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Ok, you have a point. I was not being objective by focusing on "my times", that is, early to mid 90's, when, outside the diameter of the seatpost, nearly everything else was already settled down: headsets should be 1 1/8", rear spacing 135mm, 7 speeds at the back (or 8 for the ultra-rich), etc...

Anchoring bias This is the main reason for the 15k bikes (or the 100k cars). If the magazine (or shop, podcast, youtuber, etc.) tests a 10k bike, automatically our brain re-adjust expectations and the 2k bike is "budget", "affordable" or whatever. There is also the reputational part of course...

Maybe it is also time to start changing ourselves. We all find the joke about the "N+1" bikes funny. But a more realistic formula would be "Min (1, 1-N)", that is, the less bicycles you can get away with, the better, but at least 1 as the world is a better place when everyone has a bike...

I also got a shock last time I borrowed some cycling magazines in the library. Cheapest bike in the whole magazine was 3800€, and it was just a mention of a new release. Tested bikes, the cheapest was 5400€. Best of all, the editorial in the first page was asking all cyclists to bring new people...

I disagree. In business, you can go for margin (ie. Ferrari) or you can go for rotation (ie Toyota). Some brands prefer to produce less, with higher margins (and hopefully higher quality) while most of the rest, thanks to our consumerism, prefer to produce and sell loads, with smaller margins to...

10% cuts in Trek

I can't recommend specific models, however I'd say: -I'd try to get a rigid fork. Most hybrids have very poor and very heavy cheap suspension forks. Compensate with wider tires -go for the model with most extras already included, even if starting price is higher. Will be cheaper in the long run...

An interesting comment made in the Escape Collective podcast mentioned a few pages back was that in COVID time "bikes were sold to new people, while now we are back selling new bikes to the same people"... That is, a few newcomers get in every year, and usually buy some entry level stuff, and...

I have cantilevers in my commuter and the bike at my parents and I'm in no rush to change them. But no way I would buy new ones for a new build, unless it had to be a factory replica... A pair of new v Brake Alivios cost €12 and they even come in silver!

Another point I missed in my previous comment. Car brands lobby to improve conditions for the buyers from their cars: better infrastructure, lower taxes, more parking spaces... What do bike brands do? Spend their money so a bunch of guys cycle very fast for 3 weeks at a time on closed roads...

Oopps, I missed it, sorry!

I have never cycled indoors and I don't think I'll ever do, if I decide to stay home I waste my time in other hobbies (like tinkering with my bikes). But I agree that riding on the road stinks, drivers are getting worse, even though people are more aware that we need to respect cyclists. In my...

Escape Collective, an online cycling magazine, is currently running a 4 episode podcast series about the whole bike industry crash. 3 episodes have already been published. https://escapecollective.com/how-did-the-bike-industry-get-into-such-deep-trouble/

Apart from the obvious post-COVID turmoil in the industry, another big factor going on is that the whole cycling world is moving to ebikes and we won't notice the change until we are fully in. It reminds me my time in the early 2000s in a photography club, where the few people with digital...

A question for those with multiple bikes... I have "just" about 3-4 bikes for me on average (not counting the family) and still one or two will be less ridden and eventually the shifters will start to stick as the grease hardens up with lack of use. How do you manage when instead of 4 you have...

Sure, everyone's right to do whatever to their bikes. I feel sad if the starting point is a true original bike that has remained so for 30 years, just to satisfy today's looks. I'm more tolerant if the bike has already gone through many changes. My personal bike was bought original in 1992, but...

Could be worse... I cry a little inside when I see in the xbiking sub Reddit how people find nearly original classics and then do the usual 1x conversion, Billy Bonkers tires and v brakes. It was cool the first time, but now it's just copy paste. Best will be when they get tired of them in 12...

Do you want them to be silver, black, or irrelevant? That might help to decide. I've also found all models from reputable brands to give me similar good performance, so it's mostly down to aesthetics... Silver always gives a retro look, no matter how modern the bits are

Give it a few days. The urge you have now will be gone and you'll be able to take a more rational decision, whatever it is. I would personally pass thought. As you, I only buy bikes my size, or if not, bikes I'll be able to flip easily with little effort. Otherwise I pass.

I concur, they are for v brakes. I don't like the design where they lean towards the inside of the bars, meaning the shifter needs to sit further in-board. But on the other hand, the fitting for the cable is quite versatile and you could use a road brake cable if nothing else is available...