I have two perfectly good bikes. I only ride them in the basement these days: I’ve become nervous about the traffic, and even my own middle-aged abilities, and I’ve watched too many friends suffer crashes over the years. (Even so, thanks to the ROUVY app and Victory Jet Black smart trainer I use, I’ve ridden in dozens of countries, climbed the iconic peaks of Europe, entered races and group rides, and so on…)

But still, I have a watch page set up on TradeMe, our local buy and sell platform, to look at used road bikes. Can’t help myself.

Last week, the two bikes pictured happened to be listed within hours of each other. The Colnago on top was more or less top of the line when it came out in 1989. The Ridley was excellent on its 2015 release date, but one or two steps below the tip-top.

The Colnago epitomizes the romance of Italian bikes for many. My first epic bike crush was on a Bianchi just a few years older, and so I sort of get it. But even so, the changes in technology between 1989 and 2015 mean the Ridley is just a far superior bike. Carbon fiber, electronic shifting with sensible gear ratios, more aerodynamic, more comfortable saddle and more efficient geometry: you can ride quite a bit further, faster, while suffering less, on a more modern bike. The Colnago, while still rideable, requires hard-to-find parts and is getting rusty. It’s almost certainly destined to hang on a wall.

And yet, the older bike sold for half again as much. Crazy, but again I sort of get it. If you were a cycling guy back in the day (meaning you are now in your 50s), have some money to spend and a blank wall or an empty parking space, and already own the bikes you intend to ride regularly, then the Colnago fills a gap in your life that the Ridley doesn’t. Probably you’re at a point in your life where $1,500 doesn’t cause a lot of stress.

And, having paid attention to prices for a while now, I’d say the Ridley’s new owner got a really good deal… that’s a lot of bike for a grand. Almost any rider can go as hard as they want on that, and feel confident the bike will keep up. J

ust as I have fleshed out the persona of the Colnago guy in his man-cave, I can picture the Ridley’s likely purchaser. He’s younger, perhaps even a student, and has got the cycling bug, maybe after doing some cross-training or recovering from injury on a bike. Or maybe he’s decided to enter a charity ride or multi-sport event at the urging of a friend.

Whatever, he (both bikes are size XL and cycling skews male anyway, so I’m using my pronouns deliberately) wants to go fast, and doesn’t want to spend the $5-8,000 a comparable new bike would cost.

So, hopefully everyone got what they wanted, and the right balance of aesthetics and utility has been achieved. I’ll keep watching.