pgjackson

I agree with you on Specialized. I also agree that a straight top tube just looks better, but I still think my Giant is a beautiful bike.

pgjackson

No, looks like it was designed by Salvador Dali.

pgjackson

YES! But $11,000? No thanks. If I won one of those in a contest, I'd sell it and get a BMC Racemachine and motorcycle. I'd be scared to death to ride around on an $11K bike.

baj32161

YOUR Giant IS a beautiful bike.

pgjackson

THank you!

megalowmatt

I actually like the look of compact geometry.

gerundium

saw this orbea at the LBS a month ago, fitted with mad fiber wheels. Such a stunning looking bike, and extremely light when i picked it up for a moment.

pgjackson

Would you pay $11,000 for it?

gerundium

This question is severely influenced by salary. If i made 150k+ yes i probably would, it's a beautiful bike and if i crashed it i would be able to replace it. But now i wouldn't, it's a great looking bike but i would be too afraid to ride it.

pgjackson

I know $150K sounds like a lot...but you probably wouldn't be throwing $11K down on a bicycle. I'm guessing people who buy bikes like this are either cycling professionals or make a whole lot more than $150K a year. Hell, I make almost that much...and with a wife and two kids living in Southern California, I can barely afford my $1000 bike.

But even if I could afford one, it just seems silly to ride around on something that expensive that you can't insure.

triumph.1

I bought my 2011 tcr as a beginner or getting back into cycling bike, cheap and very capable of running with high dollar machines. I bought a high end bike once I decided to stick with it. I think the name giant is embarrassingly silly, but not nearly as silly as cervelo which always makes me think of some obscure disease of the cervix.

gerundium

If you make nearly 150k with two kids and struggle to afford a 1000 dollar bike then i think your spending pattern will never be comparable to mine. Other than that you live in southern california, very expensive region so that works against you as well.

to the underlined, move to europe? Why the hell wouldn't you be able to insure an expensive bicycle.

ultraman6970

150k = 150 000??? thats a lot of money. Wish I could do a 1/3 of it right now.

Hida Yanra

I seem to have missed most of the fun, but FWIW -
I'm in the camp of "I get my bikes for free". Were I not to get my bikes for free, I'd be riding a Giant.
Their TT bike is either #1 or #2 on my list of "TT bikes to get".

Great bikes, great prices.

Jed19

Oh, your bike is beautiful.

Look, in the final analysis, you are the only person that has to like your bike. And if liking it makes you want to ride it more, then that is even better.

Like I said, I understand Giant make excellent bikes for the value, I just wish bicycle companies could go to first-rate design institutes/colleges and recruit the most talented students as bike designers. Same way we look at some cars as gorgeous piece of art without poo-pooing their performance.

It can be done.

baj32161

I also happen to like the look of compact geometry. They look more racy to me, especially with the hydroformed aluminum tubing....gives them a, sort of, CF look.

I am a cyclist who cannot afford to lay out multiple thousands on a road bike, nor am I the type of rider who would see any real advantage from such a bike. Companies like Giant seem to offer a product for every type of rider, from those of us with very small budgets who, nonetheless, want a quality ride, to those of us with more extravagant needs and wants. As one poster said earlier, the relationship with the shop that sells you the bike is often more important than the brand of bike. I am not in love with the Giant shop here, which is ahy I own a Cannondale. It has nothing to do with the bike. Giant is perfectly fine by me.

Commodus

My motorbike is worth more than that. Nobody thinks that's weird. As soon as I finish up this little career transition of mine I'll probably buy quite an expensive bicycle. Or maybe not, I actually really like my Marinoni and don't feel like I'm missing anything really.

I don't think 11K is a lot to spend on a vehicle at all.

And of course you can insure your bicycle. Why wouldn't you be able to?

Right Said Fred

The difference of course is that $11K is about mid-range for a motorcycle and well below the cost of even the cheapest new car. I suppose this is why so many well-heeled amateurs cyclists are riding around on top of the line bikes. Lots of people can afford them. It might not make sense, but they can write the check. Not so many people have $300K and up to buy a really trick Porsche, Ferrari or Lambo.

pgjackson

Please tell me where you can get bicycle insurance. You can have it covered on your home owners or renters insurance, but that will only cover against theft. There is no insurance to cover you if you wipe out or are hit by another cyclist and destroy your bike. You CAN buy insurance for a motorcycle. I used to have an $8K motorcycle and that is pretty low for what I had. But that is actually a highway vehicle. Bicycles are not in the same category.

Commodus

I don't see the difference between a 'highway vehicle' and a bicycle. My bicycle is my only vehicle and has been for almost three years. It seems perfectly comparable to me, since I replaced my motorbike with it.

I thought my homeowner's insurance covered it against everything, I'm pretty sure that's what the guy said. I didn't listen too close because I didn't get it, I don't believe insurance makes sense in most cases.

Hida Yanra

Could you clarify for me how you know that bicycle companies don't?

For my part, I happen to have gone to one of those schools, and I am a decent designer. I know (from first hand experience) that applying to work at a bicycle company takes a lot more than just having gone to some school.
Bicycle companies are interested in designers with well-rounded skill sets, and that's not something any school could ever give you.

Accordion

Not in my case. My CAAD9 was totaled in August. Driver had NO insurance. My auto insurance wouldn't cover my bike - however - my homeowner's insurance did cover it. Even though it wasn't stolen and wasn't on my property when destoryed they covered it! They went through my policy at length and said it was not excluded.

I had to provide a lot of documentation (police report, bikeshop estimate of damage, pictures, letter recommending replacement bike, depreciation, etc.) and it took a month but in the end they gave me $2100 - $500 deductible.

I took the $1600 and bought a new CAAD10-4 Rival with it and was out around $400 when all was said and done. I was DAMN glad I pursued the insurance angle but hey, that's why I pay $1300 a year for the past 15 years without a claim, right?

megalowmatt

This is an interesting statement. I can assure you I don't make *nearly* that much and live in Southern California quite comfortably with my wife and two kids. I own a house with a good bit of equity and have three pretty nice bikes which I ride on a regular basis.

California isn't as expensive as some make it out to be.

Jed19

Oh, I don't claim to know for sure that bike companies do not recruit design talent from excellent design schools, but I have been a bike enthusiast for a long time, and one thing that really frustrate me is the me-tooism of bicycle design from top-notch bike companies.

I think design is greatly underated in the human experience. The human animal is extremely visual and tactile (more visual than tactile) and bike companies should take heed and design bikes that are distinguishable from each other.

I, for one, is extremely tired of the ho-hum sloping top-tube that is everywhere currently.

Oh, by the way, this is in response to post #171.

Right Said Fred

Right there is a possible clue to the difference. How long have you owned it? Housing prices in SoCal went insane in the last 15 years. Back in the early/mid 90s the place was relatively affordable. In 1999 we bought a house in LA for $197k from a family that paid $150k for it in 1991. Sold it in 2005 for $505k. You can buy a lot of bicycles for the difference!