So, I started commuting to work three years ago. Then last year we adopted another dog and I take her our mountain biking regularly. Just before Christmas I started wrenching my own bikes. I wound up building up new wider rims and a drive train on my MTB. This meant I needed a new pair of tires. Then I put an Alfine 11 and a front disk brake on my commuter. I regularly clean my drive trains and fiddle with stuff. Accessories, tools, and parts of various applications are all over my shed. Now that my MTB 1x9 setup is showing signs of wear I want to put an Alfine 8 on it and set it up for adventuring, touring, and bikepacking, and of course buy yet another pair of 26 inch tires. I think my wife wants to kill me. Is this a normal obsession? And should I find another hobby? Should I try to make some cash on the side with this?

Based on what I have seen on the TV news over the years, it is a normal obsession for some wives.

Just remind your wife that cycling keeps you healthy and the alternatives of being obese and having heart and other health problems is MUCH more expensive.

You married a woman, not bikes. Ignore the former at your own peril.

Bikes won't visit you in the hospital or take care of you in your old age.

There are plenty of ways to not be obese which don't involve obsessive hobbies and divorce.


-Tim-

Yes, it's an entirely normal obsession. I know for sure that it's normal because there is no 12 step program for bicycle tinkering.

If you try to make money on the side, you will turn your normal hobby into another job. You don't need another job any more than you need another hobby.

You need to quit work. That is obviously what is interfering with your having enough time for both your wife and your cycling hobby. Ask her if she'd support you so that you can pursue this. We'll wait.

I was telling my wife about the differences in the bottom brackets between my vintage and new CF bike. When I told her I was considering having my new BB rebuilt, she asked my how much in new tools, and I said about what it would cost to have it done.

Her response was....You??? Let someone else work on your bike??? Buy the tools and do it yourself, cause you won't ever be happy with the job they did.

My wife knows me.

Other hobbies are just as gear obsessive as bicycling but bicycling is probably the most affordable and most useful. You can't drive a golf ball to work. Horses cost way more to maintain than cars. You can't drive a boat to work...well, unless you live in Houston...Oh! Too soon

And then there are cars. Collecting, restoring and driving old cars costs roughly 10 times what a bike will cost. Dropping $6000 on a bike is crazy talk but dropping that much on a car is basically entry level stuff.

My shrewd little bother talked his way into a motorcycle when he was 15 by planning to build a super go-cart from a basic case motorcycle. He had plans drawn out and some parts collected so my parents suggested he buy a motorcycle instead because they could see the upcoming carnage. Never mind that my bother didn't have the skills nor equipment to actually weld a frame, they let him buy the motorcycle anyway.

Perhaps that's what you should do with your wife. Start planning on buying and restoring a 60s muscle car or making a kit car. Leave magazines and catalogs around so that she can see your new obsession. Once she sees the price of parts, she might see bicycles in a whole new light.

By the way, when I asked to buy a motorcycle, I was told "No. You'll kill yourself." That's was their basic response on everything. Kind of why I ended up obsessed with bicycles. I think I better off in the end.

I did this about 15 years ago, I was a bit P/O'd and I said 'what, are you my mother!' That is why I now have bicycles.

Don't ignore the former but try talking to her. Point out that the bicycle reduces the mileage, wear and tear, and thus the need for a new car. I have a 1999 truck that has 160,000 miles on it. I put gas in it irregularly. This spring, I filled the tank in May and then again in July. I was 3 days shy of 90 days between fill ups. I change the oil in the truck roughly once a year because it takes that long to get enough mileage to justify an oil change. I haven't had a car payment in around 15 years. I put around 700 gallons of gas (at $2 to $3 per gallon) in the vehicle every year for a truck that gets 12 miles to the gallon and a 20 mile round trip commute. I also track both my bicycle mileage and vehicle mileage so that I have data to back up my claims.

Based on my data, I save about $1200 per year on gasoline alone. I save $3600 per year by not making a car payment. I save $200 to $300 per year on insurance because of my low vehicle mileage. That's pretty close to $5000 per year about $300 in vehicle savings. It's ain't chump change.

My wife is very understanding of how much my "hobby" costs and how much it actually saves. Our household budget reflects that understanding and we have a very generous bicycle budget for both of us. We still have to pay for some vehicle repairs and it never ceases to amaze me how much we are willing to spend on a repairing a car vs what we both think is reasonable for a bicycle. Dropping $3000 on a bike is ridiculously expensive but dropping $3000 on a car isn't. Go figure.

Of course having 9 drool worth bicycles like I do is way easier and cheaper than having the same level of motorcycles. Let's just say that my entire fleet wouldn't buy a single Harley...not that I would want one

'At's a good woman, right there!

Yes, it's easy and fairly normal to get caught up in the fix, tweak, add another bike pattern.

However, keep this in mind ------- Happy wife, happy life. So keep some perspective, and don't let your new hobby interfere with your relationship. Keep a rein on it in terms of money, space and time, especially which ever is scarcest.

Often, your spouse will complain about the money, or clutter, and these may in fact be the issue, but they may be secondary to the time you give the bike, that you used to give her.

For me, the tension with the wife is all on the time dimension, not the financial. A four hour ride is never surrendered with ease, it is always a problem...

Today my 1995 Honda Civic passed it's biennial smog check! I bike to work or take the train (work pays for a train pass). My car is for doing errands and going places. I put gas in it every 4-6 weeks. In the winter, I make sure to take it for a drive mid-week to make sure it continues to start. This is the second year in a row where I am on a pace to put 2x more miles biking that driving. I also get an oil change once a year.

The largest expense of owning the car is auto insurance. Unless something like a blown radiator or worn brakes, etc come up. At least "major" bike maintenance is a lot less expensive than the car.

My cats don't give me grief about spending most of the day Sunday out on a bike ride :-) Or care when I clean the bike in the kitchen.

I'm in better overall physical health because I bike instead of drive :-)

Seems to be a lot of people drifting in from redd*t these days. Must be a problem over there? Should I worry about what happens on other forums? Is there a way to make money on my comments here?

lol, nice rant, join the club, include her if you can, maybe buy her a bike & go for a ride together, it's a great hobby if you get another one you'll do the same thing, used to breed angel fish & that was a whole thing too. 2nd job helps so many things, so many ways, even if it's not bike related. maybe drive for Lyft?

I would side with your wife, I don't understand the obsession people have with internal geared hubs anyway. Just do the right thing and buy the Eagle XX1

Seriously though, my wife and I have worked to compromise because I've been biking way too much this summer. She literally takes care of everything in our lives, so I struggle to make it up to her