Pacific Northwest - Seattle Bike Shops that carry Raleigh besides Recycled Cycles? (used, preferably)

I'm a new rider, looking for a fun recreational bike for easy rides. I visited Recycled Cycles on the Ship Canal a few times and fell in love with the Raleigh Venture/Passage models and after a little research on this forum, came to the conclusion that I'd be best off with a Passage for the versatility and comfort.

Well, long story long, I purchased a used Passage 3.0 at Recycled Cycles last weekend. Haven't ridden it yet, as I am waiting for a longer seat post to arrive. The salesperson sold me the bike with the seat raised so high that it was way beyond the safety mark. I know nothing about bikes, and I trust the sales guy to be the expert, so assume this is OK.

So on my way out, I stopped by the service desk to make sure the settings were all correctly adjusted for my height/frame, and the repair guy informed me that the seat could not be pulled that far up, and put in a special order for a longer seat post for me.

I was back in there today to buy a pump, and explained to the sales guy that I was coming back in with the bike in a few days to get the new seat post installed so I could also get fenders and a rack installed at that time. He said that if the bike required a seat post extension, it was not the right size, and advised that I don't ride it in the meantime (I'm not) and we'll sort it all out when I bring it back in.

Problem is, there are no larger Raleigh Passage bikes there larger than 15" and it was used, so I'm limited to what they have on hand. I'm afraid that I may end up having to return this bike and start from scratch.

My experience so far has left me a little bit leery of Recycled Cycles (although this third guy seemed to know what he was talking about), and I'm interested in other local shops that carry Raleigh bicycles.

Any advice, ideas, suggestions?

Thanks!

There are only a few bike shops that carry used bikes. The used bikes they sell are not going to be of any specific brand. The shops I know of that deal in used, besides Recycled, are 2nd Ascent in Ballard and Play It Again Sports downtown near REI.

Even though you are planning on buying a used bike, it could be well worth your time to visit as many other bike shops as you can and talk to people about fit. Try out some bikes and make notes about what you like and what you don't. How high do you like the bars and how much of a reach is comfortable for you. There are several shops in the area like Performance, Gregg's, Play-It-Again Sports, and REI that have several bikes to look at and sit on to get a feel for things. Then go back to the Raleigh you like and decide for yourself if it's right for you.

Try Trailside cycles at Orting, right next to the trail , funnily enough, it is owned and run by a guy called Brian and he is a Raleigh man been a stockist for a while, very helpful, honest and a pleasure to deal with

Try http://www.bikeworks.org/ in Seattle

Also http://2020cycle.com/huh.html in Seattle -- I believe these guys sell used, don't know for sure.

Besides genman's suggestions, I would recommend checking craigslist -- Seattle is a Raleigh friendly city.

I've checked the places suggested to me here, plus a host of others that I found on a Cascade Cycle club list.

No luck finding exactly what I now know that I want; a 19" Raleigh Passage 3.0 in Orange.

My experience with Recycled has been shaky, and I learned today (when I returned the too-small bike) that it was not used after all, it was new. (?) Anyway, what I am going to end up doing is getting a 19" Passage in silver from them in exchange for the orange bike. I'm so bummed because silver just isn't nearly as fun. :(

Oh well, it's more important that the bike be the right fit than the right color.

Also, I want to add that Bryan at Trailside was really helpful on the phone, and since I had to do some googling to find out how to reach him I'll post his number here in case anybody else looking for it stumbles upon this.

Trailside Cyclery
360-893-7333
207 SW Van Scoyoc Ave, Orting, WA 98360

Releigh Dealers in the area.
http://www.raleighusa.com/locator.asp?function=1&lastform=zipsearchform&zip=98204&radius=100