Tandem Cycling - Crank2 Bike Shop

I was over in Pleasanton 2 weeks ago dropping off my Mom so I decided to visit a new tandem shop. Their name is Crank 2. They are right off the 680 at Sunol Boulevard.

This shop is loaded with tandems! I have been to many bike shops that say they "specialize" in tandems=we have 1-2 tandems on the floor. This whole shop is tandems. they must have at least 40 on display. here are a couple of photos I took with my phone. It looks like they carry Comotion, DaVinci, Santana and KHS. They also seemed to have very good selection of clothing, especially for Women.


I also talked at length with Bryon Price, I think he is the owner. I sounds like his whole family is working the shop and that they love tandems. I am excited that there is a place in California that my wife and I can go to and try more than 1 tandem. If you like tandems this shop is a definite 'must see' if you are in the Bay Area.

Look them up on the web www.crank-2.com

Lotsa $$$ tied up in tandem inventory! Nice to have a tandem specific shop.

I have been to many bike shops that say they "specialize" in tandems=we have 1-2 tandems on the floor. This whole shop is tandems.

Brick & mortar tandem-specialty shops are definitely few and far between and Crank2 is clearly "all-in" with their substantial inventory. The only other brick & mortar tandem speciality shop that I can think of is Tandem Cycle Works of Colorado (http://www.tandemcycleworks.com/our_shop.html)which has been around for over a decade.

http://www.tandemcycleworks.com/tandem/pict_store_interior.jpg

I think there is another tandem specific "brick and mortar" shop in California, Gold Country Cyclery. They are in Shingle Springs near Sacramento. We visited their shop a few years back and they carried Co-mo, Calfee, Davinci, Zona amonst other brands.

I think there is another tandem specific "brick and mortar" shop in California, Gold Country Cyclery. They are in Shingle Springs near Sacramento. We visited their shop a few years back and they carried Co-mo, Calfee, Davinci, Zona amonst other brands.

Rick Steele started out Gold Country Cyclery (http://www.tandems-recumbents.com/index.html)as a tandem-only shop back in '99, but shortly thereafter found he needed to expand into road & touring and then also added recumbents to meet his business plan's revenue profile.

Rick Steele started out Gold Country Cyclery (http://www.tandems-recumbents.com/index.html)as a tandem-only shop back in '99, but shortly thereafter found he needed to expand into road & touring and then also added recumbents to meet his business plan's revenue profile.

We test rode CoMo's out of Rick's place - when it was in Rancho Cordova. It was small and was primarily tandem. He stocked a fair amount of Tandems - but very few single bikes at the time. Haven't ventured into his store in Shingle Springs.

Honestly - while it is nice to see all those tandems on the floor - I would think the majority of tandems are special ordered due to size needs etc. I wouldn't think that they sell alot off the floor.

That is the difficulty with a 'tandems only' shop. They cannot afford to stock one of every model and size of any given brand, let alone several brands and frame materials..
Many shops claim to sell tandems . . . sure, here's the catalog.
One monied local shop was going to sell tandems; we asked the owner "have your ever ridden tandem?" . . . "well no, but it's just a bike". Needless to say he quit selling tandems in a few months.
Whatever you have in stock may whet their appetite and a test ride.
How can customer experience the difference in frame materials if you don't stock steel, alu, carbon, bamboo and magnesium tandems? Or road or mt. bike, off-road and cruizer twicers?
And how does a travel tandem ride . . . got one in stock in our size?
Then there's the question of proper fit/size, the whole options scene from a multitude of standard paint choices to custom paint; choices in brake systems, wheels, stem lenghts, gearing suspension and some individual needs.
It is a lot more time consuming and takes mucho knowledge/patience to deal with tandem shoppers. From the novices who have never ridden as a duo to the ones looking for their ultimate twicer + all the folks in between.
That is why there are so few tandem specific shops.
Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

The ability to get measured and then try out different models as well as different manufacturers really appeals to me.

Bryon, the owner of Crank2, does ride tandems (with his wife).

He knows me pretty well, and I have met his wife one evening at his shop. It's a great shop that I HIGHLY recommend. :)

I went to Crank2 for the first time today and was truly impressed with their tandem display. Spent an hour in there mulling around and drooling at all the new bikes. I spoke to the owner and his wife and found them really nice and helpful. Wish I was in the market to buy another tandem, as I saw a couple that really caught my eye. :)

I really wish them the best. Hope to check them out when we get up that way in the spring.

Bill J.

One thing he doesn't stock is mountain tandems. It seems like almost all his realized customers are roadies, or weekend cruisers. That said, he does carry almost the entire range of materials. A lot of his business seems to come not locally, but from out of state. He recently delivered 2 tandems to 2 customers in Utah, both with the same first name, "Mark". :) Oh, and doesn't include Rumbutter. ;) He arranged transportation from the airport and everything! I am always surprised at how far he will go for the customer. I just wish that he had opened his shop sooner and we would have gotten our tandem from him. :o

Brian is a very nice guy who deserves some support from the local (west coast) tandem community. Incredible stock of tandems and plenty of clothing particularly womens. He has a sale going on right now, my wife and i picked up a few things this weekend.

My wife and I picked up our brand new daVinci Joint Venture at Crank2 yesterday. We really enjoyed working with Bryon and his wife. They are a great couple. Their attention to detail and their concern for customer satisfaction are top notch. We drove all the way over from Sacramento and it was well worth the trip.
Eric

My wife and I picked up our brand new daVinci Joint Venture at Crank2 yesterday. We really enjoyed working with Bryon and his wife. They are a great couple. Their attention to detail and their concern for customer satisfaction are top notch. We drove all the way over from Sacramento and it was well worth the trip.
Eric

What made you decide on the DaVinci? I love the idea of the DaVinci I just have not had time to take my stoker wife over to try them.

Why a daVinci? Well, we tried out a couple CoMotions, the Joint Venture 700, and we previously owned a Cannondale. I am 6'1" and my wife is 5 ft even, so we tried the L/S sizes. In a nutshell, the daVinci just felt right for us, both in the size, fit, and feel of the bike. Additionally after some serious test riding, we could really see many advantages of the independent coasting system. In the first several blocks, we went through a fairly rough driveway getting out of the parking lot and then had to cross some tracks. Both times, my wife stood up for the bump and I just kept pedaling. That was a real revelation. So for us, the decision was pretty easy to make. That is our experience.