Cost of riding

[Dantheman]

Remember those sappy-ass "priceless" Mastercard commercials from years back? Well, for moments like these it's true:

[rideit]

"NO COMMENT"

[simple]

1 dollar per mile on my mountain bikes.

Road bike has paid for itself 10 times over at this point. Like 1/2 cent per mile

[plugboots]

1 dollar per mile on my mountain bikes.

Road bike has paid for itself 10 times over at this point. Like 1/2 cent per mile

Basically every upgrade I’ve done to my road bike is simply because I wanted to. Shit doesn’t wear out.

[John_B]

You guys forgot to add up yer hospital bills.

So far I'm at 5 bucks a ride for doctor bills and ~35 a ride for the bike. Hopefully that ratio does not switch significantly in the future

[rideit]

If I factor in travel costs to ride/eat/camper/hotels/airfare, it gets astronomical.
Wouldn't have it any other way.

[Dantheman]

Basically every upgrade I’ve done to my road bike is simply because I wanted to. Shit doesn’t wear out.

Only maintenance I've ever done on my commuter was patch a couple puncture flats. I haven't had to adjust a thing in almost 2 years. I paid $150 for it and it's saved me at least $500 in gas so far. Printing money every day.

[Self Jupiter]

I took a near 20 year break from riding, and I’m kicking myself for not getting back into it sooner. I could not play enough rec sports or go to the gym enough to get into this kind of cardio shape (which is unimpressive for this place, back to the point..), it’s fun as hell and has real therapeutic value. It tends to beat me up less than hiking, backcountry skiing, team sports, which is nice.

Whenever I think about the costs, I then think about the costs of personal training / group classes / high end gyms / cycle studio etc etc that folks shell out cash on and I feel little guilt.

[Shredhead]

I ride from home, everyday. It’s probably the cheapest thing I do.
Staying at home full time would definitely cost more, in alimony.

[LeeLau]

Last bike I had then sold was my old Pivot Mach 5.7. Putting it together with deals cost me $ 3,200. I sold it for $ 1450 after riding it 282 days (tracked the days ridden on Trailforks) giving me a cost of $ 6.20 per day. Maintenance and consumables I guesstimated at $ 300 over the 4 years I had it. That is $4.25 additional per day.

Not bad really given the fun factor.

Also echo what people said about the commuter bikes which are a massive ROI once I figured that keeps us a one-car family

[stradissimo]

I lived in Tucson for 18 months. Every month I would take put a new DHF 3c on the front wheel, move the old front tire to the rear, and throw away the old trashed rear tire.

That taught me to never add up my biking expenses

On the other hand, my road bike is a Merlin I bought used in y2k for $2500. I've put over 70k miles on that bike.

[TBS]

I just got a new bike after 7 years on my antiquated Stumpy FSR (26", 3x9, XT/XTR build, talus 32 fork, float shock), - rough stab at it's cost
Used bike (end of first season, six rides on it) $1700
Add $1100 for upgraded brakes/pedals, tires/chains/other wear parts, maintenance
Total cost of $2800
Est Residual Value $500
Net cost $2300

Rode it say 3 days/week April-Nov for seven years - call it 75x/yr or 500 rides

Average cost of $4.60/ride

And yes - if cost included medical bills, it would prolly be triple

[GeezerSteve]

Not the same thing, but related. On my first trans-USA bicycle trip in 1976 (4,420 miles, 39 days) I spent $3.11 per day, including food, camps (seldom paid), a few inner tubes, one tire, one rear brake caliper, beer and a couple ferry tolls. I finished the trip with a stretched out chain and beat-to-shit freewheel, which required replacing (est. $12 dirt bag shop rat pricing). $3.11 in 1976 is roughly $14 today adjusted for inflation. Most of my beers and a fair amount of food was free from generous souls we met along the way.

[simple]

What was Richard Nixon like?

[GeezerSteve]

What was Richard Nixon like?

Never met him. BTW, he resigned nearly 2 years before that trip.

[babybear]

we do this for our vehicles but never before for the bikes. I like

[klauss]

First year back into biking in some time. My 5 and 8 y.o. are going all in at the same time. We will see 1k a ride soon with all the "investment in future" boxes showing up at my house. Mostly Bogner riding gear.

[geomorph]

Never really thought about it this way but I figure my cheaper bike and fewer rides than many still works out to around $15/ride. The good thing is the denominator is easy to change by either riding more or holding on to the bike for longer.

[mmmm...pow!]

Tough math for this one. I got a pretty good deal ($2200) for a solid mid-level ride, and have put maybe around $800-1000 into upgrades, replacing stuff, and tires. Probably have around 5000 miles on it over four bike seasons. Almost never leave town to ride, and when I do ride elsewhere it's usually because I'm going there anyway. Most of my riding gear (shorts, shirts, helmet, shoes, pack, etc.) is many years old, probably around $400 altogether.
As some have said, there is the cost offset of regular sessions with a shrink, as well as gym membership, happy hour, entertainment - the bike is all of that. It's possible I'll save on healthcare costs down the line, but I'll call that a wash with the possibility of an ER visit and crappy insurance. At the other end of the scale is increased costs for post-ride burritos and ice cream.
So all in all, I'm calling it an investment. There's gotta be a way to claim it on my tax return.

[kevin267]

Way better numbers than snowmobiles!

[jackstraw]

I really, really don't want to play this game.

hahaha!

I honestly don't care. Once I've committed to the purchase it's behind me and no looking back.

[milestogo]

I have spent a lot of money over the years on skis and bikes for me, my wife, and kids. Every single dollar has been worth it, no matter how you do the math.

[cycology1]

awesome thread...signing out now...

[JerseyDave]

Are we counting the externalized "Costs" that the global materials economy pretends don't exist as well? Human and environmental? That's when shit get's pricey...because unbridled consumerism will cost us not just an arm and a leg, but the whole planet.

Spin off a thread about how much gasoline you use in a year to Mountain Bike. That alone could be shocking as compared to the average human's energy consumption globally. Pulling back the veil of the "American Lifestyle" is not very comforting....in particular for folks who live a typical adventure/tourism lifestyle.

Flame on....

[mmmm...pow!]

Rarely drive more than 5 miles to ride, and whenever I do drive I usually combine it with running errands. But riding does work up a YUUGE appetite for animal products, which I'm told it responsible to destroying the Earth. And then I fart a lot. Bikes are evil. I'm trading mine for a hemp rope swing in my backyard, and gonna ditch the car and start walking barefoot everywhere.