Hmmmm , am I just getting too old ???

[jonny jeez]

No, its not a " am I too old to ride thread " its more of a WTF is happening to cycling thread.
I purchased a recent glossy cycling magazine last weekend and was some what mystified by the costs and prices of some of the bikes and kit. A 4 bike review of which the most expensive was nearly 8k, there was shoes at around £250, helmets for around the same, jackets seem to be the norm at over £150 and even a bloody pump for over a £100. People seem to think £35 for a " Sportive" is acceptable to ride around on roads that with a map and bit of common sense are free. Has cycling become so trendy that the related manufacturers have cottoned on that those with high disposable incomes are easy to relieve of their money in the search for looking good on the expensive carbon unobtanium bling fests.

Confused... Or maybe not...

"Calm down dear, its only an advert"

Ignore it, find your own bike, your own route, your own kit, your own satisfaction.

Or, go buy an 8k bike, either is good.

Just dont forget the cake!!!!

 

[vickster]

What about stylish commuters?

Ah the hipster? Can you spend 8k on a fixie?

 

[oldwheels]

Most of my cycle clothing comes from Aldi or Lidl. The only exceptions are jackets which are Altura and a pair of trainers used only for cycling which I got from M & S at least 10 years ago. There is also a pair of Aldi cycling shoes but hardly used. I have a B17 saddle which came off a second hand bike I got years ago and is now on my Bike Friday My bikes cost quite a bit but bought more for function than fashion.

 

[Drago]

Most of my cycle clothing was robbed from a scarecrow.

 

[Globalti]

What about stylish commuters?

I don't see many stylish commuters around Bury or Blackburn; I guess old kit gets relegated to commuting duty or people buy cheapo stuff from Aldi. The few stylish riders I see are usually kitted out in race-fit clothing and moving at a good speed on a road bike. I reckon the ratio is about 20 utilitarian to 1 stylish. There is one chap I see around Radcliffe who rides a monocycle with a big wheel at speed, he has a long mane of red hair which flies in the wind and is getting close to catching in the wheel. Quite a distinctive sight!

 

[StuAff]

Yet another possible buyer for Audaxing Curmudgeon Monthly......I've bought a lot of gear that C+ has recommended (including my Litespeed and pretty much every component on it) and haven't been disappointed yet.

Definitely don't buy Cyclist if that annoys you- they never review anything cheap!

 

[mjr]

www.bicycletraveler.nl is about the only cycling magazine I've enjoyed reading in the last year. Even the former CTC's Cycle seems to have lost the plot and started wittering about stiffness and contain plenty of armoured weekend warriors.

In short, lots of magazines currently seem to be chasing the same few very rich cyclists. I know that's where the obvious money is, but surely it's not a big enough market to sustain them all and where have the mass market ones gone? All replaced by websites like CC?

 

[Fab Foodie]

Ahem....coffee, cake!

....comes under doing nice things!

 

[mjr]

Most of my cycle clothing was robbed from a scarecrow.

Mine wasn't, but some of it was beginning to look like it from use... fortunately, I seem to have found two more ranges of trousers one can cycle in, filling a gap left by Debenhams killing off Steve Redgrave's FiveG, including one at M+S, so I'm not wincing at Rohan's prices so often

 

[mjr]

I don't see many stylish commuters around Bury or Blackburn; I guess old kit gets relegated to commuting duty or people buy cheapo stuff from Aldi. The few stylish riders I see are usually kitted out in race-fit clothing and moving at a good speed on a road bike. I reckon the ratio is about 20 utilitarian to 1 stylish. There is one chap I see around Radcliffe who rides a monocycle with a big wheel at speed, he has a long mane of red hair which flies in the wind and is getting close to catching in the wheel. Quite a distinctive sight!

I like the sound of this and would like to read more of your reports of local cycling style. Perchance do you have a newsletter or publication on the newsstands?

 

[Fab Foodie]

Ah the hipster? Can you spend 8k on a fixie?

I think I could....

 

[Hedgemonkey]

Yet another possible buyer for Audaxing Curmudgeon Monthly......I've bought a lot of gear that C+ has recommended (including my Litespeed and pretty much every component on it) and haven't been disappointed yet.

Definitely don't buy Cyclist if that annoys you- they never review anything cheap!

 

[Hedgemonkey]

;-)

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

I've given up with magazines. Financially unattainable products reviewed and tested by people who largely have no formal expertise in the subject at hand.

Definitely true about cycling magazines.
I quite enjoy my other lifestyle magazine though.

 

[Vantage]

Most of my cycle clothing was robbed from a scarecrow.

The victim?