As others have mentioned, I am not sure I understand the question but for what it is worth...
I am not 50+ but the title of the thread interested me. I am in my 30's and own a couple nice bikes that are +5k...a custom CF (Parlee) and a high end road/race bike (S Works). I tend to spend my $ on RE, cars and bikes. I think it all depends on the individual...some are successful and some inherited $ or parents buy. To get back to what I think the question was...I am not +50 but fall into the category you are describing. To each their own but it does seem that many on BF are image conscious and buy these things for other instead of them...make sense?