switchblade 327

I'v played a lot of paintball, same as others on here, it can be expensive. Start up cost can be high, but once you have a paintball gun, face protection, camo, tools, it is not too bad. After that you have paintballs which can be expensive and CO2. Nowadays the cost of paintballs can be between .05 to .10 cents a round, with a regular game, 10-20 players you might shoot 600 paintballs per game(not all day) depending on how aggressive you are, Cases of paint is your best bet to play, co2 can get expensive at $7.00 for a 7 ounce bottle for gas to $10 for a 15 ounce. I played enough that I had my own 30 lb tank of co2 and if you have a good relation with the field owner he may cut you a break on gas and paint. Some times, at least in my case, if I ref'd for game day he would waive costs for gas and discount on paint. A GOOD gun can run to about $300 and field fees can depend on the field. My home field would also waive my field fees. 10 years of paintball and I have ALWAYS had a great time. Too old to keep up with the youngsters, I saw the writing on the wall and retired. Loved that game.

Rick

I was a young man working in a bicycle shop when I heard this. It made news on a radio show. I believe the announcer claimed it was to protect American companies like huffy and Murry at the time.

greatscott

This, I haven't found any articles at all.

Gresp15C

In my view the point of a hobby is to be expensive. But it doesn't have to be expensive financially. It could be expensive in terms of your time, attention, effort, and so forth. Within cycling, any combination of these things is possible.

Jon T

I my case, no, not at all. The last time I bought a bike was 35 years ago. It still looks and runs as good as the day it was new. New tires every couple of years, brake pads and cables as needed. Can't ask for more (or less) than that.
Jon

The_Joe

I'm clearly late to this party but my opinion is that a hobby is as expensive as you make it. You can buy a nice vintage steel bike for a few hundred bucks and ride it forever. Or you can buy a bike worth thousands and fill your closet with kit. Sure there is upkeep and consumables but that is pretty low cost.

Of course, you can be a collector and that is a whole different ball game.

csaxby

I bought a guitar (Telecaster) six years ago, play five or ten hours a week for fun, and change the strings ($6) a few times year. A year later I bought a bike and am constantly paying people to fix it for me and/or paying for parts that I install myself.

In my specific case, cycling is more expensive than my other big hobby, but I'm also not a big guitar gearhead. I like the equipment I have and am not constantly searching for the next new piece. I'm not a big cycling gearhead either, but I have definitely invested more into learning about parts and occasionally upgrading my bikes.

I'm sure there's someone on a guitar forum somewhere making the same case in reverse, though.

DynoD500_SR20-d

Not if you commute daily.

tabl10s

$40k in just over two years. Almost done

tabl10s

I agree. After I quit for 14 years, I asked on a guitar forum of I should buy another guitar or get back to cycling. The reply was classic:

"Dead men don't ride bikes".

wesleydrogo

It is a very expensive hobby according to me because of the cost of a good bicycle.

Drew Eckhardt 

Inexpensive.

I use

• One $40 Continental GP4000SII $40 tire every 4500 miles, for $0.00889 each
• One $25 chain every 4500 miles for $0.00556 each
• One $90 shift mechanism in 25,000 miles for $0.0036 each
• One $40 bottom bracket every 12,000 miles, for $0.00333 each
• One $5 meter of shift housing every 2000 miles, for $0.0025 each
• $120 shorts lasting 6,000 miles for $0.002 each
• One $50 cassette every 25,000 miles, for $0.002 each
• One $4 shift cable every 2000 miles, for $0.002 each
• Brake hoods for $25 every 14,000 miles, for $0.00179 each
• Cleats for $12.50 every 10,000 miles, for $0.0012 each
• Bar tape for $10 every 14,000 miles, for $0.000714 each
• Two $1 PowerTap batteries every 3000 miles, for $0.0006 each

for $.034184000 per mile or $273 for an 8000 mile year. Add $1 CR2032 batteries for heart rate monitor and speed/cadence sensor batteries every 12-18 months.

Jerseys seem to last indefinitely when not crashed.

I've been riding the same $2400 Litespeed for 23 years with 35,000 miles over the last decade plus an unknown amount on my purple Avocet then the miles I went without.

I spent about $300 moving to 9 cogs when Campagnolo discontinued my favorite 8 speed cassette, $500 when I wore out my first crankset then switched to a carbon fiber compact double, $700 moving on to 10 cogs after a shifter small part was discontinued, $600 for professional fit plus parts, about $750 for my powertap wheel, and about $500 for my dynamo lighting setup. That totals about $20/month.

Under $45/month compares very favorably to shooting guns at $60+ per range visit (double that at current ammunition prices), $125+ for a day of skydiving, $60 hourly for rental + $20 instruction flying planes....

$6000 in equipment over 23 years is a lot less than I spent on motorcycles and parachutes.

frogmorton

I’ve only been riding three years. After the initial investment I probably spend about 2k a year on maintenance, new gear, traveling to events and entry fees. One of my previous hobbies was skydiving. I was very active and that cost many thousands per year.
I flew model airplanes, that was cheaper than cycling. Astronomy was cheaper too.

Random11

I used to be a runner but had to give it up because of knee problems, so I bought a bike and am now cycling instead of running. Cycling is more expensive than running.

freeranger

I've found that any time you specify anything as a "hobby" that the expense automatically goes up, vs if it is just an "activity".

DomaneS5

My hobbies consist of skiing, recording/guitar/bass guitar, cycling and tennis. Skiing is definitely the most expensive due to lift ticket prices.... however ski gear is less expensive than cycling gear. I recently purchased intermediate/advanced skis, boots and poles for $800.... much less than my Trek Domane with accessories, clothes, etc. Tennis is the cheapest by far. I bought 2 professional Yonex rackets for around $450. Shoes for tennis were $100. Balls can be had by the case at minimal cost along with shorts, shirts, etc. In the long run, I've spent more on recording/guitar/bass guitar than all of my other hobbies combined.

BHG6

I guess the answer might depend upon your other hobbies....

But like anything else, it'll only be as expensive as you make it.

Sorg67

More expensive than disc golf.
Less expensive than regular golf.
Less expensive than skiing.
More expensive than running.

livedarklions

This is definitely a "for you" question. You can spend next to no money on it, or you can make it infinitely expensive.

Some hobbies have no extremely low end. For example, practically speaking, there is a minimum cost for being a weekend airplane pilot that you really can't get below while being non-suicidal.

Reflector Guy

I was involved in model trains for most of my life until I eventually got tired of the constantly rising prices, the endless chasing of better- and more-detailed equipment, and my aging eyes. Especially that last one. I stopped buying new stuff and suddenly I could afford other things I needed, like a new car, some work done on the house, etc.

Cycling is dirt cheap in comparison!

rydabent

Years back the guys I worked with and I golfed all the time. I gradually gave it up as they always wanted to rent a cart instead of walking. No exercise that way. So I mainly went to biking. They gave me a hard time about the price of my bikes. But when you look at all the money it cost to golf every week, it really gets expensive, and biking looks like a pretty cheap sport. Two or three new drivers cost what my bikes cost. And one guy was always getting a new one every year or two.

bruce19

I'm saving money. Since I immersed myself in cycling I'm not spending my money on other things.

ofajen

This is a good point. If you take a look at both of my old bikes, it’s clear that there is an affordable low end in bicycling. And it’s still a lot of fun! 😊

Otto

tomato coupe

I think it's cool that you aren't embarrassed to ride the red one with training wheels.

BHG6

The training wheels fit on the black one too