LittleBigMan

I often watch people in shock after I tell them how much I spent for my bike (which was very little, actually, only about $600.) Convincing a non-cyclist to spend even $300 on a bike is almost like trying to talk a child into eating spinach.

My question is, if bikes are "too expensive," what do you call a new set of tires for your car? Alignment? Brakes? Almost any routine car maintenance?

If the world was round, and everyone believed it was flat...

Chris L

Yeah, I get the same thing all the time. Of course, a lot of the people I know are always complaining about it, but trying to convince them that it is their choice is like trying to tell television networks to stop producing crap.

Chris

*WildHare*

I would say that most people view their car as a neccessity. Alignment, tires, maintenance, etc... all come with the territory and are accepted for that reason. A bicycle may be considered just a toy to a non cyclist. It's something you buy for your child as a gift, not a means of transportation.

$600.00 is expensive for someone who may only ride the bike a couple of times and then let it collect dust like so many other things we buy (exercise equipment comes to mind ). $300.00 bucks is hard to part with as well especially if you are trying to convince someone who really doesn't want to be convinced, i.e. not really interested in the first place.

And yes, it is a choice. How much we spend is directly related to how passionate we are about riding. If you want the best, you're gonna blow a ton of money and you won't need a whole lot of convincing because you enjoy what you are doing. I've invested over $4k in the last 3 years and I don't regret spending a penny! I've had a great time hand picking every part on my bike and trying new stuff when something doesn't feel quite right. It's a hobby and a means of staying fit and I plan to keep on riding for as long as my body permits

My .02 cents for whatever the heck this topic was supposed to be about...

Ellie

You could always suggest they try the more gentle (on the wallet) approach of buying second-hand. I just got a reasonable Rayleigh for £50 from my old LBS. (Ummm... approx. $70.) Slight case of rust on the gear cables, little bit on some spokes. 27 inch aluminium rims.

Of course, I pulled my last bike out of a skip, so I am starting from a fairly low base! I did up most of it (bottom bracket, paint job, etc), but the forks weren't entirely true, and when I went to get them replaced the guy in the shop pointed out that this other bike wasn't much more expensive. <sigh> I'm just a sucker, I guess....

MichaelW

If you set aside the unemployed and students, and only consider people in paid employment, these people have to spend money on their travelling. Cycling will save them money even if they spend $600 on a bike. Trying to convinve them that $600 is not a lot of money is quite difficult, dispite the arithmetic.
My local bus company charge £5 /week for their cheapest rate. That is £600 in 120 weeks. A $600 bike should last longer than that.

These same people who balk at spending on a real bike will spend big money on fixed excercise bikes and gym fees. Even swimming will cost you the price of a decent bike every year.

By getting the bike, they save money on their transport, save money on their fitness, save time by combining fitness and travel.

People like to signal their wealth with expensive things, yet expensive bikes just dont seem to say "I have money"*. I think people are afraid that they will spend the money, but the signal to others will be "I'm so poor I have to ride a bike" .

* except to other cyclists, who dont count.

Greg

Passionate and true words.

Pete, I assume $600 was your initial purchase. Fess up, you've spent a bit more since, havent you?

RainmanP

And after a few years when they are tired of looking at it, bike vulture that I am, I swoop down and buy it out of the classifieds for $50-100, and with the addition of new tires and tube, have a brand new bike, as happened with my beloved Bianchi.

Hey, Greg, I don't know if Pete will, but I will admit to buying a bike for $400 then turning around and spending another $600 over the course of 6 months upgrading to 105 components and a road bar. May sound silly, but I am very happy with the outcome. I learned a lot about components and mechanics while researching what I wanted. I was able to put together exactly what I want. The result is a very sturdy and comfortable commuter/tourer with smooth, quiet components. It's my SUV, suburban utility velocipede.

During the same time period, I figure I have saved at least $1500 (strictly parking and gas) versus driving and I sold my second vehicle, an old Asto, for $800, so I figure I am something like $1300 to the good. We don't have to count shoes, pedals, lights, saddles, panniers, shorts, jerseys, socks, etc., etc., do we?

fubar5

I just got a statement of how much I made this summer and how much tax was taken out and all that good stuff. I made about 1700, but I only have 700 in the bank....I wonder where all that money went???

RonH

OK Fubar, time to fess up. Which bike did you buy?

Paige

When somebody buys a new car everyone admires the car and congratulates the owner never giving a thought to the depreciation the new owner will suffer during the years they are making payments on the car.I wonder what the depreciation is on a new $20k car? $2k or 3k the first year?

fubar5

A brand new car loses 50% of its value the second it roles off the car lot. Harley-Davidsons are the only vehicles that a consumer can turn around and sell close to the MSRP or whatever he payed for it. I dunno about you guys, but I am not to wild about Harley's.

Hunter

NO!

These are accessories! Although they are bolted on or used to cycling they ae not the bike itself. Therefore they do not count!

Chris L

Ladies and gentlemen, this can be settled very, very simply. I can afford a bike and to ride it every day, even if I go through a run of breaking heaps of stuff like I did a couple of weeks ago. I could only dream of having enough money to waste on a car.

Argument settled.

Chris

PapeteeBooh

I am a working person. I spent enough to buy a decent, fast and reliable good bike ($750). If compared to a the cost of running a car, it is nothing! Actually I checked and I would pay at least that much only for the insurance premium (6 months) for any car. A good bike lasts pretty much forever. I have seen bikes over 25 years old in great shape. People don't need to buy bikes at credit (usually).

As for running cost and accessories. Not that much really. I use about 1 new tube a month (I am too lazy to fix them) which is about $3-4, new tape on my handlebar every 3 months ($15) and generally I do the rest myself although even bike shop maintenance every so often would not break the bank. I ride about 100 miles per week (some people here do a lot more I know) so the cost per mile is neglectable. Cheaper than anything.

Of course a lot of stupid people consider a man without a car as less than a man, not owning a vehicle consuming fossil fuel a sin and life without debt as suspicous. Who cares

Chris L

Man, I enjoyed reading that!

Chris

LittleBigMan

One thing more!

You can't buy the utter joy that you get from riding. And that part is almost free.

Also, think of all the "joy fixes" people spend even more money on because of the void they feel..."fixes" like, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Mall Shopping, excessive television, and whatever else.

I just love knowing that I can finally have a total blast in life, it costs almost nothing, and it's actually good for me!

(To those of you who love Fried Chicken, Mall Shopping, and television, it's just an illustration. Not being judgemental: there are a million things people might use. Heck, I'm human too! I use a few myself. I'm just saying, "Riding is so...like, wow!")

ViciousCycle

If people bought cars the way that they bought bikes, they would buy the car, then within the course of the next few weeks, they would buy new headlights, seats, seat belts, dashboard, and door locks.

Chris L

They don't?

:confused:

fubar5

While I was camping I found out that my bike cost more than one of the guys car. Huh, they all thought I was crazy to spend that much money. They were just scratching the surface....

AlphaGeek

No! Definitely that's ESSENTIAL, as I tell my son!

LittleBigMan

Not only can a bike cost more than a car (accessories or no accessories), but a bike can be faster, too. :thumbup:

Chris L

Yes but if you look at it, bikes should really cost more than cars anyway. Bikes are better. So much for getting what you pay for

Chris

fubar5

Yeah, I can't wait until I can go 35 or so.

The guys were talking smack about biking being easy. We just happened to be camping up on a hill....a good( to a cyclist) hill too, so I let one of them try going up....He admitted it was harder than he thought.

Chris L

They obviously haven't ridden some of the places I have ridden.

PapeteeBooh

Bikes do not cost more than a car. There is the cost of ownership also. Cars are expensive to own (I would not want one of these things if somebody gave it to me for free.) bikes are not.