Originally Posted by
berchman
My ICE recumbent trike costs $10,000+. It is worth it. The front and rear suspension mountings make riding on the chip sealed roads around here pleasant instead of miserable. The Rohloff hub gear is trouble free and can be shifted while standing still. The Shimano E8000 pedelec electric motor laughs at hills that I used to crawl up at 2.5MPH and also gives me a superior aerobic workout because it lets me maintain good RPM. The Frog Speedplay pedals give my knees all the float they need. The drum brakes do not require adjustment and I happen to be mechanically challenged. The custom made Finer Recliner neck rest is comfortable. The fenders keep me and the trike clean. The expensive rear rack is very strong and well-designed. The posts with handles help in getting on and off the trike. The Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires protect against flats. The DiNotte lights front and rear get drivers' attention while the bell made of Japanese temple bronze gets pedestrians' attention and sounds beautiful. Going downhill at 35MPH the trike rides as though on rails.
I'm 81 and after knee replacement my legs wouldn't flex enough to ride a diamond frame. I reluctantly had to part with my 1980's Jim Redcay custom built touring bike which was also expensive and worth it. The amount of money in medical bills saved by having a trike that makes it a pleasure to exercise, justifies the cost of the trike.
I don't find anything wrong with that. And I'm well aware my opinion on anyone else's choices isn't worth much to start with - this is just a discussion on a forum.
I see yours as a grail or purpose built bike. You save, you have a vision, you create that vision. And yeah, have no doubt that if I won the lottery or had more disposable income, I would be building some pretty expensive bikes too. At work I also facilitate a therapeutic cycling program and use a 6K bike (we have 2 of them so that's 12K). It's a passion like restoring old cars or owning a Harley.
As some others noted, the only problem is when that price becomes the "normal" price for a bike. Call me old fashioned but I hope 10K never becomes normal as far as a bike is concerned because I like to think of cycling as a normal activity and if 10K (or 5 or 3 or 2) became the normal buy in price to do it that would exclude far too many new riders from ever entering into the activity.
The premise of the thread is messed because, as others have noted, you don't have to choose between owning a bike or helping the needy (or saving puppies). But a better way to put it might be how one felt about people becoming so miserly in order to purchase an expensive bike, that they forgo their other obligations (if we can call them that) such as child/spousal support, paying bills or contributing to the community. It makes a little more sense when framed that way. One might say that doesn't happen but I know a couple of guys who are dead beat dads but own nice Harleys and lots of tattoos.