From a 1997 Bike to €6,000: The Cost of Hobbies

«There are no longer any mountain bikes for less than 1,000 euros»

How much does it cost these days to pursue a hobby? Much more than collective memory holds, judging by what is being discussed in the thread. One participant argues that you can no longer find a mountain bike in stores for less than 1,000 euros, though another recalls that they have been available new since 200. Someone is surprised that people spend 1,000 euros on a watch that tracks kilometers, and it is taken for granted that an amateur road bike can run around €6,000. Two decades ago, according to that same account, such an expense would have been unthinkable for anyone who wasn't a professional.

The Price of Bikes: From 300,000 pesetas in 1997 to €6,000 Today

The contrast is summarized by one forum member's account of a bicycle his father bought in 1997 for 300,000 pesetas: it is still functional almost three decades later, even if today it seems outdated compared to 29-inch models with batteries for climbs.

It is not that cheap equipment is unavailable: another participant points out there are new bikes from 200 euros and used ones for 30 or 50. As a counterpoint, some boast about buying a 500cc motorcycle for 1,500 euros all-inclusive—machine, ramps, title transfer, insurance, and registration.

Inheritance and Salaries: The Money That Sustains Spending

One participant describes a transfer of money from extremely austere generations to extremely extravagant ones. In his town, he recounts, funerals are succeeding for people aged 70, 80, and 90 who lived with extreme austerity and leave inheritances of 100,000, 200,000, or 300,000 euros in cash, in addition to properties and land.

Because when it comes to salaries, the picture is grayer. According to another forum member, less than 10% of households earn between 6,000 and 7,000 euros net per month, a range that wouldn't even include many couples of doctors or civil servants from Group A without decades of service. The most common scenario, he adds, is two salaries totaling 1,000 to 2,000 euros. The question another raises regarding a 100,000 euro car is simple: with 2,000 a month, who pays for that without an inheritance involved?

Who Pays the Bill When the Next Crisis Comes?

This is where the narrative breaks down. One forum member asserts, based on what he experienced during the 2008 crisis, the exact opposite of what the sarracena of saving promises: the most extravagant and indebted households were the first to recover, while the wage earner without capital bore the brunt. His conclusion is uncomfortable: excesses are not purged in a crisis.

Opposing this view is the argument put forth by another participant: Keynes already explained that what matters is that money circulates and that saving is almost sabotaging the Keynesian multiplier, thus consumption stimulates the economy. It is the old dilemma between saving and moving money.

---

Spending 6,000 euros on a bike is ultimately minor. What several forum members bring to the table is something else: that prudence and saving should be called for while the only ways to face expenses are by inheriting or incurring debt.