Check the comment section under any article featuring a recently released bike and you’ll see one of cycling’s favourite talking points: the rising price of bikes. In recent years, 'hero' bikes - the ones ridden by the pros - have become absurdly expensive . I was myself arguing that if we don’t do something about the link between WorldTour cycling, and what brands sell us, then eventually the costs of pro tech will push prices so high that they will actively discourage participation.
With a flagship road bike now nudging £12,000 - and in some cases well beyond - it’s easy to conclude that the needs of the pro peloton are out of whack with ours, or at least that the industry has lost touch.
