Speedvagen Warehouse Sale

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Elefantino

Um, OK?

Based on other trends in the industry, I'd guess either they are shrinking to focus more on the boutique/custom side of the market (they no longer seem to list ready made bikes on their website) or they will be announcing batch-built Speedvagens made in Taiwan.

[Hank Scorpio]

When I hear the word metamorphosis I immediately think of the “Goodbye Horses” scene from the first Silence of the Lambs.


I need help.

[jcs7282]

Originally Posted by Hank Scorpio

When I hear the word metamorphosis I immediately think of the “Goodbye Horses” scene from the first Silence of the Lambs.


I need help.

Oh we'd get along well!

"Would you have me? I'd have me." (that's the TV version... )

[raygunner]

Their website says their phones are down as they transition to a new space.

So maybe they're just consolidating.

Wait, consolidating is a "C" word!!

[d_douglas]

Originally Posted by prototoast

Based on other trends in the industry, I'd guess either they are shrinking to focus more on the boutique/custom side of the market (they no longer seem to list ready made bikes on their website) or they will be announcing batch-built Speedvagens made in Taiwan.

I agree that this sounds plausible. I am no longer (or was never) in the position to commission a cost-is-no-object bike like this, as I am more keen on a builder saying this frame will cost $XXXX and if you want XXXXX, it will cost another $XXX or whatever.

It seems that for fully custom Speedvagens or Vanillas, you just state the dream, and wait for it to happen, then dont bother asking the price - just charge it. That said, I had a fully custom Vagen from the old days, so it was a time when Sacha told me explicitly what the cost would be and we agreed to it before he started it. More my style.

I wish I could buy a dream-big bike, but its no longer in the cards .

[krooj]

Originally Posted by d_douglas

...you just state the dream, and wait for it to happen, then dont bother asking the price - just charge it. ...

These are some Marin vibes

In any case, times are definitely changing, and I'm finding it critical to my mental health to just accept, rather than fight it. This sport is not even close to what it was when I started in the late 90s.

[Elefantino]

Originally Posted by krooj

These are some Marin vibes.

This used to be.

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by Elefantino

This used to be.

That was awesome! Anything that starts off with peacock feathers and nude masseuses is a winner in my book!

[krooj]

Originally Posted by Elefantino

This used to be.

Contrary to my earlier comment, sometimes the more things change, the more they remain the same. To each their own, but the vibes in Marin have never been to my taste, and I lived in Santa Barbara for a number of years, so it's not just the money.

[Wakatel_Luum]

Originally Posted by krooj

These are some Marin vibes

In any case, times are definitely changing, and I'm finding it critical to my mental health to just accept, rather than fight it. This sport is not even close to what it was when I started in the late 90s.

I began in the 80's and I struggle with the sport and the people in it these days...

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Wakatel_Luum

I began in the 80's and I struggle with the sport and the people in it these days...

The sport is the same, and Americans are much more prosperous today. It's all good, nothing to struggle with.

[KJMUNC]

Oh man, name me something that IS the same from the 80s/90s, heck any other decade.

Everything changes.

Just gotta look forward and enjoy the ride.

[d_douglas]

Originally Posted by prototoast

The sport is the same, and Americans are much more prosperous today. It's all good, nothing to struggle with.

I kinda agree with you, but 'prosperity' is a relative term. I am Canadian, but I think most of the same principles apply the same way.

I have heard stories of cost-of-living today as a comparison of 60 years ago, and it seems that average people (like myself) are ignoring signs of reality and basking in 'prosperity'. Apparently the $200 dollars I spent on groceries yesterday was about $20 if purchased 60yrs ago - that is an order of magnitude higher, but I think (North) American spending habits have eclipsed a 10-fold increase!

I agree with you however - its nothing to struggle about. You either agree to buy a Speedvagen custom, or buy a Kona Rove and it will do exactly the same thing, just a bit slower. I went the middle route and bought a Rock Lobster - the 'poor man's dream bike'

[coffeecherrypie]

Originally Posted by d_douglas

I kinda agree with you, but 'prosperity’s ' is a relative term. I am Canadian, but I think most of the same principles apply the same way.

I have heard stories of cost-of-living today as a comparison of 60 years ago, and it seems that average people (like myself) are ignoring signs of reality and basking in 'prosperity'. Apparently the $200 dollars I spent on groceries yesterday was about $20 if purchased 60yrs ago - that is an order of magnitude higher, but I think (North) American spending habits have eclipsed a 10-fold increase!

I agree with you however - its nothing to struggle about. You either agree to buy a Speedvagen custom, or buy a Kona Rove and it will do exactly the same thing, just a bit slower. I went the middle route and bought a Rock Lobster - the 'poor man's dream bike'

Americans spend a FAR lower share of their income on food than they did 60 years ago.

[Wakatel_Luum]

Originally Posted by prototoast

The sport is the same, and Americans are much more prosperous today. It's all good, nothing to struggle with.

Thank you, my mind is now set free.