I hear swimming pools can get a little pricey.

going to build a new one in your back yard?

i'd be willing to be that most pool memberships fees cost less than what you spend on tires / tubes in a year.

edit: and the ocean is free... for those in warm places.

I say thumbs up to the rule change.

But I think you have to contrast the $150 race suit with the cost of a basic $20 speedo, so 7.5x.

the pros ride the top of the line components, period. DA, Record (or SR) and Red. you can justify cheaping out with the ultegra any way you want, but dont kid yourself, its not pro:)

For me, the 80/20 rule applies for any luxury hobby where the first 20% spent gets you 80% there, and you can spend the whole lot more chasing that ultimate 20%. As a recovery audiophile, trust me, I know, and cycling has nothing on audio gears in terms of that "intangibles" only you can hear or feel :)

recommend me a set of bookshelf speakers <$500

^^^quad 11l

I have a beautiful pair of JMLab 706's that you can have for $500. I'll even include shipping. ;)

For $8000, she coulda just bought the damn birds, and looked at them up close anytime she wants. Screw the binoculars.

Might I be an exception to the rule? I am enjoying the anticipated returns from building a Scott CR1 Pro with brand spanking 6700 along with some new Thompson and 3T components, an old but trusty saddle and coveted Psimet wheels. Coming from a Tarmac with old 105, I feel I've jumped way ahead of my game. Returns; built my first rig ground up, in exactly the spec's I wanted and at a stitch under $3K. And a big +1 to the 6700. And grams? I'm a 214lb hunk-a-burnin-love.

Why the hate on birding?

Clearly you don't understand the difference the right pair of binoculars and spotting scope can make.

LS3/5a.

Where are you finding a decent pair for that price?

Oh, I like birds. I have a turkey sandwich for lunch.

Seriously though, I was just trying to point out how bikes aren't an oddity in the diminishing returns game. And for the record, after my post I looked up my aunt's binoculars and I think they are leica's that acctually sell for $2k. So about what Pcad pays for wheels?

This diminishing returns thing may be common in many hobbies, but I'm having a hard time finding another one where that last 2-5% of benefit doubles the price of the schwag. Not for nothing, but the D.A. bikes with their pricier components and wheels but essentially the same (or very similar) frame set are like a half pound lighter, and that's about the only major advantage I can really see. So the 16 lb version is double the price of the 16.6 pound version.

That's marketing. Hey, people buy Harley friggin Davidsons too. I mean go figure.

Well,. How much faster do you think a $150 swimsuit will make you compared to a $20 model? My boss is a competion rifle shooter. His base gun (m1a) could be bought for about $1200. His model with a heavier bedded barrel and some extra internal polishing was close to $3000. By his estimates it's fractionally more accurate than a properly sited in base model. But in his world, it's all the difference.

Strongly disagree!

Pros ride what they are paid to ride. That is what makes them pros!

That's what pros do, they ride what the people who pay him/her tell him to ride.

i have 105 the previous version 5600 and i have ultegra 6700 and i have test ridden dura achee 7900.

i put ultegra marginally ahead of 105 both shift really nicely but ultegra has the edge. I put dura crappy last. it was rubbish and annoying and wouldn't shift smoothly.

True, but I am struggling to figure out which bino costs $8k. Even a Kowa 82ED scope is $3k and the Leica HDs are about $2500 or so, eh?

Birding gear is a direct parallel to bikes, though, in terms of incremental benefit/$. I have a pair of Zen-Ray ED binos that cost $350 and they come very close to Leicas in performance.

Lol!

V.

As I stated above, I was talking about the Leica for around $2000. I believe 42 hd was the model. She does have a spotting scope, too, but I haven't ever messed with it.

6700 ftw

This seems to be the issue with the Cervelo S2 v. S3.

Minimal weight savings for maximum dollars.

It's also why I chose Chorus.

The larger Fujinon binocs run $5k+ and that's before you purchase the tripod (not cheap for a good one). Here's one of their larger models @ $15k -> http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...Binocular.html

exactly, and you can bet that shimano isnt going to pay their pro sponsored teams to ride ultegra!