What appreciates faster than real estate in Vancouver?

Take the cost of one of these 2016 $6K+ wonderbikes ($5K last year) and think for a minute what you could do with the same pot of $. You could grab a full camping kit, trail running gear, geo caching kit, fly rod, waders and tackle, and still have $$ left over. There's a dozen thing we could all be doing on a weekend in this part of the world - the FS wonderbike is a really expensive way to spend it. Sure, the boaters and throttle twisters spend lots too, but there more a more trail runners out there every year. Imagine, just slipping on shoes and going instead of all the crap we put up with on suspension set up [HTML_REMOVED] maintenance.

Complicated [HTML_REMOVED] expensive is a west coast life that has lots of both without riding. YMMV.

Sounds like critical mass for the boutique market in Canada. I just don't see our market sustaining that type of price.

The companies wouldn't be bringing them out if there wasn't a market. You (and I) just aren't it.

Nobody is forcing anyone to buy the top end kit. Hydroformed aluminum frames, SLX and mid-level suspension offer amazing performance; often above and beyond what the very top end was only a couple of years ago.

I will agree that the top end has gotten way higher up there - but this isn't the dirtbag sport of the 80's and 90's. Top end kit is now serious tech, not just artisinally (is that a word?) welded steel frames and weekend projects from aerospace machinists.

how much better is a top end bike today than my 3 year old 26 inch wheeled carbon Nomad thats worth 2g I mean in actual ride performance.

Current pricing is especially ridiculous when you factor in the lifespan and depreciation of these bikes. My top of the line Moto and Trials bikes cost less, Last 3 times as long and cost half as much to operate in regular R[HTML_REMOVED]M. thats nuts.

Probably not much. Has there been a big price jump for that bike? Difficult comparison as its switched to 650b and they'll be charging (and lots of us are paying) for that change.

Your carbon Nomad only cost $2k?

I don't think the jump in ride quality justifies the cost.

10-15 years ago there was a huge difference in quality among products. The industry was young and experimenting.

Now even a bike in the $2000-3000 range far outperforms the top stuff back even a few years. The industry has figured things out enough to compodotise many parts, thing is that doesn't make more money hence these incremtal changes being billed as game changing (650b, boost, etc).

I'm going to continue enjoying my alloy 26" bike and just upgrade parts as needed.

I don't think the jump in ride quality justifies the cost.

10-15 years ago there was a huge difference in quality among products. The industry was young and experimenting.

Now even a bike in the $2000-3000 range far outperforms the top stuff back even a few years. The industry has figured things out enough to compodotise many parts, thing is that doesn't make more money hence these incremtal changes being billed as game changing (650b, boost, etc).

I'm going to continue enjoying my alloy 26" bike and just upgrade parts as needed.

So now…less people are buying less bikes because their bikes from a few years ago are good, right?

So need to charge more to keep doors open I guess?

No I was making a statement on the quality of the bikes these days.

I think what is fueling these high end bikes are a more mature market.

Similar to road bikes or golf, mountain biking has a large group of older, wealthier participants from its earlier, scrappier days.

Personally I can't justify any of these super bikes even though I could afford any of the top of the line bikes from any of the manufacturers. But to each their own.

Maybe keep riding the same bike but spend the money you save on more riding experiences and holidays instead? Tons of great destinations across BC and the USA which are well set up for camping and budget travel along the way.

Then there's always the argument that it isn't the bike, it's the rider…while I was pedalling my 26" all-mountain bike (5yrs old, no less) up a fairly technical climb the other day I was passed by some kid on a 7/7 Freeride bike which would have made most people jealous circa 2002. Battle of the (nearly) antique. I'm not a great climber but do alright and this kid was making it look easy, the bike definitely wasn't slowing him down

Personally I can't justify any of these super bikes even though I could afford any of the top of the line bikes from any of the manufacturers. But to each their own.

This. I was shocked at the price for a V10 frame ($4500) and I straight up laughed out loud when I got the quote for the carbon Demo 8 frame ($6800).

Good luck with that bike manufacturers.

So if these super fancy new bikes are making things easier then shouldn't we be putting in more clapped out bombholed trails instead of making things buff and smooth?

how much better is a top end bike today than my 3 year old 26 inch wheeled carbon Nomad thats worth 2g I mean in actual ride performance.

Current pricing is especially ridiculous when you factor in the lifespan and depreciation of these bikes. My top of the line Moto and Trials bikes cost less, Last 3 times as long and cost half as much to operate in regular R[HTML_REMOVED]M. thats nuts.

New bikes are much much better in almost every way compared to slightly older bikes (and yes I realize that I called a 3yr old bike older). Mainly because of the geometry that they have finally figured out. Suspension has gotten far better now and is easily on par with moto suspension. I have almost completed two seasons on my bike with only two shock and fork rebuilds each, as well as two bearing changes and two drivetrains. Other than that I have replaced some touchy feely bits like grips, bar, stem, and I built another set of wheels (mostly because of the colour). I also ride several times a week, more in the fall. I also enter the occasional enduro and dh race on it too. Overall, relatively cheap to own.

The length of time a bike or moto lasts is how hard you use it. When I was racing moto I would buy a new set of tires every 2 weeks, sometimes sooner. New set for every race, mostly out of necessity. Once your dirtbike is set up its relatively cheap to keep going other than wear and tear stuff or engine parts that wear out. But getting into it as you know is much more involved than just buying a bike off the floor. You could do that and probably be fine for a long time, but there are some things you should probably add to your bike eventually.

Then a stock moto is almost certain to need suspension mods off the floor unless you are a squid or have some aptitude to mod it yourself. Suspension mods can be anywhere from let's say $500-$2000 typically.

My YZ250 had a Rekluse ($900), large tank ($200), skid plate/rad guards/pipe guard/hand guards ($350-$400), aftermarket pipe ($200), spark arrested muffler ($300), a bib mousse ($200), not to mention personal things like a bar, grips, levers, pegs, plastic, graphics, seat cover, gearing changes, several chains per season, plus all the maintenance costs (fluids etc). Part of the reasons I got out of it were the costs and the time. Way too much on either end.

I've seen plenty of dudes ride ten year old motos with nothing other than new tires occasionally and nothing else. It can be done but where's the fun in that? ;)

I wouldn't even be able to decide on which über 650b #enduro frame to get today. Too many unreal options ready for release.:clap:

New bikes are much much better in almost every way compared to slightly older bikes (and yes I realize that I called a 3yr old bike older). Mainly because of the geometry that they have finally figured out. Suspension has gotten far better now and is easily on par with moto suspension.

I've owned newer bikes but my current 'enduro' bike is from 2003. It has a Fox Float RC shock on it and I was fully expecting the suspension to be garbage. The funny thing is that the shock feels much better built than at least some of the crap that Fox churn out these days. The clicks are very 'clicky' and internally the shock has a quality look to it. It also performs surprisingly well, with no Drunk mode, just 'working' mode and a lockout. It doesn't bob around too much and doesn't bottom out hard. Sure, I've ridden smoother bikes (that have had more than 4" of suspension though too), but the performance is certainly still acceptable.

Hell even the $100 Manitou Nixon fork works reasonably well. It has a bit of an old school feel and a bit of clunking on the top of it's stroke, but it's stiff, lighter than the Psylo POS that I pulled off and handles bigger hits acceptably well at least. My Suntour Auron fork feels more composed under stress but that hardly means that the old tech is suddenly useless.

If you NEED to get to the bottom of the trail 10 seconds quicker then sure spend $8000, but there's plenty of choice for those who want to chill with their dawg / explore in the woods.

You can still buy a really nice Chromag with great geo and mid range parts for $3250 or so. Bikes are a lot more capable now too. Components don't seem to need as much care and feeding as even ten years ago. I think we do get more bike for the money. But it certainly is a lot more expensive.