Poll

Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?

Yes
9 (60%)
No
6 (40%)

Total Members Voted: 15

Author Topic: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?  (Read 2384 times)

epower

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Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« on: June 09, 2017, 11:27:01 PM »
I own two bikes, a road bike (think skinny tyres) and a mountain bike.

Prior to becoming frugal minded and still to this day I participate in road cycling events for fitness and enjoyment. It has only been the past two years that I've owned a the second mountain bike. I originally got it for commuting to work as I thought having panniers and thicker tyres would allow me to carry more stuff and be safer going up on footpaths or commuting home on dark roads. I also thought I'd get into mountain bike parks and events but I've found out that driving 40 minutes to get into the mountain bike park with hundreds of others on the weekends isn't my idea of fun.

So essentially the road bike is now being ridden 90% plus of the time and the mountain bike sits in our garage never being used.

Reasons for keeping are that I might use it more in 5-10 years time when we have kids that are old enough to ride and I want to ride next to them. Otherwise trail type rides if/when we go on holidays out of town that are leisurely off-road paths. I could use the second to still commute if the road bike needed repairs/got damaged, however I have a car for this purpose also.

Reasons for selling it to free up space, free up worry about it sitting there and to also get some cash (worth $300-400). I could always buy another one second hand in 5-10 years time if I really needed to.

Please vote and comment. Thanks!

11ducks

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Re: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« Reply #1 on: June 10, 2017, 12:30:28 AM »
I say keep it. It's not likely to depreciate significantly more than it has already, as long as it is kept in good condition. Always good to have a spare, plus it is a cheap healthy activity you can suggest when hanging with friends/kids.

TartanTallulah

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Re: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« Reply #2 on: June 10, 2017, 12:30:29 PM »
Provided you'll get a reasonable return on the original cost of the bike to you, and provided you won't regard selling it as creating a vacancy for a new bike (I have multiple bikes, but I also have a special stern glare for anyone who cites the n+1 rule) then go ahead and sell it. Bike technology will have moved on in 5-10 years' time and you shouldn't lumber your future self with something your past self chose.

I should talk; I have a mountain bike and an entry-level road bike that hardly ever get used (I have a newer bike and a half-share of two tandems that get ridden all the time), but I keep them because they're both fully ten years old and would be worth nothing if I tried to sell them despite having been meticulously maintained. And I anticipate a lot more off-road biking in two or three years' time.

Rubic

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Re: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« Reply #3 on: June 11, 2017, 10:11:43 AM »
I used to own seven (!) bikes -- including a couple of fixed gear rides and a tandem,
not including a unicycle.  I'm finally down to a single road bike and couldn't be
happier.

Unless you absolutely need a second bike (i.e. sole transportation to work), I think
having extra bikes just clutters up your life.  At least that was my conclusion after
experiencing the opposite extreme.  If I ever damage my current bike beyond repair,
there is an almost limitless supply of bicycles out there waiting to be purchased.

Of course I have cycling friends who maintain the proper number of bikes is
N + 1, where N is the number of current bicycles they currently own.

Car Jack

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Re: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« Reply #4 on: June 11, 2017, 12:11:33 PM »
I doubt you'll get near what you paid for it unless you bought it used originally.  I actually brought my road bike to a shop yesterday to see what they'd give me for it.  They sell lots of vintage road bikes and I built mine to roadrace when I worked in a bike shop in 1974.  It's not worth even half of what I expected, so I'd rather just keep it or if I needed the money, part it out (full Campagnolo, so there is a market). 

I have kept our other bikes (wife's mountain, my mountain) and our kids have used them as they've grown up.  But their interests have been different than mine were.  BMX, downhill, dirt jumper have been more their speed.

Anon in Alaska

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Re: Should I Keep My Second Bicycle?
« Reply #5 on: June 12, 2017, 06:27:15 AM »

when we have kids that are old enough to ride and I want to ride next to them.

"We" implies that you have a partner. How many bikes does she(?) have? Can she ride either of your bikes? If so maybe this isn't a spare for you, maybe it's a spare for both of you.