How can you afford all of these toys & goodies?

Questions about bike hire abroad and everything light bike related. No off-topic chat please

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drjones96
Posts: 3717
Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2004 10:56 pm
Location: Wichita, KS

by drjones96

djconnel wrote:No car, no kids


WELL SAID! :lol:

Just about anyone can afford a top end bike if they didn't have to handle all the stuff that comes with being married with kids. I'm married with three kids....therefore I will likely always ride an aluminum bike. :lol:

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

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BmanX
Posts: 3841
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2005 5:31 pm

by BmanX

Hard work, very lucky to get the job I have today, commission that is more than my salary, Ebay, forums, selling older stuff to pay for the new stuff, being debt free other than my mortgage.

I was able this past year to pay off both cars (never buy a new one ever), paid off my wifes student loans (more than both cars but glad it is gone) and try to save as much as possible. This years financial goal is to allow only $200 per pay cheque to go towards fun stuff like clothing and bike parts and the rest is invested or goes towards paying down the house.

I agree with others that a WW build should be done over time. Sure you can drop a sh!t load of money right away but I just pick an item that I would like and search the whole world to find the best pricing.
BIG DADDY B FLOW
AERO & LIGHT is RIGHT for 2 decades

Gregorio
Posts: 1564
Joined: Thu Jul 26, 2007 10:24 pm
Location: Center of the Universe

by Gregorio

Leviathan wrote:I sell clean blood to Dr. Fuentes


Kidneys also sell for quite a price in some asian countries.

I work as an indentured servant to my family. They call me Gregorella, I am not allowed to have anything nice.
No really, my wife has a great job, and eldest daughter is on scholorship to USC which is a big savings for us. I work part time and stay at home with the little one when needed. I am allowed to ride when all of my chores are done.

wogamax
Posts: 358
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 5:14 pm
Location: MA

by wogamax

I was once active in the Porsche club, with a 200+k miles 911....talk about feeling poor.

Lots of expensive bits get celebrated here, but even from this thread its evident not many of us are blowing through them. The more training and performance oriented I got, the less high end or at least "new" my stuff became. The peace of mind with unused items may be worth it, but the latest/greatest isn't.

So, I suppose in my case it isn't as important what I do.

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tymon_tm
Posts: 3665
Joined: Tue Sep 05, 2006 4:35 pm

by tymon_tm

gotta agree the job you do doesn't mean so much after all.

i used to spend more on bike stuff like 2-3 years ago while attending daily university classes and blowing cash for drinks, pizza and chicks ( not quite the same order :lol: ).

now i've got a nicely paid job in financial area, but when i look at how much do i spend on my car, mobile phone or just paing all the bloody duties to my country (taxes, social insurance which is simply killing here, etc) not to mention having a girlfriend (restaurants, dinners and eating outside :lol: ) i feel like i've no money left!

anyway i'm getting round to some changes in order to make my life simplier again.. not necesserally poorer, but healthier, calmer and more joyful (at least in terms of bike spendings;))

i also think that having a bike is not equal to riding a bike. i know guys who get tons of new stuff every year but they don't have time to enjoy it on the road. so what's the point, you can collect stamps as well. for me riding is the juice, not just having smth

record
Posts: 943
Joined: Sun Dec 17, 2006 12:02 pm
Location: EU

by record

tymon_tm wrote:i also think that having a bike is not equal to riding a bike. i know guys who get tons of new stuff every year but they don't have time to enjoy it on the road. so what's the point, you can collect stamps as well. for me riding is the juice, not just having smth


Nicely said!
The funny thing is, the better, more expensive and lighter bike I have, the more I see it simply doesn't matter on what you ride (maybe apart from TT bikes). I can see tactics and someone's shape a winning formula on races, not his bike. And on some rides I can see some guys enjoying more their low-end Tiagra or 105 groupset bikes than some other people on DA, Zipp's etc.

Just ride your bike and enjoy it. That's all.
A light bike does replace good fitness.

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legs 11
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Joined: Tue Jan 23, 2007 11:22 am
Location: Leg hurty

by legs 11

Guys, seriously, cycling and even at the WW end of the scale is small change peanuts if you have previously been involved with either motorsport or sailing........ :)
Just trying to ease some of the guilt feelings coming on here. 8)
If your wife moans about your newest WW buy, just tell her you're thinking about buying an International 14 sailing dinghy or a motorbike/car to do some track racing.
:lol:
Pedalling Law Student.

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DocRay
Banned
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Joined: Tue Sep 06, 2005 1:33 am
Location: Hamilton, Canada

by DocRay

jjmstang wrote:Gigolo :lol:


The term is man-whore.
Google: Results 1 - 20 of about 88,500 English pages for _doping_, _cycling_ and _denies_. (0.33 seconds)

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DocRay
Banned
Posts: 3463
Joined: Tue Sep 06, 2005 1:33 am
Location: Hamilton, Canada

by DocRay

drjones96 wrote:
djconnel wrote:No car, no kids


WELL SAID! :lol:

Just about anyone can afford a top end bike if they didn't have to handle all the stuff that comes with being married with kids. I'm married with three kids....therefore I will likely always ride an aluminum bike. :lol:


I'll take aluminum any day over my baby. Babys rock and only weigh 8-9lbs.
Regardless, the trick to big buck bikes is realizing that a car is a pretty shitty status symbol. I never even owned one until I was 30, and it cost half what my bike did.

I supplement my income by professional industrial poetry.

"Be kind, please rewind" was a big money maker for me before those bastards at Phillips made DVDs. It runs in the family.
"Joy to see, pleasure to hold, but if broken, consider it sold" was my father. No real money in industrial poetry these days, it's all been outsourced to Bangalore.
Google: Results 1 - 20 of about 88,500 English pages for _doping_, _cycling_ and _denies_. (0.33 seconds)

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geraldatwork
Posts: 796
Joined: Wed Dec 21, 2005 7:21 pm

by geraldatwork

I really can't afford to spend a lot of money on bike stuff. I have two teenage kids. One is a year away from college the other two. My income is moderate at best. Ebay is the only way I can afford to ride a decent bike. I got my Bianchi new on the bay for $1850 including shipping and weighs in at 17 lbs. While not a true ww bike it has good components and wheels. At 212 lbs I don't know if I would feel comfortable with a 15 lb bike.
"Really fast people are frustrating, but they make you faster. When you get faster, you might frustrate someone else."

2009 Trek Madone 5.5 Project One SRAM Force 16.4 lbs w/pedals and cages.
2007 Bianchi 928 Carbon Lugged- SRAM Rival-17 lbs.

Gregorio
Posts: 1564
Joined: Thu Jul 26, 2007 10:24 pm
Location: Center of the Universe

by Gregorio

DocRay wrote:I supplement my income by professional industrial poetry.

"Be kind, please rewind" was a big money maker for me before those bastards at Phillips made DVDs. It runs in the family.
"Joy to see, pleasure to hold, but if broken, consider it sold" was my father. No real money in industrial poetry these days, it's all been outsourced to Bangalore.


Another great post by DocRay. Are you kidding me? how do you come up with this stuff? you should get a job in Hollywood writing for comedies. You could really make millions now that the strike is over. Probably wont want to leave Canada for the US with the $ devaluing the way it is.

Some people say I am good at haikus, although not so good at spelling.

jjmstang
Posts: 788
Joined: Wed Apr 19, 2006 1:03 am
Location: MD

by jjmstang

DocRay wrote:
jjmstang wrote:Gigolo :lol:


The term is man-whore.


I was trying to be politically correct TYVM :wink:

John
Friends don't let friends ride clinchers

Theros
Posts: 318
Joined: Tue May 22, 2007 7:54 pm

by Theros

legs 11 wrote:Guys, seriously, cycling and even at the WW end of the scale is small change peanuts if you have previously been involved with either motorsport or sailing........ :)
Just trying to ease some of the guilt feelings coming on here. 8)
If your wife moans about your newest WW buy, just tell her you're thinking about buying an International 14 sailing dinghy or a motorbike/car to do some track racing.
:lol:
That's true, as a hobby I don't find cycling that expensive. The startup costs might be high, but then it's all manageable. (I still remember the days when I was windsurfing at the age of 14, I broke masts and ripped sails like I got paid for it. And I had to pay it all on my own :shock: )

The top of the line material (Parlee, Schmolke, AX Lightness etc.) is, of course, really expensive, but it's not like you have to own it to be a real weightweenie (although some might disagree ;)). There is nothing wrong with being a WW on a budget, and as everyone can read, Ebay is a great source for good deals.

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tymon_tm
Posts: 3665
Joined: Tue Sep 05, 2006 4:35 pm

by tymon_tm

you're right cycling alone isn't that expensive..
add alpine skiing to the list (wintertime), tennis (at regular basis), plus all the 'active' holiday trips (2-4 times a year) - just cause you have to take some time off the bike but still want to be fit
add stuff like racing - accomodation, transport (damn petrol costs real money here, smth you guys in US can't understand..) damage, shopping weekend for your girlfriend to make up for that time...
add cable tv, big plasma to see exactly how clean cogs should look like even on a racing day, mojito drinks and tons of pizza (damn 5+-hours live coverages from mountain stages)..
add all the time you could spend workin (eg making money) when instead you let go, just cause it's nice sunny weather and you feel like postponing things a bit (yeah, i'm a freelancer)

...it simply doesn't just come down to some gear purchases

but hell, i never said i'd switch with anybody :lol:

surftel
Posts: 20
Joined: Sun Mar 04, 2007 8:21 pm

by surftel

Graduated high school with a c- average. Told by my guidance counselor and my parents that pumping gas was in my future. Went to a junior college, then a 4 year, spent 7 years pursuing a worthless Sociology degree because it was the easiest possible. Took 7 years because I was aways training, Traveling, Racing.

Took the work ethic and focus I learned from sports and applied it to business, now I employee a bunch of A+ students who work hard, don't ask questions and make me, the lazy stupid one, lots of money. Oh, and I have a hot, smart, wife.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



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