I always wonder what the story is behind such bikes.
Yeah, me too, Matt. I suppose it could be any number of things, but most likely comes down to not being the right model for the buyer's expectations wrt feel, liveliness, or load-carrying capacity. I suppose some could be fit issues (i.e. expectations vs feel) and even seeing a color in person as opposed to the pages of the brochure. Perhaps some is due to a change in handlebar type from what the buyer is used to (i.e. straight vs drops -- and frames sized accordingly).
I suppose, too, some could be buyer's remorse -- pressing the "Buy" button without sufficient funds or thinking better of it After. A friend in online retail tells me he is seeing this more and more and blames a "too convenient" buying process and "auction mentality". Hmm. Dunno. It seems buying a Thorn is a more deliberate process, what with filling out the sizing form and checking all the options and then the typical waiting period while it is assembled, so this doesn't seem as likely. Might be that plans for a dream trip fail to materialize into reality. I often see that cited as a reason in eBay offerings.
Best,
Dan.
