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It wasn’t long after I started working in bike shops that a bike became more than just a bike. It was status — a sign that you weren’t just some Fred. Naturally, you start to desire more, and more expensive bikes. Better yet, buy an expensive bike and then remove a great number of parts, replacing them with — you guessed it — really expensive ones. The shinier, the better.
Unless it was the 90s. Then it was all about color — glorious, anodized color.
Did I need that expensive bicycle? Not really. Did it make me a better rider? Heavens no. Did those fancy, shiny — sometimes anodized — parts work better than the stock ones? Almost never. It was more like an arms race with the people you worked and rode with. But in this case, the only thing in jeopardy of mutual destruction was our meager bank accounts.
Social media has taken this “boutique bike” concept and turned it up to eleven. Now it not only has to be the righthandlebar for the way I ride — it has to be the right-looking handlebar. You’re not just making your riding buddies envious anymore. You’re making scores of people online envious. I’ve got the likes to prove it.
I started thinking about all the really expensive bikes I’ve owned over the years. I don’t remember riding any of them all that much. Ask me how many I still have — the answer is none. Zero.
The bikes I’ve ridden the most, and kept the longest, are all… moderately priced (I understand the subjectivity of that word). I didn’t have to sell off a bunch of possessions to buy them. They’re easy to work on. Worn-out parts are easy to replace. They impress the right crowd, sure — but that’s not why I bought them. They just worked.
Bikes were meant to be ridden. Chasing shiny things can be fun for a while, but that chase never really ends. I’d rather go for a bike ride.
If you’ve made it this far, I have a question:
Is the whole basket-packing thing dead? For a while I felt like the basket king of North America, but I haven’t sold one in months. Maybe the supply finally caught up, and more outlets have them again. I’d be curious to get your thoughts.
I hope something good happens to you today.