delbiker1 

For various reasons, I have been mostly riding my older, heavier and slower bikes. I have gained a much greater appreciation for those types of bikes, and the slower relaxed riding style. I find when riding like that, I do not pay much attention to speed or miles, I stop more often for whatever reason, and can do errands/chores at the same time. I also do not feel the need to put on all the bike clothing and shoes. Casual street clothes are fine. It really has added another aspect to my enjoyment of bicycles.

I have also found that the appreciation for those bikes carries over to when I get on one of my latest, lightest more aggressive bikes, and riding in a faster more aggressive style. The key here is still comfort. My fast and aggressive is relative to only me. I rode my Orbea Avant today for the first time in at least a month, oh man, I enjoyed that ride. The bike is light and stiff with excellent balance. I have the bike dialed in for me, so, it is pretty comfortable despite being a bit of a harsh ride. The Hed Ardennes wheel set and Open Pave tires, 27mm, with latex tubes , has smoothed the ride considerably. I am already thinking my next ride will again be the Orbea, and probably with a stepped up pace and distance.

It all works much better for me if I think about the pluses of the bike I am on, and not looking at the negatives and how to reduce them. My recently redone Fuji Ace is a good example. I built the bike with the concern being towards having a nice looking bike that performs it purpose really well, almost no new cost, and is comfortable and versatile. I will still occasionally think that I could lighten up the load, but to what end? No matter what I could do to save some grams here and there, the bike is still going to be an older, heavier frame set with a comfortable ride, and it fills a niche in my bike world.

I am all for expanding my bike pleasure, but I realize a lot of it is simply ego building, and nothing wrong with that. But real world shows that a fair amount of that gives no or little return, just lighter pockets. My dilemma here is liking all my bikes, but not wanting to keep that many. That is mostly because it seems I cannot stay away from tinkering with them, though they do not need it, and I do not want to be spending the cash needlessly. I have been getting much better at "Just say no" when an impulse buy is working on my brain and ego.

Rolla

Amen! By the time I turned 45, I'd had my fill of training, racing, and leg- and gram-shaving. Now, almost any quantifiable aspect of riding make my eyes glaze over. I'm in it for the exploration, camaraderie, and adventure, so I'd rather ride anything than a lightweight racer -- and preferably a singlespeed!

feedbag

I'm coming back to the sport at age 48 after about a 10 year hiatus. I'm assembling the steel bikes I set aside in my younger years in hopes of having the same experience you're having. Can't wait for this icy weather to break so I can get out and ride.

jack pot 

... i used to messenger, i still ride fix but i ride as slow as circumstances permit AND im forever thru with urban riskiness

RiceAWay

As another point, steel is real and doesn't break unless a car hits you really hard, in which case you have more problems. I had every top end bike imaginable but have finally settled on an Aluminum Trek Alpha and like it much better and am not worried that some part may fail in the worst possible place.