Money to spend, what to buy?

Have a Raceline Peleton, and a few dollars to spend. Would rather blow money on cycling equipment than feed the ungrateful children.

Is it best to:

1. Buy some new wheels (a few dents in the rims from southern Tassie roads)
2. Get a heartrate monitor (yes, I know the s720i thingy gets good publicity on this forum, but my aching body tells me when the heart is beating too much)
3. Upgrade the Tiagra stuff
4. Donate money to help the SA cricket team.
5. Save up and buy a new bike (with possible fatal spousal consequences)

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Personally I'd get the HRM, along with a good dollop of research and reading into effective exercising using heart-rate monitoring.

IMO, the engine (i.e. your body) is a lot more important than the bike. And let's face it, a Raceline Peleton is a pretty good bike already! I'm definitely not a pro sports coach or anything, but I'm sure that a few months of a good, solid, scientifically-based exercise programme is going to do a lot more good for your cycling than Ultegra this or Ksyrium that.

HRMs are a great motivational aid (watching your resting HR and average HRs drop as your OwnIndex rises, etc.) as well as being a quanitifiable, scientific way to monitor how you're going, and then -- just as importantly -- then interpret the data and know how to improve.

I'm firmly of the mindset that with just about anything in life, if you want to see effective gains, the key is in measurement and critical analysis to monitor your progress, and identify how and where to improve. Anything less is at best an educated stab in the dark.

... then, once your ability has improved to actually have a need for some flashy equipment, then you can go nuts!

 

1 or 5,she'll get over it.

 

The two posters who already replied came to different conclusions - but I think it depends on what you're really looking for. If you're interested in getting in better shape and excercise, go with the heart rate monitor because it will help focus your training. And all the stuff rek's post said.

But if you are using the bike for commuting, transportation or personal satisfaction, go with number 1. The bike's already a nice one, so the money can probably be better spent elsewhere.

 

Don't go with number 4 tho, the guys (or some) will spend your hard earned money on doobie.

 

C'mon Stevo, stop acting like you don't know what doobie is.
Doobie! Dagga? Weed? Grass? Durban Poison?
Free love maaahhnnn...

 

I hadn't thought of that. Perhaps I should by some. Will it improve my times?

 

High for a night..slow for a month...

 

I would go with Rek suggestion , the heart rate and corrosponding bio-feedback is a great motivational tool.

I am by no means a genetically gifted athlete but I keep at it mostly because of the HRM. I am also an engineer which may explain that rather odd behaviour.


Leon

 

Too late. Have already spent the money on doobie. Thanks to my friend from the Orion Nebula.