Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Hey everyone and one question.

Just figured I would post here to my follow Clydes ,and say whats cracking to the the Athenas. I am riding to get into shape. I am around 260 pounds right now, and I hope to come down to 212 my years end.

Being a bigger person am kind of shamed to go in to one of these Bike shops . I know they would be like what he doing in here . You know he can not ride. Anyone else feel like this.

Bike shops aren't like that. Really. I used to work at a few.

They sell just as many bikes to bigger riders as they do medium and smaller riders. Just tell them what you are looking to do with the bike (exercise, commute, train, race..) and they will get you sorted out.

The bikes these days are very strong. I'm 250lbs and all but the ultra light bikes ($$$$) in the store will bear our weight. The key is the wheelset. If you get a road bike, they may swap out the ultra-light 16 spoke wheels for something with maybe 32 spokes. Other than that, everything else is good to go.

Oh, and there is almost always a big guy working at the shop :)


If you can, buy a bike that's a little bit "better" than you so you can grow into it.

Bike shops aren't like that.

Well, I would say that some are like that, and some are not. As an Athena who has experienced various degrees of satisfaction with LBS service, here's the advice I would give to you.

1. Do as much research as you can and be fairly comfortable what you want...hybrid, mountain, road, cruiser. Well intentioned or not, you don't want the preconceived notions of a 20 something to lead you in a direction that's not what you really want. Of course, being new, you may not have much of an idea of what you want...hence, the research.

2. Keep your head held high. I have gotten looks when I bring my CAAD9 racing bike in with a Brooks Flyer saddle on it. I reminded myself that I was once their age, and their weight. Now I am twice their age and twice their weight and it's MY BIKE! I find that if I don't act defensively, they usually chill a bit. It's just not what they're used to...I do find that as I return for odds and ends and they see that I'm still riding that bike, I'm building a little cred. :rolleyes:

3. If you do run into rude or offensive treatment, find another shop. Most bikes are major purchases and you have a right to feel comfortable with the shop before you buy.

Good luck and if all else fails, let it roll off your back and RIDE!:thumb:

I can say that I still feel that I have to qualify myself as a cyclist. I shouldn't, but I do. But then again I still look in the mirror everyday and don't see the changes in me that others see. I ride for me, not the bike shops, not so I can tell others I am a cyclist (although I do all the time, but I am a bit hyper-fixated ) My girlfriend laughs ( I hope ) and says my "other women" is my bike.

I agree with Nola. Bad service due to stereotypes happens to a lot of people.

But I think in my case a lot of the bad service is due to me being skittish and afraid to talk in a different/uncomfortable environment.

Do your research. Walk into the store with an agenda of what you want to look at or try out. Have a few questions to ask to break the ice.

Tell the guy your story. When I bought my road bike last fall, I'd been to the store a couple times to look at a particular brand. I finally told the guy, "Mrs. Zoxe and me ride about 15mi a night but want to do longer event rides, and eventually centuries." He showed me a bike that I'd not thought of and would have otherwise never had a chance to ride. I ended up buying it and love it.

If you get bad service, walk. Remember that it's YOUR wallet. If nothing else, they should at least suck up to you better and earn your $$. :)

If you have the option, try a few stores. My favorite isn't the first, second, or even third that we tried. And the favorite isn't the best stocked one either -- but I get excellent advice and no hassle service from their shop.

Visit a lot of shops and ask questions. You'll see who has good service and who doesn't.

The guys at my local bike shop have been the most supportive of all. When a 280 pounder walked in the door and claimed to want to test ride some high end cross racing bikes, they didn't question what I was doing there. They picked out a couple of bikes they thought would fit well and put me in the saddle. I bought my cross check from them and I stop by once a week, even if I don't need anything, we just BS about the new toys that we all want and drink crappy coffee. Its more like a bike clubhouse that I occasionally buy stuff from than a bike shop.

Long story short, if the employees of a shop treat you like crap, find another one, there are tons of shops out there that are staffed with good people who are good at what they do.

I can say that I still feel that I have to qualify myself as a cyclist. I shouldn't, but I do.

You are right. You shouldn't have to. You are certainly a cyclist.

I agree with just about everything said so far. Do your homework, learn all you can from the forums here, search old forums, look up reviews of equipment, then go into every shop in your area and see how they treat you. Out of 5 shops in my area, 2 will never see me enter their door again for their attitudes and general condescention. Of the other 3, I've found one in particular I like where the people are helpful with no agendas, just good knowledge of bikes and great service.