Many cyclists buy the latest Trek Madone the moment it hits the market, upgrade from Dura Ace 9100 to Dura Ace 9200 at the first opportunity, and buy Wahoo’s new Ace computer because it has a wind sensor, which their current computer does not.
For them, there is desire and excitement in new bike gear. I also like new gear, and I love seeing what smart, passionate people create in the name of improving—in ways both small and large—the gear for sport we love.
I still feel tingling joy when something new arrives, eager to try it out and see what it does. One of the things that drew me to this job was the privilege of riding the latest bikes and gear.
So, I understand the pull of the dopamine rush that accompanies purchasing and riding new gear. I know why so many riders love to purchase the latest gear and purchase it often.
But I want to share one very important lesson I’ve learned about buying new gear.
Although the thrill of the new is real, one of the great things about bicycles is that they can last a long time when properly cared for. Plus, many buzzy innovations that drive advertising and marketing can be broadly categorized as “marginal gains.”
Carbon fiber helped make bikes lighter, stiffer, and more aerodynamic. Electronics have made shifting easier and more precise. Tubeless tires lower rolling resistance and reduce flats. Adding cogs to the cassette increases gear range, or makes jumps smoother. Disc brakes offer more consistent braking performance. Wider tires are faster (sometimes) and improve rider comfort.
Taken together, a modern bike is arguably better. I’ve ridden both the a 2010 Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL3 Di2 and a 2025 S-Works Tarmac SL8. The SL8 is faster, more refined, and has performance-enhancing features like disc brakes and aerodynamic shaping.
But the SL3 takes you up and down hills like the SL8, and can still provide the rider a great experience. A rider does not need to put aside a functional SL3 and invest in an SL8.
It seems like the most content riders I meet on the roads and trails are the ones on older equipment. And I think I finally understand why.
For 30 years, I’ve been riding the latest equipment. And I’ll notice when a bike makes me a bit faster, when new tire has more grip, and when a new wheel makes a particular bump less jarring. But while those gains are nice, they don’t change what cycling is or why I like to do it.
More fundamentally, the micro gains of new gear—even a decade’s worth of stacked micro gains—don’t change my fitness, skills, or the scenery I see. Equipment can’t change reality. To enjoy cycling, I can’t just enjoy what I ride; I must enjoy the ride.
I think riders who are content with their older equipment understand this best. Many of them have the means to buy a new bike, but they also have the wisdom to know that buying a new bike isn’t the reason they ride bicycles.
For thirty years, I’ve been trying to fix my shortcomings with equipment. I’ve hoped that riding a new bike would make the trees greener and the skies bluer—that riding a new piece of equipment would somehow improve the experience, take away pain, and make a ride more meaningful or satisfying. But new equipment can’t, and expecting it to only leads to regret.
I like to ride as fast as I can. In some cases, newer and better equipment means that my “as fast as I can” is a little faster here or there than it was on older equipment. But what is most important: hitting a new, fractionally faster average speed on my usual loop or knowing I did my best and left everything on the road?
Cycling is an equipment-based sport—there is no riding without gear. Although a bike that is properly cared for can last a long time, parts wear and get damaged. We will forever need to buy gear to keep cycling, and that demands that we maintain a healthy relationship with the buying process.
We should all buy gear for the reasons that are most important to us. That may be the latest aero equipment in the pursuit of podiums, or a titanium frame because it will last a long time, or a new headset because it is purple—all those reasons are as valid as purchasing the lightest frame in the world because light bikes feel great. And so is buying parts to keep an old bike with mechanical shifting and rim brakes on the road.
I, too, feel the excitement of riding something new. But I’ve learned that new gear doesn’t make me a better cyclist, nor does it make me love cycling more. Ride what you love and ride what you want, but take it from me: Finding joy in cycling is essential, regardless of your gear. Focusing solely on acquiring new stuff can lead to disappointment. True cycling bliss comes from the experience of riding itself.
A gear editor for his entire career, Matt’s journey to becoming a leading cycling tech journalist started in 1995, and he’s been at it ever since; likely riding more cycling equipment than anyone on the planet along the way. Previous to his time with Bicycling, Matt worked in bike shops as a service manager, mechanic, and sales person. Based in Durango, Colorado, he enjoys riding and testing any and all kinds of bikes, so you’re just as likely to see him on a road bike dressed in Lycra at a Tuesday night worlds ride as you are to find him dressed in a full face helmet and pads riding a bike park on an enduro bike. He doesn’t race often, but he’s game for anything; having entered road races, criteriums, trials competitions, dual slalom, downhill races, enduros, stage races, short track, time trials, and gran fondos. Next up on his to-do list: a multi day bikepacking trip, and an e-bike race.