The cost of being Fred
Mark Fennell
silly sport is getting me down. Let's consider Fred, who is basically anyone
that doesn't race for a living. Now if USCF demographics are correct, Fred
is a 30-something high-tech professional living in Northern California and
races at the Cat 3.5 level. And he's hooked, which means he trains 15 hours
a week and he races at least 25 weekends a year.
Let's do the financial math for Fred...
Equipment: Got to keep up with the other Freds so Fred buys a new bike every
two years at a annualized cost of $2,000. Plus new $1,500 race wheels every
two years because, well, he's Fred and so he crashes sometimes. Add in
regular replacements of training and racing tires, chains, and cassettes for
another $750 a year. (Note: Fred wins bar tape, tubes, and patch kits in
primes, so we don't need to include those costs.)
Annual equipment cost: $3,500
Team Kit: Let's figure on 3 bibs, 2 jerseys, skinsuit, arm & leg warmers,
socks, undershirts, gloves, helmet, and glasses. Plus new shoes every two
years, carbon-soled of course. Now Fred's sweat is pretty caustic (and he
crashes) so let's add an extra 3 bibs and another skinsuit.
Annual kit cost: $1,000
Food: Training as much as he does, Fred has to eat more at home and on the
bike. Now, Fred doesn't just eat bananas and drink water, he needs
individually packaged gu's and powerbars, and bottles filled with cytomax.
Plus pre- and post-ride high-tech drink concoctions.
Annual cycling-food cost: $500
Racing: Big-time Fred races 50 days a year (2 per weekend average) at a
typical race-day entry fee of $30 accounting for individual and stage races.
On average, race weekends require 200 miles of driving and let's say half
also require an over-night stay. Fred drives an SUV and stays in nice
hotels, but he's sensible so he shares these costs with his teammate named
Fred. Because he's cool, Fred also wants to race once a year in a different
part of the country, requiring an airplane trip.
Annual race cost: $2,500
Miscellaneous: Naturally Fred needs to buy a racing license (international
of course, just in case) and pay club dues. He also has to subscribe to a
variety of cycling publications for reading material when evacuating his gu
and cytomax. Plus satellite TV to get Euro race coverage. Plus stuff I can't
think of right now...
Annual misc. cost: $500
So far we have Fred spending $8,000 per annum to race his bike. But it can
get worse...
Fred gets his ass kicked in TTs, so he NEEDS a TT bike with dimpled aero
wheels and airplane-wing front end, which ought to last at least four years
or so before he has to buy something better.
Annual TT-arms-race cost: $1,000
Also, since Fred lives in Northern California and thinks the Velo Bella
ladies are hot, he needs to buy a cyclocross bike and do some CX races in
the winter.
Annual CX cost: $1,000
Alright, Fred is now into bike racing at $10,000 per year just accounting
for the easy-to-calculate costs. It would be much worse if we added in
opportunity costs, such as being productive with the 15 hrs per week
training time, and not being so tired at work. Fred's not married
(obviously) so we don't need to consider the relationship and family costs.
Now I'm depressed so I'm going for a ride...
Mark
(not exactly Fred, but probably within 50%)
William Asher
<snip>
>
> Alright, Fred is now into bike racing at $10,000 per year just
> accounting for the easy-to-calculate costs. It would be much worse if
> we added in opportunity costs, such as being productive with the 15
> hrs per week training time, and not being so tired at work. Fred's not
> married (obviously) so we don't need to consider the relationship and
> family costs.
>
And this kind of explains why you all are so cranky most of the time.
Well, that and the lack of sex.
--
Bill Asher
Casey Kerrigan
<marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Racing: Big-time Fred races 50 days a year (2 per weekend average) at a
> typical race-day entry fee of $30 accounting for individual and stage races.
> On average, race weekends require 200 miles of driving and let's say half
> also require an over-night stay. Fred drives an SUV and stays in nice
> hotels, but he's sensible so he shares these costs with his teammate named
> Fred. Because he's cool, Fred also wants to race once a year in a different
> part of the country, requiring an airplane trip.
>
> Annual race cost: $2,500
The average FRed in Nor Cal doesn't race nearly this much.Last year we
ended the year with 3698 USCF licensed riders in the NCNCA region. The
typical race has between 300 and 400 riders ( our highest race last
year had just over 900 riders and a number of those riders from from
Southern CA). If the average Fred raced 50 times a yer in weekend races
then our races would average closer to 900 riders.
Based on the demographics numbers I'd say that average Fred is a Cat 4.
About 1/3 of the Nor Cal USCF membership was a Cat 5 last year.
Mark
favorite pros and ride with them for a while.
Annual training camp cost: $1,500?
Morgan Fletcher
Morgan
--
Morgan Fletcher, mor...@hahaha.org Oakland, CA, USA
Andrew F Martin
-a (cat2, spent a sum total of $0 on coaching)
John Forrest Tomlinson
<marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>Also, since Fred lives in Northern California and thinks the Velo Bella
>ladies are hot, he needs to buy a cyclocross bike and do some CX races in
>the winter.
Well, he could save some money right there by skipping the cross bike
and instead "working the pits" for and with the ladies.....
And two skinsuits a year is a lot -- maybe two the first year but
after that one a year is plenty if he's in the same club. You only
wear the thing in crits and TTs, not training or road races.
JT
****************************
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John Forrest Tomlinson
> You omitted the winter training camp
> in Arizona where Fred can meet his
> favorite pros and ride with them for a while.
I thought the whole point of living in California was that you could
ride most of the year and do weekly group rides that are so fast and
so packed full of pros they're like a pro-1-2 crit on the East Coast.
pc
here ;)
b...@mambo.ucolick.org
> <marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> >Also, since Fred lives in Northern California and thinks the Velo Bella
> >ladies are hot, he needs to buy a cyclocross bike and do some CX races in
> >the winter.
>
> Well, he could save some money right there by skipping the cross bike
> and instead "working the pits" for and with the ladies.....
Yeah, get in line, Fred. They don't take bottle handups from just
anyone, you know.
> And two skinsuits a year is a lot -- maybe two the first year but
> after that one a year is plenty if he's in the same club. You only
> wear the thing in crits and TTs, not training or road races.
Even guys who are good at cross fall down sometimes, and since
Fred is Fred, he probably falls down more, and tears his skinsuits
sometimes. (Of course, even though Fred is a Cat 3.5, he has to wear
a skinsuit while racing cross. Don't ask where he stashes the keys
to his Volvo.)
It seems to me that the $1000/year for cross is a bit much cause
Fred shouldn't be buying a new cross bike every year. Although, he
does sound like the kind of guy who brings two bikes to races rather
than a pair of spare wheels.
Bob Schwartz
> And two skinsuits a year is a lot -- maybe two the first year but
> after that one a year is plenty if he's in the same club. You only
> wear the thing in crits and TTs, not training or road races.
Club Fred has 50 sponsors each chipping in free product.
That means they have to buy new kit every time the mix
changes because the logos change. And because last year's
kit is so last year, this year's kit is better, prettier,
and made out of this year's miracle fabric. Please try and
keep up JT.
Bob Schwartz
Member of Club Fred, makes it a point to not be involved
in the procurement of team kit.
RonSonic
wrote:
Hooray for me. I just got my spare wheels!
Ron
Bartow W. Riggs
dozens of other pursuits...it all costs....
Bart
"RonSonic" <rons...@tampabay.rr.com> wrote in message
news:lkgiu1lrrpfrpbjdr...@4ax.com...
rle...@hotmail.com
On the other hand, I once saw a one-frame exhibit of the JUNK MAIL
one collector got in a week take a Vermeil medal at a stamp show... but
it was relentlessly curated as "postal history" instead of "classic
philately" and the rest of the exhibitors stayed away from that corner
of the exhibit hall as if it had been accidentally visited by the
Centers for Disease Control Infection Isolation Conference that was
supposed to stay downstairs...
In the same way, for every three or four high-dollar Freds there's
another Fred who races cross on the ol' MTB, rides his dad's Bob
Jackson in Time Trials and has BOTH the original wheels AND downtube
shifters on the club ride bike....
Still, it was kind of fun to read. Just got to ask -- ONLY $2 grand
every two years for the new bike to end all road bikes? I could have
sworn the purchase price of the average Trek (based on catalog items,
not actual bikes sold) was over $2500.
Robert Leone rle...@hotmail.com
Donald Munro
> Don't forget the powermeter and the coach. We'll call that $3000.
What about the weekly massage ? Oh yes and what about the dope (or even
the legal semi-dope the online pharamcies sell) ?
John Forrest Tomlinson
>Still, it was kind of fun to read. Just got to ask -- ONLY $2 grand
>every two years for the new bike to end all road bikes? I could have
>sworn the purchase price of the average Trek (based on catalog items,
>not actual bikes sold) was over $2500.
Well yeah, but in exchange for representing the shop (at a cost of
$400 a year in clothes) he gets a pro-deal on the bike....
h squared
> Still, it was kind of fun to read. Just got to ask -- ONLY $2 grand
> every two years for the new bike to end all road bikes? I could have
> sworn the purchase price of the average Trek (based on catalog items,
> not actual bikes sold) was over $2500.
i could be wrong, but i think he meant 4 grand every two years, or 2
grand annualized. if mark can afford all that stuff, i'm not surprised
he's using words like "annualized" ;)
heather
yeahyeah
and down the PCH and get your ya ya's out on "racing" pro's that are
out for an easy spin. When you "drop" them, you pat your Ridley on the
top tube and think that it's worth it.
Scott
Don't give him too much credit for using the word "annualized", as he
used it incorrectly.
Annualization refers to rates of return, which would only apply if his
bikes are appreciating in value.
What he meant was "amortized", which implies spreading a one-time
expenditure over a period of time, in this case over the period of two
years.
Mark Fennell
Hey Yeah-Yeah Sister,
You got it mostly right, ...we SoCal Freds do that all year long but even
more so in the winter when the pros are also lifting weights and doing
big-gear intervals so there legs are more tired. And it's not our Ridleys
that we pat.
Fred #11,235
Mark Fennell
> Don't give him too much credit for using the word "annualized", as he
> used it incorrectly.
Hey Fred #23421,
Quit cramping my style! You're like that guy last night in the bar that came
over and told the pretty lady I was talking to that I was actually wearing a
toupee.
Thanks,
Fred #11235
yeahyeah
Well, that explains why the short guy in the yellow jersey (with cheesy
moustache), who had just railed it to blow past an elderly couple on
full pannier'd touring bikes, really ramped it up past the obvious
point of comfort (red face, frightening wheezing) when I very leisurely
started to roll up even with his bottom bracket. Maybe he thought the
old folks had caught up, but it really wasn't a great idea to run the
red light just to stay ahead of me...
Was that you? I would have caught up to say hi, but I had just climbed
Palomar and Mesa Grande the day before, and wasn't interested in going
hard.
Mark Fennell
> Mark Fennell wrote:
>> yeahyeah wrote:
>> > If you're a SoCal Fred, you race until April, then you just cruise up
>> > and down the PCH and get your ya ya's out on "racing" pro's that are
>> > out for an easy spin. When you "drop" them, you pat your Ridley on the
>> > top tube and think that it's worth it.
>>
>> Hey Yeah-Yeah Sister,
>>
>> You got it mostly right, ...we SoCal Freds do that all year long but even
>> more so in the winter when the pros are also lifting weights and doing
>> big-gear intervals so there legs are more tired. And it's not our Ridleys
>> that we pat.
>>
>> Fred #11,235
>
> Well, that explains why the short guy in the yellow jersey (with cheesy
> moustache), who had just railed it to blow past an elderly couple on
> full pannier'd touring bikes, really ramped it up past the obvious
> point of comfort (red face, frightening wheezing) when I very leisurely
> started to roll up even with his bottom bracket. Maybe he thought the
> old folks had caught up, but it really wasn't a great idea to run the
> red light just to stay ahead of me...
> Was that you?
No. I was doing intervals up and down Palomar that day. Besides, you're not
pro.
But--and this part is true--yesterday I did pass a T-Mob woman pro going the
other way while I was heading over to ride with my hack friends in SB and I
almost flipped it around to go ride with her instead. Alas I decided not to.
I bet she was bummed.
Tom_A
Scott
Don't worry, she already knew.
Dan Connelly
> And it's not our Ridleys that we pat.
>
1. The Fred on the Ridley isn't a fred.
2. Anyone racing 50+ times per year is probably not a fred.
3. I'm riding a 5-year old Team Fuji Aluminum (one of the Mercury bikes, built
by an Austrailian builder). It's 17-lb even, w/ pedals and bottle cages,
with no carbon bits except the fork. It handles fine, but handling
just improved a bunch when I went from a -17 deg 12cm stem to a -7 deg
11cm stem, which allows a much more upright position. So "handling"
is a complicated thing. Since my bike is more than 2 years old,
maybe this exempts me from being a fred, even if I only race 0.3 times
per year.
Dan
Bret
John Forrest Tomlinson wrote:
> On 7 Feb 2006 22:36:38 -0800, rle...@hotmail.com wrote:
>
>
> >Still, it was kind of fun to read. Just got to ask -- ONLY $2 grand
> >every two years for the new bike to end all road bikes? I could have
> >sworn the purchase price of the average Trek (based on catalog items,
> >not actual bikes sold) was over $2500.
>
> Well yeah, but in exchange for representing the shop (at a cost of
> $400 a year in clothes) he gets a pro-deal on the bike....
The trick is to sell each bike while it still has enough value to cover
the pro-deal cost of the next one. It's hard to do if you actually like
the bikes.
I once pointed out to a team president that his great new sponsor was
going to cost me a lot of money for new clothing. That didn't go over
too well.
Bret
John Forrest Tomlinson
Yeah, I've me and another guy on a team I was in sugested that we just
be called the blue team and wear blue jerseys -- we'd come out ahead
in the end.... But that doesn't look "pro."
yeahyeah
Mark Fennell wrote:
> yeahyeah wrote:
> > Mark Fennell wrote:
> >> yeahyeah wrote:
> >> > If you're a SoCal Fred, you race until April, then you just cruise up
> >> > and down the PCH and get your ya ya's out on "racing" pro's that are
> >> > out for an easy spin. When you "drop" them, you pat your Ridley on the
> >> > top tube and think that it's worth it.
> >>
> >> Hey Yeah-Yeah Sister,
> >>
> >> You got it mostly right, ...we SoCal Freds do that all year long but even
> >> more so in the winter when the pros are also lifting weights and doing
> >> big-gear intervals so there legs are more tired. And it's not our Ridleys
> >> that we pat.
> >>
> >> Fred #11,235
> >
> > Well, that explains why the short guy in the yellow jersey (with cheesy
> > moustache), who had just railed it to blow past an elderly couple on
> > full pannier'd touring bikes, really ramped it up past the obvious
> > point of comfort (red face, frightening wheezing) when I very leisurely
> > started to roll up even with his bottom bracket. Maybe he thought the
> > old folks had caught up, but it really wasn't a great idea to run the
> > red light just to stay ahead of me...
> > Was that you?
>
> No. I was doing intervals up and down Palomar that day. Besides, you're not
> pro.
wheels, tires, glasses, helmet, kits, race entries, wear& tear on the
car (we have team cars), bottles, nutrition products... so I guess the
cost of my fredliness isn't that high.
>
> But--and this part is true--yesterday I did pass a T-Mob woman pro going the
> other way while I was heading over to ride with my hack friends in SB and I
> almost flipped it around to go ride with her instead. Alas I decided not to.
> I bet she was bummed.
That would have been Kim Anderson. I passed her boyfriend Aaron Olsen
in his Saunier Duval canary yellow just about every day (opposite
direction - obviously). He's gotta work on that black saddle stain
he's got on the chamois tho. I know he has to log the big hours to be
pro, but maybe he should get a light colored saddle to prevent those
embarrasing stains.
Mark Fennell
Well, for one... YOU! ...because you let this two-first-name pretty-boy beat
you on Sunday
http://www.markpaulgosselaar.net/
and don't give me any of that I-was-working-for-Zimmerman crap!
Mark
(fellow hack)
Mark Fennell
> True, but I don't have to pay for: My frame/fork, bars/stem/seatpost,
> wheels, tires, glasses, helmet, kits, race entries, wear& tear on the
> car (we have team cars), bottles, nutrition products... so I guess the
> cost of my fredliness isn't that high.
Not in dollars anyway. But more power to you Yeah-Yeah sister!
>> But--and this part is true--yesterday I did pass a T-Mob woman pro going
>> the
>> other way while I was heading over to ride with my hack friends in SB and
>> I
>> almost flipped it around to go ride with her instead. Alas I decided not
>> to.
>> I bet she was bummed.
>
> That would have been Kim Anderson. I passed her boyfriend Aaron Olsen
> in his Saunier Duval canary yellow just about every day (opposite
> direction - obviously). He's gotta work on that black saddle stain
> he's got on the chamois tho. I know he has to log the big hours to be
> pro, but maybe he should get a light colored saddle to prevent those
> embarrasing stains.
Since I know one of his pro friends lurks on rbr, it will probably get back
to him that you are checking out his butt. Worse yet for you, it will reach
Kim. BTW, you do realize I'm talking about Santa Barbara (SB) not Solana
Beach or something. Kim was in my 35+ race at Blvd *last* year and this SB
T-Mob didn't look like her, but then I was going SO fast that it was hard to
tell.
Fred#11235
(aspiring Pro Master)
Howard Kveck
"Mark Fennell" <marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
And after that, I bet there was hell toupee.
--
tanx,
Howard
The poodle bites, the poodle chews it.
remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?
h squared
> In article <PBtGf.13409$eR.6710@fed1read03>,
> "Mark Fennell" <marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
>>Scott wrote:
>>
>>>Don't give him too much credit for using the word "annualized", as he
>>>used it incorrectly.
>>
>>Hey Fred #23421,
>>Quit cramping my style! You're like that guy last night in the bar that came
>>over and told the pretty lady I was talking to that I was actually wearing a
>>toupee.
>
>
> And after that, I bet there was hell toupee.
goddammit howard! ;) i wanted to ask scott if he was depreciating
fennelli, but refrained. then you come along with "hell toupee", lol.
heather
Michael Press
<YOURhoward-3F2B7...@comcast.dca.giganews.com
>,
Howard Kveck <YOURh...@h-SHOESbomb.com> wrote:
> In article <PBtGf.13409$eR.6710@fed1read03>,
> "Mark Fennell" <marco_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > Scott wrote:
> > > Don't give him too much credit for using the word "annualized", as he
> > > used it incorrectly.
> >
> > Hey Fred #23421,
> > Quit cramping my style! You're like that guy last night in the bar that came
> > over and told the pretty lady I was talking to that I was actually wearing a
> > toupee.
>
> And after that, I bet there was hell toupee.
WAH, Wah, wah, waaaahh.
--
Michael Press
Donald Munro
> But--and this part is true--yesterday I did pass a T-Mob woman pro going the
> other way while I was heading over to ride with my hack friends in SB and I
> almost flipped it around to go ride with her instead. Alas I decided not to.
> I bet she was bummed.
If she reads rbr she probably knows you wear a toupee (one advantage of
wearing a helmet is at least the toupee stays on).
yeahyeah
Ahh - Santa Barbara. One of these days I have to get up there for a
visit... I'm halfway through watching Sideways, and it looks beautiful
out there.
Anyhow, I wasn't "checking out his butt" - he was just standing there
talking to someone, facing away from me, and the black stain was hard
to miss. I'm hoping his lurking friends let him know that he should
stick to the black panel shorts (like the one his teammate is wearing
here http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=3774) - we want him
to look as good as possible when he goes off to Europe, don't we?
Now if you want to see a really funny look, this takes the cake.
http://eriksaunders.com/uploaded_images/IMG_0062-782911.jpg
Only someone with a lot of self confidence could race in that. You go,
Erik.
Bob Schwartz
> Now if you want to see a really funny look, this takes the cake.
> http://eriksaunders.com/uploaded_images/IMG_0062-782911.jpg
> Only someone with a lot of self confidence could race in that. You go,
> Erik.
Maybe Seattle was right about toning down the amount of
contrast between the different shades of blue.
Bob Schwartz
Tom_A
Mark Fennell
Actually Don, it keeps coming off and blowing out the big air vents in the
back of my $200 Giro Atmos helmet (which I got for FREE yeah-yeah sis).
John Forrest Tomlinson
The colors look good to me. I don't get what's bad about that look.
Is it the looseness of the jersey? Yeah, but not everyone can have
big guns like me.
yeahyeah
gigantic jersey into his shorts. It complemented his hairy legs well.
But he still kicked ass in the race - Tony Cruz was following him
around, all stealthy in his all-black kit.
RonSonic
All men should stick to black or black panel shorts. Please.
Ron
Donald Munro
>>> But--and this part is true--yesterday I did pass a T-Mob woman pro
>>> going the other way while I was heading over to ride with my hack
>>> friends in SB and I almost flipped it around to go ride with her
>>> instead. Alas I decided not to. I bet she was bummed.
Donald Munro wrote:
>> If she reads rbr she probably knows you wear a toupee (one advantage of
>> wearing a helmet is at least the toupee stays on).
Mark Fennell wrote:
> Actually Don, it keeps coming off and blowing out the big air vents in
> the back of my $200 Giro Atmos helmet (which I got for FREE yeah-yeah
> sis).
Have you considered trying some of Tylers denture glue ?
Donald Munro
> All men should stick to black or black panel shorts. Please.
Pink goes much better with my T-Mobile Giant.
Howard Kveck
Donald Munro <fat-d...@hotmail.com> wrote:
You sold naming rights to your nether regions? Wow.
Donald Munro
>> > All men should stick to black or black panel shorts. Please.
Donald Munro wrote:
>> Pink goes much better with my T-Mobile Giant.
Howard Kveck wrote:
> You sold naming rights to your nether regions? Wow.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/04/08/ebay_member_auction/
I've got plenty of room to expand my business. I'm just a bit worried
about making sure the colour schemes match otherwise jerry from vermont
might get a bit upset.
BeeCharmer
books. No time or energy for sex, so Fred avoids having at least a few
kids, that's good for at least a positive 5000.00 a year. Also Fred
either puts off the heart disease or dies instantly of a heart attack
on a ride (prefereably on a Velo Bella team) and saves his dissatisfied
wife and insurance company thousands in health care costs.
I figure it's a break even deal, even with the TT bike.
chris
Robert Chung
> It handles fine, but handling just improved a bunch when I went from
> a -17 deg 12cm stem to a -7 deg 11cm stem
Did you calculate the change in CG?