Lascauxcaveman 

I have the luxury of an off-site (not in my home) storage area. Out of sight; out of mind. My wife knows I'm a total tightwad, and do not hand over money for anything gladly. I also reinforce the fact that on any bike I sell, I make a profit -- no exceptions. "Woot, sold a bike today; made another $100!" I don't even have to lie.

This little thing I have going on with old bikes is the least of her concerns. The worst she can say about it is some sunny weekend afternoon, I'm fiddling with a bike out in the carport when she'd prefer me to doing XYZ chores instead. I've done more than my share raising her children and I cook her dinner pretty much every night. She understands she has little to complain about.

She's a grownup with her own life and her own set of problems. I'm definitely not one of them. Neither are my bikes.

seamuis

fleslider 

Hmm i have N+1 and W-1

I just got divorced, it wasnt over bikes or anything. i just now dont have anyone to complain about my bikes.

When i was married i had enough bikes in the garage she couldnt tell and really didnt care. She was of the opinion that it was cheaper than cocaine and drinking (not that i do either) and i was around the house more than if i took up golf

trailangel

Ya, like... who wears the pants in your family? It's just a bicycle for christ sakes.
Tell her it's another bike or a good load of dope. .......and don't let the door hit ya on the way out.

billnuke1 

FlMTNdude

clubman 

Sounds about right. My SO's need for leather boots and Birkenstocks keeps our balance sheet in order. Mutual tolerance of ones differences and needs is a good basis for happiness. Keep your sense of humour and it's all good.

Pompiere

You are almost over the hump. I read an article about this situation a few years ago, but, so far, I haven't been able to find it. The gist of it is that when you reach a certain number of bikes, usually around four, your SO will exclaim "I don't know why you need all those bikes!". The key is "all those bikes" which means she has stopped counting and just sees them as a collection. After that, the number of bikes is meaningless, so long as they don't overflow the available space. You may need to get creative with excuses for when she catches you bringing yet another bike home, such as "I'm fixing it for a friend", or "This old thing, I've had it for years".

Glennfordx4

You guys need to find yourself a Suger Momma like I did lol, if I want it she will buy it for me, no hiding anything.

Glenn

USAZorro

I feel quite fortunate. My wife likes to ride (although considerably shorter distances than me), and enjoys having a few bikes to choose from. She recognizes that it is my hobby, and as long as we can pay the bills and advance our savings goals, she's fine with it. I suppose it also helps that I have pretty much everything on my wish list, and I really don't feel compelled to shop for any more (at least not until we (hopefully) settle into our final home next year and I won't have to bother with moving the trike she asked me for the other day.

I advise very strongly against disregarding agreements you've made with your partner - whether defiantly, or passive-aggressively - and instead work on using persuasion and negotiation. I can't guarantee things will work out how you want, but this is a healthy habit to get into. It reinforces communication in the relationship and encourages meaningful engagement with each other. A positive thing unless you get into arguments doing this (in which case, there are bigger issues with the relationship).

Good luck.

p.s. if it comes to it, going through the exercise of evaluating your wants and needs to meet a limited number of bicycles is not a bad thing. If the biggest problem you have in life is deciding whether you can get by with, say, a randoneuse rather than a gravel bike and a commuting bike, you're doing quite well.

gugie 

My wife doesn't care how many bikes I have. What she does care for is spending too much time with them. She wants my time, not my money. I just need to balance that. Our twin daughters are 15 and are fairly independent, so getting time together is much better than a few years ago.

styggno1

See link in post #24 in this thread.

texaspandj

Mark you could tell her, Dang it woman i know what we agreed to thats why im selling one of my others.

deephate

My wife can hardly tell a bike from a barn door UNLESS there is a something new in the garage. She tried to make me sign an affidavit that I would not purchase any more bikes. I said so I can still buy parts and frames? She revised the form but I refused to sign it on religious grounds. I have tried to control myself more that I have in the past. Staying off the internet would be a great help but I haven't managed that yet. Keeping busy helps but winter IS coming....

Dean51 

I've got it made. I have a brother in law who collects Studebakers.....most of them "20 footers". From time to time, my Bride will look at my seven bikes and say to me "at least they're not Studebakers".

Dean

Kobe 

I don't flip as much as I use to, but she knows that all of them (except one) are or will be for sale at some point. It's just a matter of how long they stick around.

It helps that my 15 year old son is now almost my size. I can lay blame to him for a couple.

Oldguyonoldbike

We have a healthy relationship and don't ask each other about certain things. I don't ask how much she spends on fresh flowers, candles, gym memberships or yoga classes, and she doesn't ask me about the bikes. Neither one of us is going to put those things before family needs. I suppose it helps that she understands the need to keep fit and that she herself cycles. Other than that, storage space is the limit. Right now both the garage and the shed are full and I've even taken one bike to my mother's house. I'm trying to thin the herd, not because of complaints from my wife, but in order to make room for new projects.

markwesti

Actually I have told her that tex . And at least the Nishiki and the "track bike" are for sale but I have not received one call .

katsup

I am usually the one stopping myself from buying more bikes. My girlfriend will usually just tell me to buy it, as long as it is a reasonable price, cause she knows I will ride or sell it.

However, she does wish I'd stop talking to her about bikes, I am still working on that.

noglider 

It's best to be honest. Hiding things is a form of lying. It's also good to have agreements, implicit or explicit.

My wife and I have "yours," "mine," and "ours" bank accounts. I pay for my own hobbies. We each contribute a set amount to the joint checking account every month. In theory, it means she can't criticize how I spend my money, but if it got crazy, I think it would be fair for her to mention it.

I have occasionally bought a bike with no apparent purpose, and she asks me why I bought it. I tell her it basically duplicates a certain bike and I'm going to decide which I like better and get rid of the other.

squirtdad

I have 3 bikes, wife still does not really understand why. When my Miyata died I told here I was going to be replacing it with a new bike. The new bike is the first bike she has ever really noticed. She really likes it........because.......................it is a pretty red. Not that is it a De rosa or rides great or anything else, but that it is pretty red

rjhammett

Lascauxcaveman 

I would like to meet your brother, someday.

[/former '63 Lark owner]

Also: your bikes are all pretty beautiful. Even a non-enthusiast can see that.

mstateglfr 

My wife and 2 daughters all ride...horses.
They ride bikes, but its a distant 2nd(or 3rd) to the barn.
We have a horse.
Anything I spend on bikes will never come close to what we pay for boarding, lessons, shows, clothing, and gear.

All seriousness, we are fortunate enough to be in a position to pursue our passions as hobbies and recognize that supporting the hobbies is good for the relationship and family.
The only time there is conflict is when the garage gets out of order due to the family being super busy for a couple weeks. My side is bikes, frames, etc hanging from the ceiling and wall as well as workbench and cycling gear storage. Her side is riding boots(so many boots) and a ton of horse tack that looks like props for a terrible 50 Shades movie(so much braided leather). We then have to take time to actually put everything in its place.

My daughters have 5 bikes between them and also an MTB frame thats hanging which will be built this winter for my oldest(11), so it isnt all just my stuff by any means(though its mostly mine and I enabled the 5 bikes).
I have lucked into a pretty ideal situation, from an acceptance perspective.

Cute Boy Horse

Thinking about it, this comic sums up how I feel about the premise of this thread.