Pacific Northwest - Local Bike Shop question, Portland, OR

Which bike shop do you suggest? I am going to Portland on Friday (Live in Vancouver, WA) and want to go to a good bike shop. Any you suggest I stay away from? I am looking to get a road bike. (Or maybe cyclocross, but for enjoyment/commuting... not races)

River City in downtown Portland is fairly popular. They have a wide selection of bikes. I went there on a weekend and the place was packed. A little too hectic for me.
706 SE Martin Luther King Jr
Portland, OR 97214
(503) 233-5973

There's always Performance Bikes located near Mall 205. I don't mind Performance. They have big closeouts going on right now and 9 out of 10 times you can get the web prices. I go there a lot. This will be the closest bike shop in Oregon to you if you cross the I205. Performance will let you ride around there back parking lot for a long time.

Bike Gallery- in downtown Portland (this is a great place). I believe they toss in a fitting if you purchase from them.

Bike n Hike- also a great place but only go to the one downtown or in Beaverton since they have the most inventory. Look them up on the web

Clackamas Cycling- seems to have mostly mountain bikes and a very few cross Raleigh bikes. Great guys who work there. Based on your post I wouldn't go there since you're looking for a road bike.

Gateway cycling- I called them once about Road bikes and told me they don't sell bikes with drop down handles.??? They guy kept on mentioning that real bikers don't do road handlebars????? They are a Giant dealer if I remember. It might be worth while to check it out. Perhaps the guy I was talking to was on crack.

In Vancouver there's Bad Boys Bike. Larry is the owner. He's okay. No a huge selection but they have Mountain and Road bikes. Some very expensive. Some very low cost.

Remember to bring some riding gear or at least gym shoes. If you're looking to get into this sport don't go full carbon. You can get a decent Aluminum/carbon fork bike that will suit your needs. Performance had some Fuji's I liked on sale. Might be worth checking out. BTW, when you find yourself doing the bridge loop (I205 bridge to I5 bridge and back) then go fancy.

What part of Vancouver? I'm in Fisher's Landing.

Cheers,
brian

a nice new and used shop with no pressure and a nice owner
http://www.velocebicycles.com/

a really nice no pressure shop with new and high end used bikes http://www.velocebicycles.com/

a great little shop with new and high end used bikes http://www.velocebicycles.com/

Is Universal (http://www.universalcycles.com/)a shop or just a mailorder warehouse?

Unless something comes up, the only shop I use is Seven Corner Cycles at SE 21st and Powell. Great owner and staff, not one of these huge wal-mart type bike shops and they're down to earth.

Before I was a regular customer, I needed a tube one afternoon and called to see what time they closed. I caught them as they were closing up shop but Corey, the owner, told me he'd leave one outside and I could just pay him the next time I was in the shop. He didn't know me from Adam, but left a tube for me and I paid a couple of days later. I was shocked that he didn't mind helping me out in a bind, but I've been a loyal customer ever since.

Universal is both, so is Bike Tires Direct.

A lot of choices in PDX.....

If you know what to buy, you can try cheaper alternatives a Performance, Bike Gallery, Bike&Hike or REI.
If you need more info I would go Veloce or River City.

When I lived in Portland I was always a fan of Lakeside Bicycles in lake Oswego (huge selection). http://lakeside-bikes.com/

Happy shopping,
David

6509-11 N Interstate Ave| Portland, OR | 503.285.1084 | info@revolverbikes.com

Good people, carry Surly, Salsa, Marin, Breezer and Redline.

Smallish shop, but good folks.

I strongly recommend River City for selection and for mechanical competence. I also like Revolver and Veloce, but have not done business with them yet. Bike Gallery seems to vary greatly depending on the particular store.

I would steer way clear of Lakeside.

I don't agree about River City for the mechanical competence. the last two times I went in in so many weeks the advice has been wrong. they go through a lot of mechanics and pay them little. they are more into selling new bikes.
brought A avid bb7 where the outside pad disc came loose I thought was broke so did they. I found out here it is a common thing and easy to fix. brought a wheel in that the cassette came loose and the chain trashed the spokes. the advice was the rebuild the wheel and I needed to replace the velocity rim it was too soft. this wheel only had 3k miles on it and it was a disc. the rim was perfectly true. took it to Veloce an his master wheelsmith fixed it just fine.
river city wants to sell you new.

I don't agree about River City for the mechanical competence. the last two times I went in in so many weeks the advice has been wrong. they go through a lot of mechanics and pay them little. they are more into selling new bikes.
brought A avid bb7 where the outside pad disc came loose I thought was broke so did they. I found out here it is a common thing and easy to fix. brought a wheel in that the cassette came loose and the chain trashed the spokes. the advice was the rebuild the wheel and I needed to replace the velocity rim it was too soft. this wheel only had 3k miles on it and it was a disc. the rim was perfectly true. took it to Veloce an his master wheelsmith fixed it just fine.
river city wants to sell you new.

I'm in full agreement with you. I have found the sales staff at RC great, the service department has been less than stellar in my opinion. I have had three separate issues with RC's service department and a friend of mine has had one as well. They are a great place to BUY a bike.

Ride safe.

They are a great place to BUY a bike.

Follow-up service is one of the big things you get out of buying from an LBS. If the service isn't good, then they aren't even a good place to buy.

I've had some good experiences with Revolver, but being a west sider, I mostly go to the shops out here. I'm happy with both Bike 'n Hike and Bike Gallery.

I don't agree about River City for the mechanical competence. the last two times I went in in so many weeks the advice has been wrong. they go through a lot of mechanics and pay them little. they are more into selling new bikes.
brought A avid bb7 where the outside pad disc came loose I thought was broke so did they. I found out here it is a common thing and easy to fix. brought a wheel in that the cassette came loose and the chain trashed the spokes. the advice was the rebuild the wheel and I needed to replace the velocity rim it was too soft. this wheel only had 3k miles on it and it was a disc. the rim was perfectly true. took it to Veloce an his master wheelsmith fixed it just fine.
river city wants to sell you new.

I hear you. I should have said that when I either call or go in, I ask for Brandon who I think is the head mechanic. He has provided me with stellar advice & service. I also had them custom-fit a set of full fenders on my race bike & they spent about 4 hours on the job but charged me a minimal amount. I am very picky and they really took their time & did it right. They also cheerily diagnosed & handled a C-dale crank warranty replacement & only charged me $15 labor removal/install even though I told them I did not purchase the bike there. But as always, YMMV.

OTOH, I have been in there multiple times looking for things like gloves & warmers, and almost no one seems to ask if I need something, and if someone does, I seem to know more than they do. When I bought my last bike, I made the great mistake in crossing RC off my list due to the guy that waited on me who insisted that I must ride a 60cm just by visually sizing me up, and was really pushing me to order a custom Seven. In hindsight, I now wish I'd gone back & gotten someone else instead of judging the store by one guy.

Recently, I test rode several Surlys there and the guy who helped me that day was enthusiastic, fairly knowledgeable & cool with me taking long test rides.

Only been in Veloce once, admired the inventory & bought a micro light. They seem pretty cool too.

My contention is that RC is a great place to buy a bike if you want to compare a number of different brands and have sales folks who know what they are talking about. Some shops have exclusive rights to sell a particular brand. If I wanted to buy a Pegoretti locally I would have to buy it from Lakeside Bikes.

will they let you take long rides? all I ever see is riding in the parking lots.
coventry will let you go all day long on a bike.

There a lot of good stores here, Veloce is great, if they carry what you're looking for, I usually get my maintenance and repair stuff done there.

RC is big and busy, carry Cannondale, Cervelo and more high end stuff like Calfee and Seven. A little more high pressure environment but still a great store.
I've tried a few bikes at RC, never had to ride around the parking lot.
Not so sure I'd let them work on my bike, but then I'm more than happy with the work I've had done at Veloce and 21st Ave. bikes.

Lakeside has a lot of eye wateringly expensive bikes, good for the eye candy, not so good on the service, imo.

If you're looking to get into this sport don't go full carbon. You can get a decent Aluminum/carbon fork bike that will suit your needs.
I would say this is subjective.
Depends on what one means by "Road Bike":
If you are looking to just put some KMs/Miles under your butt then that application is okay (I guess).
But if you are looking for something to haul some gear (say a small tent etc. etc.):
GO STEEL.:D

[QUOTE=125psi;
Gateway cycling- I called them once about Road bikes and told me they don't sell bikes with drop down handles.??? They guy kept on mentioning that real bikers don't do road handlebars????? They are a Giant dealer if I remember. It might be worth while to check it out. Perhaps the guy I was talking to was on crack. **They are out of BIZZ!**

In Vancouver there's Bad Boys Bike. Larry is the owner. He's okay. No a huge selection but they have Mountain and Road bikes. Some very expensive. Some very low cost. **They are gone ALSO!**
[/QUOTE]

Try "Vancouver Cyclery" on old hwy 99. He pays the sales tax on new bikes! Good selection and good people to deal with. I find to be lower in cost then Portland shops also. It's nice to keep your cash in your home state if you can any way.

They are big in Trek & Specialized just to name two.
10108 NE Highway 99 # B Vancouver, WA 98686(360) 574-5717

Go to the recyclery or citibikes, they have the best service that I have experienced. At River City the service can be really bad sometimes, if you get someone that is really snobby. Its like you have to prove yourself before certain people will help you. Other times I have gotten good advice and service, but I stick recyclery and citibikes personally.

I bought my Roadbike from river city, and I have been happy with the it ever since. They are very mainstream road bike oriented (were stunned that I wanted flat pedals), but not terrible. Their gear is pricey though- I dont buy extras from them.

I had a hybrid from citibikes and sold it... I still think it is a good place to buy used bikes, or if you like Jamis bikes.

Sellwood cycle repair is an awesome shop- very friendly. Bought a Cyclecross bike from them. They also keep their used inventory online so you can see what they have before visiting. Very helpful if you need a 62cm frame.

Sellwood cycle repair is an awesome shop- very friendly. Bought a Cyclecross bike from them. They also keep their used inventory online so you can see what they have before visiting. Very helpful if you need a 62cm frame.

+1 on Sellwood Cyclery. Nice folks, and a good selection of used bikes depending on the time of year.

Bike N' Hike east side carries Giant extensively and is very low pressure. They're pretty much my go-to store since they're close by to my workplace.

Vancouver Cyclery *is* a great shop, and if you can support local retail, it's a good bet.

Universal is great for "will call" orders of accessories, where you order in advance on their web site for pick up. They will price match. They do have limited hours though, not opening until 1 PM on weekdays.

Unless something comes up, the only shop I use is Seven Corner Cycles at SE 21st and Powell. Great owner and staff, not one of these huge wal-mart type bike shops and they're down to earth.

Before I was a regular customer, I needed a tube one afternoon and called to see what time they closed. I caught them as they were closing up shop but Corey, the owner, told me he'd leave one outside and I could just pay him the next time I was in the shop. He didn't know me from Adam, but left a tube for me and I paid a couple of days later. I was shocked that he didn't mind helping me out in a bind, but I've been a loyal customer ever since.

+1

I had a great experience buying my first "real" bike at Seven Corners and would highly recommend them. You can see more at this thread: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=461331&highlight=

Good luck in your search and have fun test riding!

a really nice no pressure shop with new and high end used bikes http://www.velocebicycles.com/


stay away from bike gallery and .....

Dimetri at Veloce is great. He really took the time to work with me. I had a bad experience at Bike Gallery, and luckily it led me to Veloce. Probably an isolated experience, but it only takes once...

River City is great for selection of accessories and bike porn; can't comment about service.

So far, I've had great luck with all Bike Gallery locations, and River City Bikes. I just got full fit by River City, and the fitter dialed in my ride just perfect. Not sure what the former complaints are with either of those shops, however, I'm sure even the best have off days, just as we all do. I've had numerous service related needs at Bike Gallery, and they've done superb work on my utility commuter clunkers, or my delicate full carbon Madone.

And, don't dismiss the little hideaway, low-key, non-flashy Tigard Bike and Ski. He's located in the oldtown part of Tigard. The joint is jamming with stuff . . . so much it's a narrow path through the place. But, the owner knows where everything is, and it appears he's got a handful of decent bikes for sale. Two years ago I needed some toe-clips for an old mtn. bike, and I could find none in the city that fit. As a last resort I dropped by the Tigard shop and he had a pair that fit my shoes like they were tailor made. Not a place to impress a hot date with carbon tech-talk, but a great little piece of utilitarian yesteryear, with character. Best of all, you can pick up a bike and then stop across the street at the new brew pub.

So far, I've had great luck with all Bike Gallery locations, and River City Bikes. I just got full fit by River City, and the fitter dialed in my ride just perfect. Not sure what the former complaints are with either of those shops, however, I'm sure even the best have off days, just as we all do. I've had numerous service related needs at Bike Gallery, and they've done superb work on my utility commuter clunkers, or my delicate full carbon Madone.

And, don't dismiss the little hideaway, low-key, non-flashy Tigard Bike and Ski. He's located in the oldtown part of Tigard. The joint is jamming with stuff . . . so much it's a narrow path through the place. But, the owner knows where everything is, and it appears he's got a handful of decent bikes for sale. Two years ago I needed some toe-clips for an old mtn. bike, and I could find none in the city that fit. As a last resort I dropped by the Tigard shop and he had a pair that fit my shoes like they were tailor made. Not a place to impress a hot date with carbon tech-talk, but a great little piece of utilitarian yesteryear, with character. Best of all, you can pick up a bike and then stop across the street at the new brew pub.

Yeah, that place was a bit creepy...but yeah, he's a cool dude, but WOW, what a mess.

And yeah, Max's Fanno Creek (http://www.maxsfannocreek.com/) pretty much rules! I wish I still lived nearby!!!

Gateway cycling- I called them once about Road bikes and told me they don't sell bikes with drop down handles.??? They guy kept on mentioning that real bikers don't do road handlebars????? They are a Giant dealer if I remember. It might be worth while to check it out. Perhaps the guy I was talking to was on crack.



FYI, Gateway went out of business last year.