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Somewhat related to the subject. I was looking around today and whilst I have a nice road bike (Bianchi Infinito cv), there are some stinking deals on rim braked Cervelo R5s and given I already have a set of 404s…
Would you consider buying anything other than a disc braked road bike these days?
Absolutely, it’s not essential at all but nice to have.
The thing about brakes, they slow you down. But in triathlon you want to go fast. So why suddenly are disc brakes a cool thing?
Ideally in a tri I’d feather the caliper breaks once or twice on some corners. And if after 5 years the pads look a little ropey, I change them myself.
My MTB on the other hand has hydraulic disc brakes. Servicing them is like witchcraft. When they go wrong I need to take it to the bike shop, and they tell me to bend over.
I raced motos for years, so not unfamiliar with modulation, feathering and completely at ease with all aspects of the wrenching.
Doubt I will be doing that many tris but the question really was from a longevity, obsolete POV.
Fair. I’m open minded at the moment about whether they are the next best thing, or just a way to save us a few wallet-grams.
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Or both I suppose.
I think it’s pretty clear that all heavily marketed features of bikes are essentially “nice to have”, you just have to make your own decision about how much you want to spend on a bike. I came to the conclusion that as no feature is objectively measurable as a benefit*, and the whole cost/benefit approach was pointless beyond the simple question of whether to buy a bike at all.
Just buy one you like the look of, you’re more likely to ride it and more likely to enjoy it 
*If any proof is needed, just see how many manufacturers claim specific measurable gains…it’s none, because they would have their asses sued off.
Some stuff I have read suggests that disc brakes carry a small aero penalty over well integrated caliper brakes.
So they slow you down when using them, and they slow you down when not using them.
On the other hand Matthew Spooner makes a good case for disc brakes somewhere else, if you ride in the mountains or on hilly wet courses. Or if you just want to have a bike that you can stop really well for safety.
So my current thinking is that i’d kind of like discs on my next road/commute/training bike but not on my race bike. But, open minded & interested to see how things play out with disc brakes
Forgot to add, I already have a road bike with discs that I keep at my Mum’s house, a Focus Paralane, so I have a good idea of how the feel on a road bike.
Talking to my mates on our ride this morning, the question seems to be not whether my next road bike will have discs, as I think it will. The real question is whether I need to change my road bike at all.
Keep going back and forth on this. My head says a decent aero bike will cover my road and TTT/tri needs but then I look at that P3 and my heart takes over. 
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The amount I’m racing (only 3 tris this year) means that replacing my TT bike is probably very cost ineffective; much like spending any significant money on replacing our second car when the time comes.
Based on that, I’m keeping my old Speed Concept running on indefinitely.
Yeah, I think if I didn’t have a TT bike, then I’d not get one but I already have one and the market for 2nd hand rim brake bikes is next to nothing, so worth keeping on the finance front.
It’s just the de-clutter aspect that’s appealing (but not appealing enough if I’m honest.)
I’m still mulling this over. I have at least two phases of the Pain Cave transformation to go before I can begin to visualise it, but here is where my head is at:
Work is mega stressful at the moment and I can’t see an end in sight for at least another 8-10mths. This is impacting a little on time but more on post work motivation.
I’m really enjoying my running (mostly!) at the moment and am somewhat trying to live at the fast end and the endurance end of the scale. I like that challenge and I’m loving discovering different parts of the country via trail racing. I’m all in on this at the moment, regardless of whether I get a CCC slot, next year has running goals.
Plan on doing more XC mtb next year. I’m also very happy with the way Zwift fits into life at the moment. I’m not sure about any more tris and even less sure about any more full IMs. The more I’m away from it, the less I miss it.
I’m also less keen on road riding these days but like the ability to do so.
Little One has her own things going, which I want to support. The house has a lot of projects that I will need to do. (we had a whopping bill this year, that means me doing more (ugh) DIY!!
I could keep all three bikes, they’re all paid for and it’s only space I suppose. However, I have the sort of mindset that if a bike is hanging on the wall, then I feel compelled to fit it into life somehow. If I have a TT bike, I will want to do TTs, if I don’t, I’ll think about it less and focus on were goals but try and do them well.
It’s hard to put into words but I feel like the stress of owning more things, increases my stress of not being able to use them all fully.
Perhaps this is work/house rant dressed up as a question. As the Aussies would say ‘my head is all over the place like a mad woman’s shit’ 
I got rid of the aero kit and bought a sportif bike (canyon endurace with rim brakes) and winter / commute bike (Genesis Datum with disc brakes).
I thought I’d use the Genesis for bikepacking but went for the lighter Canyon last summer so best laid plans weren’t up to much although I did go pretty light.
However, if I were doing it again, I’d get disc brakes on the Canyon - I do a lot of hills and there’s a real difference with braking IMHO.
Then again, I’m not going to be racing 
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I’m not going to get involved in the complicated world of bike decisions! Suffice to say, none of us is getting any younger. Maybe in the not-too-distant future you could find work closer to home; iirc you have a 50 mile drive each way? I dunno, but something to tilt the work/life back more in your favour.
Since having children, my perspective has certainly changed; looking at them makes me ponder my own mortality from time-to-time.
Right. Enough navel gazing 
My commute isn’t quite that bad, 30miles each way (mostly A34), it’s nowhere near as bad as some have it but I’m not a great LD commuter. Definitely would like some closer but the money and benefits are pretty good and there is a remote chance of a international transfer back to Oz in a couple of years (easier for me as I have no visa worries).
Thinking about riding, I do wonder if I’d be happier seeing Little One taking up mtb, rather than riding on the road.
I’m all over the place at the moment, probably get Xmas over and see how the mind shakes things out.