Dilemma: Keep or sell the CAAD?
 

Earlier in the year I purchased a 2011 CAAD10-5 to be my semi-commuter/grocery-running bike. I chose a CAAD because I wanted something that I felt would be less fragile than my Giants and also slightly less expensive, so I could potentially use the CAAD for Crash-5 racing in the future.

However, with a new saddle and Speedplays (to match my other bikes) I walked out of the store spending nearly $1700. With that amount into it I suddenly felt like it was a little too valuable to be leaving outside of grocery stores (though I do live in a safe, small town), and I was also worried that my nearly 20 lbs of bike locks could be damaging to the frame--not necessarily the weight, but if someone were to come bumping into my bike and something got shifted...idk, maybe I'm being ridiculous.

So anyway, having not really ridden the CAAD at all I'm considering selling it and getting a steel bike (Raleigh Clubman, Bianchi Pista, etc.; or buy a used steel frame, upgrade components and wheels on the TCR and use the old stuff with the steel frame) that I wouldn't have to worry about as much.

Finally, I'm trying to choose a good price point for it. Ideally I'd like to get as close to my original price as possible since the bike has less than 100 miles on it, but I do understand that it's an older model. I would also be up for selling it for less without the saddle and pedals since I'd like to keep them for the new bike I get.

Of course I could also choose to keep the CAAD and just not worry about any potential damage. Anyone know if insurance covers bikes that are damaged while locked up in front of a grocery store--could it be considered vandalism?

And yes, I am aware that I've basically purchased three bikes that do the same thing. For awhile we were planning to leave Minnesota for Oregon, so the Defy was meant to be designated as a climbing bike; not much climbing to be done in southern MN.

Well, here's one on a local craigslist listed at $1200. I have a feeling it'll be up for a while. http://binghamton.craigslist.org/bik/3455896717.html

Not only is december a tough time to sell, but considering you're staring down a $400+ loss selling it, I say just use it like you'd intended. Make sure your homeowners policy will cover it, and use it. It's probably not the best tool for the job, but it's yours and some of the cost is more or less sunk.

What size? I might be interested in buying the frame if it fits. I can ride either a 52 or 54.

Keep the Cannondale. It will be an awesome around-town bike. Throw some panniers on it to bring home groceries. This will increase the fredliness and make the bike a little less tempting to thieves.

Skip the twenty pounds of bike locks, just get a simple combo lock. If a determined thief really wants your bike, there is nothing out there that can stop them. A lock just prevents 99% of the "opportunity" thefts that occur.

Just keep it... And lock it up in visible areas, not in theft prone areas. I have a CAAD9 as my main commuter and rain bike, and it still gets ridden on some group rides from time to time as well. It's nice for the occasional cat-6-commuter race too! :D

keep it. transaction cost kills the deal.

if you're worried just spray paint it black so it's not an obvious 'nice bike'.

good luck. with the newer caad frames dipping below the weight of many carbon frames it's gonna be tough to get anything very close to what you paid for it. nobody is going to pay a big premium for it because of a saddle and pedals either, unless it's their first bike or something. i would say 750-800 - but there's a chance for a bit more for a 52 or 54 if it were a good color.


but why not just buy a motobecane track bike for 250 bucks? cheap, no labels, same/close geo as a pista, not a thousand dollars. my guess is because it's not a bianchi - sounds like you're just trying to justify buying a new bike (which there's nothing wrong with btw!). i have a pista and i had a track, which i used for years moving up to cat 1. for a commuter it's cheap, durable, and good quality. who cares if you throw a lock around it, if it does get stolen you're not 1700 bucks into it.

Keep it and go buy a classic roadie of craigs for 200 for your store runs.

This. For store runs, the 2 minutes (if that!) you save riding a racing bike versus an older steel tourer isn't worth it.

You are 1700 bucks into the CAAD whether it gets stolen or not. Buying another bike just gets you $200-250 farther into a hole.

Ride the CAAD and lock it as suggested above. Or sell the CAAD for probably $800 (50% loss on 2 yr old bike is common, regardless of miles), keep the pedals for when your others wear out, and use your Defy for your errand bike.

Or give up on the concept of an errand bike, as you obviously aren't using any of your current bikes for it and seem to be surviving well enough.

I messenger on my CAAD10. The ulock hasn't dented anything. It's a tough bike.Thropw some stickers on it, and lock the rear wheel through the frame-and get a speical locking skewer for the front wheel. Enjoy.

Just send me the caad.Problem solved.

Not sure about the Caad10 but my 9 doesn't have any way to mount a rack. That said, I was told there are solutions though they sounded less than ideal. In any case, I don't think a caad, or any race or higher performance bike for that matter, would make a good grocery getter for pretty much the reasons you identify and the difficulty in adding a rack for carrying stuff. Unless there is something wrong with it, however, like doesn't fit, I would keep it and enjoy it for it is - a great riding bike. Get something else to run errands that you don't mind locking up. Yes, that means spending more, but you will have two bikes instead of one and $700 down the drain.

Keep the CAAD, you will not get close to getting the money in it back by selling it. If you did sell it I'll wager you will be posting in a few months that you "regret selling that CAAD I had and sold". JMHO, YMMV.

Bill

I'd sell it. A CAAD10 is a nice race bike, but makes little sense as a commuter/grocery getter.

+1. The most telling portion of your original post is "having not really ridden the CAAD at all". To me a bikes true value is how much you use it. You have a bike sitting there just depreciating. If you keep it it sounds to me that you will not ride it and money will continiue to leak from it. I'd pull the pedals and saddle off and sell it for what you can get. Take the money and get a true grocery getter. The suggestion for a classic bike above is a good one. Something like my '88 Fuji would be perfect and can probably be had in the $200 range. Just slap the saddle and speedplays on whatever bike you get so that money is not lost and you're almost guaranteed to be seriously upgrading that portion of the bike. You can pocket the extra money and at the end of the day you'll still end up with your grocery getter and it will be like you rented the CAAD (albeit at a pretty steep price) since the time you bought it.

I'd keep the CAAD. It's very different geometry from your Defy, so you get the variety in your stable.

If you sold it, you're going to lose at least a few hundred bucks. Why not just buy another cheapo off Craigslist for a couple hundred, and use that for groceries? This way you have a beater bike for errands, and a nice aggressive roadie in your stable next yo your more comfy Defy!

You'll likely end up losing more money selling the CAAD than buying a beater on craigslist. Those beaters may already be designed to take panniers better too!

I think it depends on how many groceries and how far you're going. I am single so don't buy much and the furthest grocery stores I ride to are 2 miles away. In my backpack I can get a gallon of milk, a whole chicken, and some other stuff in there no problem. Sometimes I stick some gel freezer packs in there and get ice cream. I prefer to lock my bike in a heavily travelled area, typically to the big metal rails right by the store entrance. On the other hand, if you are planning on big panniers to carry a ton of stuff, maybe the CAAD10 is not as great a choice. I always enjoy commuting on my CAAD9, but that's just me...

HTFU and ride it

If you sell it, you will lose money. That goes for most bike models.
I sold a Specialized Allez and bought my CAAD 10. I got less than half of what I originally paid for my Allez.
That is just how it goes with bikes, none of them are rare, the factories make hundreds of them each year.
If you sell it outside of your area there are shipping costs, which you might have to split with the buyer.
This further de-values any bike.