I have noticed a lot of ribbing on this forum for spending money on expensive equipment with little or no performance value.
I understand that a disc is a disc, or skewers don’t matter, etc. Is it wrong that I spent a lot of time researching equipment and and still went with an expensive zipp disc? Why do you care? I know it isn’t any better than a renn, but I just loved that wheel.
I don’t like to throw money away. I don’t drink, golf, have a fancy car, whatever. I can afford to buy nice stuff without it ill affecting my family. I guess I pick equipment that I feel will make me feel excited about racing.
Hey, I think that the zipp wheels are by far the best. If you want to get one so be it good for you its a good descision. If your a MOPer or BOPer and have a $1000 zipp disc big deal. Maybe its makes you faster, maybe it makes you able to finish, maybe it motivates you, maybe you just like really good stuff and can afford it, all are good reasons. If your kids are starving at home or you are getting assistance in the form of food stamps then there would be an issue but I doubt if that is the case.
Lot of people like to cast a negative spin on things however they can. Be it that they will try and make you feel guilty for your money or time expenditure. In this case its in the form of money. In other cases there is a thread here on slowtwitch that discusses training so little for an ironman. If you can get away with training 5 hours a week and do a 12 hour ironman great. Allot of those people that poke fun at things like hours spent training are riding around on shimano 105 endup DNFing ironman races. Their is a whole crew of them on another forum that I use to be on that ridicule others for the cost of their equipment or putting training hours. The reality of the matter is that most of them end up DNFing due to lack of training or their equipment falling apart on the course. Yet they find it within themselves to ridicule others. Now thats a real loser! Go figure!?!?
I think to a certain extent that it is human nature. We find it interesting to talk about what other people do, we resent them for having nicer things than us, we lovingly tease them about the gear they use, either because it’s too nice for their abilities, or because it’s a piece of junk.
For years, I rode MTB with friends, and was always the guy on the $300 department store bike wearing jeans and a t-shirt. My friends, as well as the trail rats, would always give me crap about it. So one day I show up with a new Giant NRS 2, a pair of bike shorts, and clipless pedals, and they all start calling me a wanker for riding on trendy gear, despite the fact that they were riding better gear than me.
My advice is to try not to worry about what other people say or think about you. If you can do that, you’ll be way ahead of the game.
You could spend ten grand on your bike, paint it flourescent yellow and orange, stencil “Chain-Greased Lightning” on the top tube, and do every race in a 1-shot disposable skinsuit. I’d still accept you for who you are.
There is a segment of the population who lives by comparison. I think it is becasue they are insecure about their own lives, so they constantly seek to make comparisons with others. I think it bolsters their self esteem to make comparisons and cast negative aspirtions on others- it makes them feel better.
You can tell when a person’s life sucks- they pay too much attention to everyone else’s.
I may advocate the Renn discs, joytech skewers, and the like. But, if you have read some of my previous ranting (like the “Equipment According to Fitness and Ability Police”, etc.), I really don’t care what others spend, or why they are riding a baloon tyre Schwinn or a $15,000 Pinarello Montello. It’s your money. You earned it, and you have the right to save like a miser or splurge like a drunken sailor. You’ll be okay with me.
Other people just spend ridiculous amounts of money so that they can feel good about themselves. Some others think that the best HAS to be the most expensive. So the people noticing the others are not the only ones with problems out there.
My problem? Looks like I have a life-long contract with Team Seconhand Racing, LOL!
I really do not care how people spend there money but in a different post this week people were talking about this seatpost was two hundred grams lighter then another post,thats about how much ankle socks weight, if your this worried about weight never pour a cup of water over your head, it will make you heavier
.
People have different perspectives and priorities.
You say “I only spent 2,700 on a bike” and someone else will think “You spent almost 3K on a damn bike, are you high?!?!?” That same person might have spent 50,000 on an off-road SUV that will never leave a paved road. You think they’re on drugs. I spend $50 on a video game and you think I am on drugs. Someone spends $3 on water and I think you’re on drugs.
What have we learned here? Yes, that’s right … everyone is on drugs … err … I mean everyone has a different perspective/priorities.
I will say “I don’t understand a MOP or BOP buying a $4K bike”, but I certainly wouldn’t want that to stop someone from buying one. I think people are too thin-skinned and defensive about it (that also brings up an interesting topic) and assume that when someone comments about people buying expensive equipment that they mean it in a negative or offensive way. I have friends that own a TV that cost more than 2 grand. I think “why?”, but I wouldn’t want that to stop them from buying it if they felt it was worth the cost.
I am absolutely the worst one on this forum for poking fun at people for spending anything more than $59.95 for a disc.
There’s other issues besides performance such as quality, etc. If someone spends big $$$ for a Zipp/Campagnolo/etc. high end disc in the belief that spending the extra dough for a high end disc will be faster than a Renn then he/she is an absolute sap for not researching the facts. However, if somebody buys the Zipp knowing it’s not faster than the Renn but feels its an issue of quality or just wants to own the most expensive for personal satisfaction then it’s an entirely different issue. For most of us bang for the buck is a common sense economic issue but then some people can drop $5000. as if it was $50. to the rest of us so coughing up a lot more for minimal performace isn’t a big issue to them.
Sort of like chosing a Rolex over a $29.95 Timex. The Timex keeps more accurate time but there are obvioiusly other reasons why some people will buy the Rolex. BTW, I wear a Timex.
Hey, I say that anyone can spend whatever they want. I’m more likely to be critical of someone who lays down big bucks for fancy equipment, and then doesn’t look after it. Only then will I think that its a waste.
If someone wants a Mavic IO and Campy Disc, fine. I just assume that they bought those because they like them, the aesthetics, etc. We all know that there isn’t any tangible performance benefit to a Colnago c50 as compared to a Trek 2200, but we still buy the Colnago because of the style.
"There is a segment of the population who lives by comparison. I think it is becasue they are insecure about their own lives, so they constantly seek to make comparisons with others. I think it bolsters their self esteem to make comparisons and cast negative aspirtions on others- it makes them feel better.
You can tell when a person’s life sucks- they pay too much attention to everyone else’s."
Paying inflated prices does keep prices inflated or actually increases the amount … that was a good point. If people will pay 3K fo rsomething there is no incentive to offer it for $2200. I didn’t really look at it form that perspective. It is a good point.
Let’s face it, this sport has high prices b/c it can. Most triathletes are at least middle class. I compare this sport to golf … in terms of equipment. How much you paid for something is almost as important as how well you use it. It’s one of those things that helps establishes a heirarchy … no matter how superficial it seems.
I think as product knowledge increases in this sport, that people may choose lesser cost products that provide comparable benefits as more expensive models. As it is now (from my standpoint), you have a high number of new triathletes that have some money, but not the discernable knowledge … so they make the suggested purchase. That may change as time goes on. It may not, how much a person pays for something almost seem like a “bragging right”. I paid $4000 for my XYZ" “Oh yeah, I mine cost $4300!”
Not sure I totally agree with you on the Renn vs Zipp. If you want to point out that a zipp is only slightly faster than a Renn at a much higher price I agree. But a Renn is heavier, which makes it slower, even on the flats. It may amount to 1 second over a IM race but its there. Same with highend skewers, and any other ultralight part. We all have to decide how much that last few seconds is worth to us. For me if I was buying a disk I’d go Renn. If I was one of the people who had the money to buy an ebay spot in IMH for 30K I suspect I’d be riding a 12lb bike, swimming in a $300 Fastskin in my living room Endless pool, and buying new running shoes every 2 weeks. Ah, to dream.
No offend to anyone, but triathlon really isn’t that expensive compared to some of the “high-end” mountain bikes out there. A person could spend $6000.00 on frame and front fork alone, then you have to hang components on it. Shoot, some rear shocks are a grand. Then you take your $8000.00+ bike and thrash the shit out of it. A $5000.00 tri bike will easily last ten years of heavy racing/training. If you don’t crash, how long will a Zipp disk last? A career, probably.
If anybody here has ever raced cars, even at the club level, you know how that can add up…
It’s really an interesting perspective that it gives you, when we butt heads about how much we spend on gear. My wife takes horseback riding lessons, and if she ever tires of shelling out $35 per lesson twice a week, she can buy/lease her own horse. That will cost at least $1000/month around here, not including all the tack, vet bills, feed, and so on.
MTB is ridiculous. Especially since the lightweight aluminum drivetrain parts that all the roadies love don’t last 20 hours of hard riding on the trail.
I used to hotrod cars. In retrospect, I spent better than $50,000 on two cars over the course of 3 years, and sold them for a combined total of $15,000. But I still can’t bring myself to buy a good tri bike. I guess the lesson I learned there was miserliness.
Maybe if I survive Lake Placid then I’ll buy myself a new bike for Christmas. Maybe Tom will have his store online by then.
"If anybody here has ever raced cars, even at the club level, you know how that can add up… "
Been there. Done that. But back in those days I was still young and single and didn’t mind living in a shack with crates for furniture. I later raced go-carts as a “cheaper” alternative. Bicycles are expensive, but anythng motorized is in a whole different class.* *
