A dollar a mile: How to get the most out of your bike equipment

People like to say that cycling is a gear sport. That is just a nice way of saying that cycling is an expensive sport. You can make it as expensive as you want to, but we can all agree that the buy-in is pretty high – and the more you get into it, the more you will see that there is seemingly no end to upgrades, improvements, and marginal gains to be had by spending another dollar. 99% of that stuff is not worth it, but that's a topic for another day. Today I am here to talk to you about my method of making sure that I get my money's worth out of my bike equipment.

I spent 3 years trading used fixed gear bikes on craigslist when I first got into cycling. I ultimately decided to buy my first road bike; it was a big decision for me and I planned for it financially. Once I rode my new bike home, I was excited but at the same time kept thinking "If I don't ride the hell out of this, I just threw away a bunch of money."

That's how my theory was born: I promised myself I would ride as many miles on that bike as dollars that I spent on it. A dollar a mile.

Here was the thinking that led me to a dollar a mile:

• I don't make money riding bikes. It is a hobby, so I cannot calculate any return on my investments in straight cash return

• I don't believe in throwing away money on fringe purchases, so I can't NOT have a way to justify the money I spent on this hobby

• I firmly believe in using the shit out of my stuff. My closest friends call me a psycho because I actually get to the end of my chapsticks instead of losing them halfway through

Given that, the only way I can "get my money back" on a bike is by using it. I gotta ride it! I gotta ride so much that I don't feel bad about the investment I made. It makes sense then, to use the price point as the threshold for "breaking even."

Why dollars per mile?

A dollar a mile just makes sense as a heuristic. By contrast: Using fractions of miles is too difficult to calculate. "Experiences" is too intangible. Count of Rides is too imperfect (a 10mi ride and a 100mi ride aren't "worth" the same, IMO). Count of Riding Days would take waay too long. Racing results? Lol, see the FAQ below. You got something better than 1 dollar per mile? Hit me up.

The best part about this method? Breaking even, and riding in profit

I am happy to say that the bike that made me come up with this theory has almost 12k miles on it – I am far beyond the breakeven point, and deep into profit on it (even counting money spent maintaining it). That is the best part: I can now say that the purchase that I was once nervous about has turned into an investment to feel positive about. It also has given me countless experiences and made me so many friends along with it, that it's emotional value to me is incalculable. I still have this bike, and continuing to ride it "in profit" is great.

I apply this method to almost of my cycling purchases (it works best for bikes/upgrades/etc). It both commits me to using the shit out of my bikes, and stops me from getting unnecessary things. It doesn't quite work for things like apparel or sunglasses, but I still apply the general mindset of "if I'm not going to use the shit out of it, I won't get it."

Important Frequently Asked Questions about A Dollar a Mile:

1. How does this work to *stop* me from buying stuff?

   • You need to apply some common sense here, usually in the form of a reasonable timeframe and/or a commitment to yourself. This is highly personal, but as an example: I wouldn't recommend buying a $10K bike assuming that you will "at some point over the next 10 years" reach 10k miles. The method would work for that, but that timeframe risks you losing enthusiasm and is open to many potential life changes.

2. Does this work for bike upgrades?

   • Yes! You can always increase the breakeven point. Ride more!

3. Does this work for bike maintenance, labor costs, etc?

   • Yes! Up to you if you want to do that, though. It means your breakeven point will continue going up, which isn't that bad. However, these expenses are harder to keep track of.

4. How do I track this?

   • I track these on my "Gear" in Strava. I believe most other cycling apps and programs have similar mileage tracking features.

5. I am about to purchase a Smart Trainer, can I apply the same logic?

   • Yes! I have logged more than 4k miles on my Wahoo Kickr at this point, which is much more than the price (purchased in 2017). I am very happy about that purchase. I intend to keep using it and have absolute 0 need to upgrade to a new one.

6. Why not use prize money from racing results?

   • You're probably not a pro if you're asking this question, and they get bikes for free anyway. I could see someone trying to use prize money to justify bike purchases, but that's just a silly way of adding a whole lot of unnecessary stress to your life. First of all, amateurs shouldn't be getting prize money. Second, if you're really that serious about racing, then chances are you're going to break even on your bike fairly quickly just using training miles (if you do 1 dollar per mile).