Are they fooling us?! a rant
#51
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If the internet existed when 6 speed freewheels and 126mm spacing were introduced, there would have been threads on bicycle forums about how the marketing departments were trying to get us to buy unnecessary frippery, and there probably would have been those who complained that FIVE gears are already too many and REAL cyclists get by with 4, and the 5th gear was all just marketing, and that's why you can't get a good 4 speed freewheel anymore.
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.
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"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
#52
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I agree with some of this. I think threadless fork / stem was a definite improvement. But the latest integrated cockpit is expensive overreach. 9 speed rear is better than 5, but I’ll stop there. Hydraulic brakes, tubeless tires, electric shift? You can keep all that, no thanks. Some bikes now cost waaay too much. But to each his own. OP has every right to his opinion.
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Take a look at any car commercial. When was the last time you drove through downtown of a major city in the middle of the day without any other traffic around and be able to park right in front of your destination?
Or for SUVs and pickup trucks, are manufacturers really encouraging you to drive over curbs and race other vehicles to beat the lane-end?
They try to fool you that life is good with their car but in reality, when someone buys a car, usually he just wants to get around and he's going to get stuck in traffic and pay high gasoline prices and insurance premiums regardless of the type of motor vehicle he gets.
Or for SUVs and pickup trucks, are manufacturers really encouraging you to drive over curbs and race other vehicles to beat the lane-end?
They try to fool you that life is good with their car but in reality, when someone buys a car, usually he just wants to get around and he's going to get stuck in traffic and pay high gasoline prices and insurance premiums regardless of the type of motor vehicle he gets.
Personally, my insurance is relatively cheap for a major American city. Less than $1,400/yea for $300/$300 and $1 million umbrella coverage, plus collision, comprehensive, roadside assistance and towing. And I don't drive much. Got my Forester in the beginning of July, 2016. Just about to hit 13,700 miles. It would be fewer but I am required to work in our NJ office twice/week, so that has been adding about 70 miles/week. Many of the miles were put on during long trips, including 3 round trips to Brooklyn in connection with bike rides. That was 600 right there. As such, higher gas prices don't hit my wallet in a noticeable way. Plus, I can save about $0.25/gallon when I am in NJ.
#55
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Marketing only works if you buy into it.
I don't acknowledge the bicycle industry as an authority on which bikes I ought to own. It just produces the products I have chosen to buy.
I don't acknowledge the bicycle industry as an authority on which bikes I ought to own. It just produces the products I have chosen to buy.
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Right now my daily ride is an 80s steel touring bike. Straight 1" steerer, threaded headset. Threaded bb. Cantilever brakes. Shimano 600 indexed downtube shifting from the 90s, hyperglide cassette. Can fit fenders, racks and 37mm gravel or winter tires. I can get all spares for it cheap and they are actually being manufactured still, not everything can always be bought off the shelf from the LBS though. For example a fine quality 7s cassette costs a fraction compared to a modern 1x12 cassette. If I crash, I only trash a cheap brake lever, not a brifter that costs hundreds. Maintenance is easy because the technology has been there for 40 years, once you learn it you´re done. They are trying to force us to buy new stuff for no other reason than to get money from us. There´s been very little development in the modern quality bicycle in the past 40 years(with the exception of the mountain bike, which is arguably better today compared to the 90s). Honestly, we could have stopped most of the development in the 90s and be perfectly happy!
Should have bought one of these:
54" UDC MK3 PENNY FARTHING - BLACK/RED | Unicycle.com
Technology moves along, making bicycles faster, safer, lighter, more aero. No one is forcing you to buy new, but you have to understand that eventually, old technology can no longer be supported and parts are going to become unavailable.(That being said, I think that what SRAM has done is terrible, and is why I will stay away from their products.) Hey, the way things are looking, you may not be able to buy spark plugs for your internal combustion powered car (you know, the one you only take out on Sundays, because all the gas pumps have been replaced by EV charging ports) in about 20 years.
Last edited by Bald Paul; 11-17-21 at 02:20 PM.
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Take a look at any car commercial. When was the last time you drove through downtown of a major city in the middle of the day without any other traffic around and be able to park right in front of your destination?
Or for SUVs and pickup trucks, are manufacturers really encouraging you to drive over curbs and race other vehicles to beat the lane-end?
They try to fool you that life is good with their car but in reality, when someone buys a car, usually he just wants to get around and he's going to get stuck in traffic and pay high gasoline prices and insurance premiums regardless of the type of motor vehicle he gets.
Or for SUVs and pickup trucks, are manufacturers really encouraging you to drive over curbs and race other vehicles to beat the lane-end?
They try to fool you that life is good with their car but in reality, when someone buys a car, usually he just wants to get around and he's going to get stuck in traffic and pay high gasoline prices and insurance premiums regardless of the type of motor vehicle he gets.
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#58
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Hey is this another thread where someone points a gun at your head and makes you buy stuff?
Two in one week!
Two in one week!
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If you read both threads you won't need someone else's help to point a gun at your head.
John
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#61
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And nobody is pointing a gun to your head when you have to get the latest iphone or update the latest operating system or agree to the new Ts and Cs or none of your apps will work.
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I told OP that he had invented a cyclist horror film genre. Little did we know the sequel would appear so fast:
They Made Me Buy Crap II
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Hi! What's this thread about?
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D'you suppose I could tell my wife that Big Bicycle FORCED ME to buy yet another bike? "Really, hon! Honestly! I had no choice in the matter!"
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"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
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Our entire economy is based on "New and Improved!" As a society we've been indoctrinated into "New and Improved!" so much, we get all pouty if it doesn't happen fast enough ('I want it NOW, Daddy!'). I call it the cancer model economy; grow forever or die. But what do I know?
TL;DR I love my vintage 26'ers.
TL;DR I love my vintage 26'ers.
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"Honest, baby, I NEED the new 12-speed electronic .... you don't want Big Bicycle to Kill me, do you? Their gun is literally pointed at my head, figuratively. It's not about riding, it's Life and Death!"
Yeah, that might get me killed.
Yeah, that might get me killed.
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#72
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Our entire economy is based on "New and Improved!" As a society we've been indoctrinated into "New and Improved!" so much, we get all pouty if it doesn't happen fast enough ('I want it NOW, Daddy!'). I call it the cancer model economy; grow forever or die. But what do I know?
TL;DR I love my vintage 26'ers.
TL;DR I love my vintage 26'ers.
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"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
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Does anyone else think the marketing departments of cell phone brands and component makers are too much in control of what cell phones we use at any given time? Do you all think this is the way to go? They want to sell us new cell phones that are more incompatible and more expensive every few years by any means necessary.
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Does anyone else think the marketing departments of computer brands and component makers are too much in control of what computers we use at any given time? Do you all think this is the way to go? They want to sell us new computers that are more incompatible and more expensive every few years by any means necessary.
.
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Does anyone else think the marketing departments of vehicle brands and component makers are too much in control of what cars at any given time? Do you all think this is the way to go? They want to sell us new cars that are more incompatible and more expensive every few years by any means necessary.
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The world moves on, new ideas come about and that’s just how it is. Nobody is a victim.
The modern bike is a wonderful thing and the majority of us aren't stuck in some time warp riding something from the 80's.
Last edited by prj71; 11-17-21 at 03:47 PM.
#74
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Or worse - ridiculed.
__________________
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."
"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
#75
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