Should I get him THE bike?

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[quote author="Shooby" date=1226025518]This makes me sad, I wish my girlfriend would do/think like this for me.</blockquote>


I'm sure she has some positive traits that I don't have. Don't be sad.
 
As PeterUK mentioned, you probably want to start on a less expensive road bike than move on up to Giant TCR. Its not that you don't love your bf nearly as much, but there is a big difference between entry level and mid level bikes and these high end bikes. I'm a somewhat experienced rider now (80-100 miles a week), and I am glad that I didn't get my current bike first (high end Trek). From a practical stand point, anyone going from a mountain bike to a road bike will need time to get adjusted. You should get comfortable with clips, balance, and get some miles into the entry level bike first, before going to high end. High end bikes are stiff, fast, and light. However, some are also stiff and harsh, and may not be what your bf is looking for. My best recommendation is for him to go into a few bike stores and take some test rides. Performance Bike in Laguna Hills and Sand Canyon Cyclery have a lot of good bikes that he can check out.
 
I talked to him about the bike again. I told him what you guys told me about getting a less expensive road bike. But he said he has thought about it, but he would rather to wait for a longer period than getting a lower end one right now. He said he has set his mind. I also asked him if he ever test ride lower end bikes. He did and likes Giant TCR better. Oh well........maybe i should stop thinking about this and toss a coin.
 
Yeah tossing a coin was going to be my next suggestion...



But seriously, your heart says yes but your head says no, we've all been there....i dont think there is any kind of advice anyone could give to get over that one...
 
Blah... tell him if he is going to ride a bike that <em>you</em> buy him, then he needs to ride in style. <a href="http://www.lovelylowrider.com/">Check out these</a>, and maybe start him off with something like this...



http://www.lovelylowrider.com/52466.jpg



I constantly whoop Petah's a$$ on mine. He gets blinded by the chrome anytime he gets close to catching up and ends up crashing into a poll or in a ditch. Hell, Vic won't even ride with me anymore, and Prof had to buy some special sunglasses that are darker than night. Funny, none of them have invited me to go for a ride in a while. I think they are just jealous of how stylish my ride is. Once your man proves that he is a true man, and can handle such a stylish ride, then you can upgrade him to something more along the lines of my level of bicycle...



http://www.lovelylowrider.com/Wicked.gif



But, you have to start with baby steps, you don't want to start of with such an awesome machine until you know he can truly handle being as cool as someone like me.



See... we even had to start Petah off on something a little easier to ride at first. Here he is cruising on his first chromed out ride...



http://farm1.static.flickr.com/8/9045159_42838455f9.jpg
 
Babyseal, my blunt advice: Get six months of living expenses saved NOW and put bicycles out of mind. Unless it's something for under $700 to help him occupy his time while he (and you) save the six months of living expenses.



(grouchy old man hat ON) An appetite and tolerance for debt will be your un-doing!



Besides, delayed gratification builds character. I've been wanting a house for five damn years and I'm bursting at the seams with character! ;-)



That sorrowful look he gets in his eyes over the carbon fiber TREK OCR whatchamacallit pimp bike? I get that same look over girls barely past half my age sauntering around near the OCC campus. I get over it!
 
Oh, and the ring is probably a bad idea as well (assuming he's dumping two months salary into it). You're not into <a href="http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html">diamonds</a>, are you?
 
[quote author="effenheimer" date=1226402623]Babyseal, my blunt advice: Get six months of living expenses saved NOW and put bicycles out of mind. Unless it's something for under $700 to help him occupy his time while he (and you) save the six months of living expenses.



(grouchy old man hat ON) An appetite and tolerance for debt will be your un-doing!



Besides, delayed gratification builds character. I've been wanting a house for five damn years and I'm bursting at the seams with character! ;-)



That sorrowful look he gets in his eyes over the carbon fiber TREK OCR whatchamacallit pimp bike? I get that same look over girls barely past half my age sauntering around near the OCC campus. I get over it!</blockquote>


Eww, effie. I think you meant "dirty old man hat ON". LMAO!
 
[quote author="effenheimer" date=1226402623]Babyseal, my blunt advice: Get six months of living expenses saved NOW and put bicycles out of mind. Unless it's something for under $700 to help him occupy his time while he (and you) save the six months of living expenses.



(grouchy old man hat ON) An appetite and tolerance for debt will be your un-doing!



Besides, delayed gratification builds character. I've been wanting a house for five damn years and I'm bursting at the seams with character! ;-)



That sorrowful look he gets in his eyes over the carbon fiber TREK OCR whatchamacallit pimp bike? I get that same look over girls barely past half my age sauntering around near the OCC campus. I get over it!</blockquote>


This is sound advice, even if it's coming from a grouchy not-actually-that-old perv. Here's a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Get-Financial-Life-Personal-Twenties/dp/0684872617">book</a> that might interest you as well. You would also be well-served to soak up some of the financial wisdom dispensed by IR and other respected IHBers.
 
[quote author="profette" date=1226404352]This is sound advice, even if it's coming from a grouchy not-actually-that-old perv. Here's a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Get-Financial-Life-Personal-Twenties/dp/0684872617">book</a> that might interest you as well. You would also be well-served to soak up some of the financial wisdom dispensed by IR and other respected IHBers.</blockquote>


I think you posted the wrong link, and I think you wanted <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0615226930">this book</a>.
 
[quote author="effenheimer" date=1226402623]Babyseal, my blunt advice: Get six months of living expenses saved NOW and put bicycles out of mind. Unless it's something for under $700 to help him occupy his time while he (and you) save the six months of living expenses.



(grouchy old man hat ON) An appetite and tolerance for debt will be your un-doing!



Besides, delayed gratification builds character. I've been wanting a house for five damn years and I'm bursting at the seams with character! ;-)



That sorrowful look he gets in his eyes over the carbon fiber TREK OCR whatchamacallit pimp bike? I get that same look over girls barely past half my age sauntering around near the OCC campus. I get over it!</blockquote>




So you are saying needs come first before wants. It's going to take a while to save up 6 months of living expenses. It's probably going to take at least a year to save up. I have been out of college only for a year.



Question: If I use the $7,500 interest free loan(payback in 15 years starting 2010) to help him get the bike that we will get eventually. What are the Cons for that? I can save up living expenses without the $7,500 loan.
 
[quote author="effenheimer" date=1226402941]Oh, and the ring is probably a bad idea as well (assuming he's dumping two months salary into it). You're not into <a href="http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html">diamonds</a>, are you?</blockquote>


Fortunately, i'm not into diamonds at all. I'm only into food. Does that mean we shouldn't have a wedding till we save up 6 months of living expenses as well? But we will receive a lot of money from our relatives when we get married, it's probably going to cover all the wedding expenses.
 
[quote author="babyseal" date=1226423658]

So you are saying needs come first before wants. It's going to take a while to save up 6 months of living expenses. It's probably going to take at least a year to save up. I have been out of college only for a year.



Question: If I use the $7,500 interest free loan(payback in 15 years starting 2010) to help him get the bike that we will get eventually. What are the Cons for that? I can save up living expenses without the $7,500 loan.</blockquote>


What? You are just out of college and you are actually considering buying a $7500 gift for someone! Wow. When I was just out of college, I couldn't afford a $7500 car for myself. Who needs a bike that costs as much as a decent used car? If it is going to take you a year to save up an emergency fund, you have no business buying that bike. Do you have any other debt? If so, pay it off before getting further into debt.



What if your boyfriend leaves you in 3 months, how will you feel? If you get that loan, how will you feel making that monthly load payment while your ex-boyfriend is riding that bike around with another girl? How will you pay your rent and pay that bike loan if you lose your job? I don't know if you heard, but the economy is in tough shape.



The only decent reasons I see for a person to get a loan are for a house or an education. A car loan is on the borderline. For anything else, if you can't afford, don't buy it.
 
[quote author="T!m" date=1226457537][quote author="babyseal" date=1226423658]

So you are saying needs come first before wants. It's going to take a while to save up 6 months of living expenses. It's probably going to take at least a year to save up. I have been out of college only for a year.



Question: If I use the $7,500 interest free loan(payback in 15 years starting 2010) to help him get the bike that we will get eventually. What are the Cons for that? I can save up living expenses without the $7,500 loan.</blockquote>


What? You are just out of college and you are actually considering buying a $7500 gift for someone! Wow. When I was just out of college, I couldn't afford a $7500 car for myself. Who needs a bike that costs as much as a decent used car? If it is going to take you a year to save up an emergency fund, you have no business buying that bike. Do you have any other debt? If so, pay it off before getting further into debt.



What if your boyfriend leaves you in 3 months, how will you feel? If you get that loan, how will you feel making that monthly load payment while your ex-boyfriend is riding that bike around with another girl? How will you pay your rent and pay that bike loan if you lose your job? I don't know if you heard, but the economy is in tough shape.



The only decent reasons I see for a person to get a loan are for a house or an education. A car loan is on the borderline. For anything else, if you can't afford, don't buy it.</blockquote>


It's $4,500 bike, not $7,500. I don't need to pay rents, just little student loan and car payments, which both carrying a very low interest rate.



I see your point. Spend only what you can afford. But what if I can afford my living expenses if I lose my job. (I can get a temp job)? Does my logic really not making sense? I was just thinking if we will get him the bike sooner or later, I can use the interest free loan to help him. $7,500 loan requires us to pay only $500 a year.



I truly appreciate all your honest opinions and advices. If the bike is for myself, I wouldn't get it. There are a lot of things that I want, but I have been waitiing. My boyfriend is not a big spender either. I went to look at bikes with him over the weekend, and I don't know how to tell him no anymore. If it wasn't my current job requires me to work overtime during busy season, I would have got a second job and not touch that loan.



He won't leave me. We'll grow old together.
 
[<blockquote>quote author="Astute Observer" date="1226468704"]I just feel it is a bit funny that some people likes to think that giving other people a gift is better than spending the money on themselves. </blockquote>


To me, his needs and wants are more important than my own. That's my way of loving him.



<blockquote>While the very same people likes to help out a future gift-giver (FGG) financially so that that FGG can get to give out a gift sooner. If everyone is like that, we will have a massive gifting bubble, and that would be more messy than the current housing bubble....</blockquote>


I would want to help him regardless. His is mine, mine is his. I just want to help him get what he wants, it's that simple.
 
Whenever I get that sad, longing look in my eye for something my fiancee quickly reminds me that we will both be better off saving--for a nice house, a rainy day, our retirement, whatever. And she's right. It's obvious the responders haven't convinced you that you shouldn't buy the bike. It's also obvious you haven't convined the other posters why you should. In my mind it has nothing to do with the relationship. If my crystal ball said you will indeed be with him forever that's fantastic; but that wouldn't change my opinion on this purchase. No one else is in a position to know all the particulars of your financial situation. Sounds like you have arrangements or support that provide some cushion. But if you don't have 6 month's living saved up then the next question is why not? I have yet to see proof of financial responsibility, so I assume this purchase is proof of financial recklessness. Being young is not a license to dig a hole just because you have more time to fill it. If you want to be ahead in life when you're 30 the time to start is now. Develop the habits when you're young because--believe me--the toys and desires will grow at least as fast as your income. You're considering a 10-year loan to pay for a bike...what are the odds he'll be riding it in 10 years? Be honest.

Something that works particularly well for me is to calculate how many hours it would take me to work to pay for something. Factor in taxes of course. I usually find that I don't want the item quite as much anymore after doing this calculation, and even less after I've actuallly done the work and saved up for what I thought I wanted. The peace of mind you get from money in the bank is underrated.
 
I will share a personal story. When I had been married only a year, I really wanted to satiate my appetite for diamonds by upgrading the center stone of my ring. My husband really wanted to be able to provide that for me but could not afford it. I actually went and got a side job JUST to raise money for it. (I used to have a picture hanging on the wall as motivation.) The diamond cost almost exactly the same your boyfriend's bike (after I traded in the old one.) I have it now and still wear it. But when I look at it I'm reminded of my own greed and wish I had that cash in hand to help contribute to not just what I want, not just what he wants... but what we both want. Even though it didn't cost him anything, I think it showed where my priorities were and I regret that. This sounds like a guy you are thinking of marrying. Explore what his priorities are and what yours are. While it's important to put your spouse before yourself, it's even more important to do what's best for both of you. Hope this helps.
 
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