guy comes by and looks at it...but that is in essence the process. So, yes, when some youngster comes by on their $12k Trek Domane SLR, eTap clad girl, I..on my trek 400..steel...which actually geometrically has the NEAR exact same specs...updated to my desires of course and fat tyres, is perhaps 3lb heavier....and 11,500k cheaper...I simply have to regard myself as discerning, and informed...yes, more than the ones who simply go in and yap like a seal at the marketing hype, and I do feel snobbish
Secondly, I love non disc bikes. My buddy, who on his Di2 GRX rig, outfitted with gravel hoops...and yes...hydraulic disc...asked why I still use long reach brakes...and cantis. I simply said...any brake that throws you over the bars...is enough brakes. Truthfully, the logic doesn't work for disc, again, the marketing has. The largest radius is the rim itself, the most stopping ability is the rim itself. The weight penalty, is something to think about, and the transference of the heat into the hub, and the potential for that failure over time, is largely not considered. The reality: I love rim brakes and am snobbish especially if they are dura ace and largely don't have any failures thus far.
Thirdly: I am a downtube snob. Point blank snob! Why...just why on earth did we exchange the simplicity out for the brifter conundrums?? Why??? Why did we exchange the beauty of the decorative levers out for oversized less comfortable hoods/brifters??? OK, I did it, because I was young, and silly and bought the hype when shimano 600 8 spd grouppo came out and it was both indexed and you could shift on the fly, out of the saddle and that was why I bought in. I told myself it was safer...and it may be still...but I gave up so much. And have for the past 3 decades. But...having recently revived my love of all things downtube, steel, and C&V, realized this superior point, of why? I never have to fish out a broken head/cable from the internals of a brifter, I never have to regularly maintain the internals, and never have to worry about cogs shearing and failing....forget the cost of $300-500 for replacement. The downtube is just superior in simplicity and is a pure pleasure to ride. And forget the whole Di2/eTap world....why?? What goes down when the battery isn't charged?? Forget replaced?? So, yes, please forgive my snobbish ways....as life is too short for stupid marketing/salesmanship, carbon fiber, disc brakes and electronic grouppos. I simply am a snob for what works.