I used to work for the company that produces Quicken, the leading personal financial software, so you think I would have some grasp of my personal financial situation. But in fact I hardly keep track of where my money goes. All I know is that 2006 has been really bad for my net worth, due in large part to all the triathlon related spending.
So I was intrigued by a lengthy thread in the Slowtwitch Forum where numerous triathletes reported spending over $10,000 per year on triathlon related spending. (Of course I have read that the average triathlete makes more than US$100,000 year so they can afford to spend far more than I can)
Some of my fellow triathletes seem to spend significantly more money on the sport than I can afford to and I decided to roughly calculate and categorize my 2006 triathlon spending using the reported categories from Slowtwitch:
1. Coaching - Jay $0. Average for people with coach - $500
What??? I am supposed to pay for a coach? Yeah, well it would be very nice to have the attention, but for any questions I am content to ask my expert teammates like Keren or Steve and Michael, or rely on the Gale Berhnardt and Joe Frey websites
2. Personal trainers / massage therapy - Jay $ 0 Average - $200
Ha-ha-ha-ha. Another absurd indulgence. Americans are becoming too rich and stratified. People really need not be spending so much for unnecessary luxuries like some Pharaoh and his harem
3. Bike and Swim Equipment - Jay $400 Average $3,500
In 2006 I acquired bike cleats and pedals $190, bento box bike pack $30, swim goggles $25, bike tubes $10, wheel repair $100, Other $35
I have almost no possessions anyway (of any sort). I live in a serviced apartment and all my worldly goods can fit in a small car (not that I even own a car). I certainly don't spend much on bike equipment. In fact, I don't know where some of the bike stuff I do own is - presumably some cardboard box somewhere.
4. Running Shoes - Jay $125 Average $350
In 2006 and late 2005 I acquired two free pair of Asics, a pair of Nikes at employee prices and a pair of full-priced Sauconies, so despite the enormous mountain of running shoes in my closet, my running shoe spending has been low.
5. Apparel - Jay $75 Average $400
I am supposed to BUY triathlon apparel?? I expect to just receive it at races, like the nice Saucony long-sleeve top we received at the Inagi Ekiden, the gloves from Jim Weissman, the sunglasses from Fabrizio, the zillion t-shirts I have accumulated over the years. Socks and shorts are customary Christmas gifts. I wear the same few clothes over and over and over anyway - whatever is on the top of my plastic bin of athletic wear. The only things I have bought recently are bike booties and shorts.
6. Bike (amortized) - Jay $250 Average $1500
I buy a relatively inexpensive $1,000 bike and keep it 4 years. Other triathletes seem to be buying $3,000 - 5,000 bikes every other year.
7. Gel, Power Bars - Jay $300 Average $300
I have heard this is an expensive source of nutrition. But actually any source of nutrition in Japan is expensive, so I don't believe this is too much of indulgence. Would spend almost as much on apples or carrots in Japan. Thanks goodness my friend Martin Murphy ordered a huge shipment of vanilla creme Gel from the US.
8. Health Club / Masters Swim Fee - Jay $480 Average $400
OK, I know for people in Tokyo, membership in the notoriously upscale Roppongi Hills Spa must sound wildly hedonistic. But this most of the membership fee is actually built into my basic monthly consulting retainer and so the incremental costs are cheaper than travelling to a public swimming pool across town.
9. Triathlon /running event entry fees: Jay $1,175 Average $1,000
Wow, these entry fees are expensive (and it is not like the proceeds in the case of triathlons go to charity...) This figure includes triathlons like NZ, Goto, Sado, and running events like Angkor Wat, Edogwara, and a few other small running events. Sado was the most egregious - US$250 for a half-ironman. Totally worth every yen though.
10. Triathlon-related Travel: Jay - $4,000 Average $2,000
Hmmmm. Well I really like to travel, and I used frequent flier miles to get to Nagasaki and stayed in budget accommodations. Still Tokyo is an expensive place to travel from. The long weekend train/boat trip to nearby Sado Island ($750) cost almost as much as the week in Cambodia ($900). The US triathletes report to travelling to events and staying in their huge recreational vehicles, so their incremental trip costs are low, but their fixed overhead is huge.
11. Triathlon-related Coffee Consumption Jay - $100 Average - $0
(another separate Quicken category)
7. Gel, Power Bars - Jay $300 Average $300
I have heard this is an expensive source of nutrition. But actually any source of nutrition in Japan is expensive, so I don't believe this is too much of indulgence. Would spend almost as much on apples or carrots in Japan. Thanks goodness my friend Martin Murphy ordered a huge shipment of vanilla creme Gel from the US.
8. Health Club / Masters Swim Fee - Jay $480 Average $400
OK, I know for people in Tokyo, membership in the notoriously upscale Roppongi Hills Spa must sound wildly hedonistic. But this most of the membership fee is actually built into my basic monthly consulting retainer and so the incremental costs are cheaper than travelling to a public swimming pool across town.
9. Triathlon /running event entry fees: Jay $1,175 Average $1,000
Wow, these entry fees are expensive (and it is not like the proceeds in the case of triathlons go to charity...) This figure includes triathlons like NZ, Goto, Sado, and running events like Angkor Wat, Edogwara, and a few other small running events. Sado was the most egregious - US$250 for a half-ironman. Totally worth every yen though.
10. Triathlon-related Travel: Jay - $4,000 Average $2,000
Hmmmm. Well I really like to travel, and I used frequent flier miles to get to Nagasaki and stayed in budget accommodations. Still Tokyo is an expensive place to travel from. The long weekend train/boat trip to nearby Sado Island ($750) cost almost as much as the week in Cambodia ($900). The US triathletes report to travelling to events and staying in their huge recreational vehicles, so their incremental trip costs are low, but their fixed overhead is huge.
11. Triathlon-related Coffee Consumption Jay - $100 Average - $0
(another separate Quicken category)
9 comments:
Only $100 for coffee? That is per week, correct?
Even without any flashy equipment and accessories your total is still almost $7000! Mind you how much would you spend on doctors visit and physio if you were just running? The average number reported seemed quite low... it would be interesting to know the median instead of the average!!
In 2007 why dont you just arrange a business trip to Singapoe to coincide with OSIM and spend the rest on the Gobi half!
Regarding the coffee expenditure line item -
1. This is only the additional coffee I drank because of triathlon training and needed to make it through 120k bike rides and get a jolt before the races.
2. My sister-in-law works at the Starbucks headquarters in Seattle and sent me large crates of complimentary coffee and Martin provided much beloved Peets coffee. STILL I spent huge sums on coffee in 2006, so much that is impossible to track, $100 week sounds right.
1. Wow, if even the most parsimonious triathlete spends close to $7,000 I imagine the median is much higher than the anaecdotal cases I noted.
2. I am convinced the long-term health benefits of cross-training (versus just running) is enormous - in fact there should be some sortof tax credit to incentivize and compensate for the huge medical savings and societal benefits.
3. Also my skewed triathlon spending reflects the belief that it is better to devote resources to experiences versus material goods - the recent research evidence support this view:
http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8401269
4. Gobi Half should not be such a big budget item - how much can they charge us for sleeping in a yurt?
Jay, I reckon I wouldn't be running if it weren't for massage. I'm forgoing new wheels for my bike in order to pay for it in the run-up to the marathon. So I reckon the massage/personal trainer stuff should be split up - I agree personal trainers are for pampered people.
I hear people in Finland drink an average 16 cups of coffee again - maybe your coffee budget is matched by Finnish triathletes.
Oh, and I just read that in Saudi Arabia it counts as grounds for divorce if a man doesn't keep the house stocked with coffee.
And I meant to write "I hear people in Finland drink an average 16 cups of coffee a day" not "again."
I have heard from several people how much massage has helped them deal with athletic injury and bounce back faster. Hmmmmm - I am skeptical. The medical research is not very convincing and I think ibuprofen is just as effective (and ibuprofen is within my restricted budget).
Of course if my pathetic health insurance covered massage therapy I would be a big fan. I would probably be getting treatment on my lower back right now rather than writing in this blog.
Coming from a cycling background I'm used to massage - it's a daily thing for tours and regular racing. And ibuprofen - doesn't that just mask bigger problems? Ibuprofen would seem to be good for inflamation-related pain and the problems that causes, but bad for say, a trapped nerve, a knot in the muscle or my problem, a maltracking kneecap. Steve was telling me that K's massage in Takadanobaba takes shakaihoken.
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