shelbyfv

Yep, those wanna-be racer boys are sheep waiting to be fleeced.

mstateglfr 

The beauty of having infinite combinations of bike products is each of us can decide what 'worth it' means to us and buy accordingly. That means to you, Claris and Sora may be as good as it gets, but in most other people's minds, those are the floor and not the ceiling.

I have a kid with a modern Claris drivetrain on her road bike- she has ridden 2000mi every year for the last 4 years and last year did an Ironman at 18. She was easily the only person at that race with Claris and couldnt have cared less. It works great and is dead simple to set up and adjust. It also is hardly as good as it gets- its heavy, rusts easily due to the use of stamped steel, and it has limited adjustment when in use(trim position up front, really).
My wife's bike has 9sp Sora and thats more than good enough for her. Meanwhile, one of my other kids has older 9sp 105 and that is way nicer than the newer Sora. Its easier to shift, easier to trim, and lighter.

mstateglfr 

You do you, this is just super odd to me.
If you add up the weight of the saddle and cover, why not just buy a saddle that weighs that much and has a bunch of soft gel? Instead, you have this cover that slides around, doesnt even fit the saddle since its a different width, and looks...well it looks like that.
I wouldnt want to ride distance with a saddle that is so soft as those covers are, the movement under me would be really annoying and I think uncomfortable(assume). Instead, a nice saddle that is the proper width for me and has some padding that is firm would probably be way more comfortable.


The saddle I use on most all my bikes has no cusion either- its a C17 and is just a rubber shell. It does flex though.

tomato coupe

It's kind of like this:

big john

I used to call those things toilet seat covers. Working on customer cars it's real easy to get them dirty and they slip on the wheel when it's hot. Some places just take them off before bringing the car in.

genejockey 

It depends on where you live, where you ride, and whether you want to ever ride more than 20 miles.

Zaskar

No. Buying expensive bikes is completely pointless. Once you're over $1,500, any advantage is largely in your head. Don't buy an expensive bike.

In other news, I bought this a few weeks ago. I really needed... I mean I had to... okay, I wanted... Well, $*@%.

jon c. 

I'm a vintage guy and generally don't like the looks of modern bikes all that much but something about this one has real appeal.

yaw

Expensive is obviously relative:
- What % of annual income is it?
- How many hours a year is it ridden?
- Is it further upgraded or complete at initial cost?
- How many years is it kept before replacement?
- Does it meet a performance or status desire?
- How much goes towards maintenance?
- Does it fulfil a need or is it a functional duplicate?
- ...

So any given bike can either be appropriate, or a blatant mistake, for a specific buyer.

The only thing absolutely certain to be a blatant mistake is that hideous gel cover.

merlinextraligh

none that matter much thanks to the UCI

Sy Reene

The tanwall tires?

Zaskar

They're faster. Obviously.

Chandne

Yeah, they are worth it. Maybe not yet for you but as you ride more and become more of a geared, you will likely prefer them as I did. Everyone is different and I prefer bikes that are a bit more compliant and not too heavy. I climb quite a bit so weight is important though I do not have a 14 lb Aethos (yet) but my older less expensive bikes just didn't ride as smoothly or spin up as quickly or were not as comfy with wider tires, so I got rid of them all. We all develop different preferences over the years though.

seypat

If a person thinks they are worth it, then they are. Simple as that.

Jrasero

Diminishing gains the further and further you go up the stack. Now a modern sub $2K bike will be better than your bike but don't expect 5mph faster or more watts. If you want to spend $1K I highly suggest doing some research and trying to find a used bike since $1K will not buy much now a days new

DonkeyShow

Just buy that **** life is short get it out your system.

jonathanf2

On occasion I ride with a bunch of guys with so-so fitness and expensive bikes. No amount of money is going to make you faster if you don't work on the motor first. Improve your cardio, build your endurance, do strength training and improve your mobility. You'll better appreciate/understand what your bike needs are. Though some cyclists are content buying the most expensive bike and wearing boutique cycling gear on a coffee meetup ride. That's also fine if that's your thing!

Jrasero

I agree, I just don't agree on the price point. The cheapest new bike you can buy IMO before you start seeing massive diminishing gains in terms of $/performance and also in terms of capping your performance would be a $2300 Cannondale CAAD13 105 or $2200 Canyon Ultimate CF SL (Rim), or $1800 Caynon Endurace 8 Disc. $1500 just seems a bit low to the point where you start compromising on things like gearing and being able to upgrade the bike down the line

Zaskar

(I was kidding... I just bought a $7,000 bike)

Jrasero

I see but I think there is truth to expensive bikes having massive diminishing returns. The difference between a $2300 CAAD13 Disc 105 or $3000 Allez Sprint Disc 105 and your Scott Addict RC performance wise and raw numbers wise is minimal. BTW love the Addict RC regardless and 100% support your purchase just not everyone will see the value or need to jump to a top of the line race bike

jonathanf2

The other option is to build a bike from open mold frames and wheels. You can then customize your components. You can definitely build a 14-16 lbs. disc frame or even a 13-14 lbs. clincher bike for a fraction of the big brand prices while still having high quality/durable components. The resources on bike building and maintenance are all free on the internet for those willing to make an effort and learn. The investment in tools is only like $50-100 which would pay itself if you were to do an LBS tune-up.

eduskator

Short answer is: no. A few comments:

1) 1000$ is not considered expensive for a bicycle. I would personally qualify ''expensive'' anything over the 5000$ mark (CAD money). Others around may qualify expensive as 10 000$ and more. It's very subjective, but 1000$ is definitively not considered expensive in 2023.

2) Expensive bikes have better and lighter components. If you ask my opinion, there is a significant difference between a 1000$ bicycle and a 5000$ bicycle, but a small one between a 5000$ one and a 10 000$ one. Experienced riders will see the difference, but it's not as noticeable as it is from a 1000$ to a 5000$ bicycle.

3) A carbon fibre road bike equipped with Shimano 105 is more than enough for the ''average Joe'' in my opinion. They call it groupset-of-the-people for a reason.

4) You can't really miss something you never had or tried.

5) Cycling is an addiction. That bike that ''will be your last one'' is never your last one. You always end up upgrading.

6) Have fun riding, regardless on the bicycle. That's all that matters.

PeteHski

Definitely massive diminishing returns once you get beyond mid-tier carbon builds. I can get all the performance and durability I need from a sub £3,000 bike, but I’m happy to spend up to £5,000 on a bike just for a bit more sex appeal, which usually means a nice set of aero carbon wheels and electronic shifting. £10,000 builds don’t really add anything extra for me. Typically just a fractional weight saving from a top-tier groupset and premium carbon layup. Very marginal gains at very high cost.

My current road bikes cost £2,000 (Giant Defy Advanced Pro 2 with 105 build) and £4,600 (Canyon Endurace SL8 with Force AXS build and DT Swiss carbon wheels). From an objective performance point of view they are pretty much identical. But the Canyon is still a nicer bike to ride in lots of small ways that add up to a significant difference. But it is not objectively more than twice as good as the price difference might imply. Diminishing returns are very much in play here.

Camilo

It depends. If you like expensive bikes, they're definitely worth it. If you don't like them, they're not.

Jrasero

105 11 speed was and still is so good it's still being sold on a $3000 Allez Sprint and even offered on the Cervelo Soloist, it really is the true testament that newer doesn't always mean better. Granted I love SRAM AXS and 12 speed and I think Rival AXS is quite the value and Force D1 now is pretty darn cheap with sales. IMO like you said it comes down to appeal but also how someone feels on the bike. One person might get on a Canyon CFR and just shrug and say what's the big deal, my 10 year old bike is just as fast, while the next person will go on and on about how this is the fastest bike ever. IMO I love bikes because I love to tinker and for me a lot of things are never good enough, so I always have an outlet to try new thinks, upgrade, or chase new PRs