Posted by: ehfour
Is it a change of riding style or location?
Has your riding progressed to the point that you're outriding or under riding your bike?
Or is it the latest Geo or Gimmick that gets you going?
I've been on my current bike for 2+ seasons and I went to the bike shop to look at bikes...and to my surprise I walked out thinking the current bike that I have fits everything that I need it to do...
I started working PT at a bike shop recently and sort of figured I might get tempted to buy a new FS bike given the discount opportunity, but honestly I don't feel all that fired up for anything being made right now. I'm not really onboard 100% with "modern" geo so a lot of bikes just wouldn't suit me and of the ones that would I'm not seeing a compelling reason to replace my existing FS bike. I feel a little motivation to be a team player and ride a brand the store sells, but the high prices of MTBs mean that's not enough to change the status quo.
My last two FS bikes got replaced as I updated their geo and wheel size 26-->275-->29. One was 9 years old and the other was 4 years old so no fast bike flipping going on. I found trying longer bikes each time made it hard to go back to my older shorter/smaller wheeled machines.
My current FS bike was a 29er bought in 2018 and it feels pretty much up to date in terms of performance in 2022. I've tried longer bikes since and found I had maxed out so going longer doesn't really tempt me at this point.
I can't really say what will get me to buy a new FS rig. I assume at some point something fresh/interesting/innovative will happen that doesn't involve batteries and a motor. I've been keen on a custom steel FS bike for a while, but that's mostly in the day dream stage and I'm not ready to make anything happen.