Road Cycling - Damn LBS clueless about road bikes...

My LBS recently got a lot of my money. They had the road bike I wanted.

But now my worst fears appear to be true. My LBS is almost clueless about roadbikes. These dudes are all about mountain bikes. They carry the roadies, but very few models.

They barely have any road bike gear or knowledge. They didn't even have open finger gloves because according to the guy all of their customers only go for the hard-core MTN stuff... they won't be ordering them in either due to lack of demand.

This is a big concern for me. There is no other bike shop within 60 KM from my house, and I do not want to go back to my LBS with their line of road gear that has been rusting there for the past 3 years, not even going on sale.

Hmmm... looks like getting a new jersey will mean biking 120km. That is IF the next BS has an adequote line of road gear.

luckily, there are some good places online available to you....if you need the links, say yes. I have too many to list.

The LBS where I bought my road bike was also kind of clue less about road bikes. Now that I think of it, they were also clue less about mountain bikes. I did get a good deal though. I bought my bike there, and everything else I bought at different BS.

Buying on-line is not quite so ideal...

I like to be there to touch and try the stuff on, instead of looking at a picture and then praying that it will be what you hoped when it is shipped.

Amir!

You ought to inform your local bs that MTB bikes are now in decline and that road bike sales are on the increase.
Heck even my lbs whom i have castigated in the past has recently now, well this morning , 4 road bikes on show

I guess living in a major city has its advantages sometimes :)

Lotsa bike stores around where I live.

kenneth,, i agree i love TO.. there are a million bike stores in all ends of the megacity.

there really is enough information online, or, links to books you can buy that you can use to substitute confidence in your lbs. Invest in your own knowledge.

Originally posted by willic
Amir!

You ought to inform your local bs that MTB bikes are now in decline and that road bike sales are on the increase.
Heck even my lbs whom i have castigated in the past has recently now, well this morning , 4 road bikes on show

That's what I thought too, until I talked with my LBS. He said that mountain bike sales are slowing down - probably due to the department store availability. He said if it weren't for comfort bikes, he couldn't keep the business going.

I asked him about road bikes. He said that he sells them, but not in quantities that would allow him to stay in business. Apparently, road biking is still a small market. Thus, it is not surprising that today's young mechanics haven't had a lot of training on them.

Find an old-timer mechanic who was into the bikes in the 1970's or 1980's when road biking was king. Those guys are usually have been keeping up with road bike technology and are the chosen mechanics of serious riders.

Originally posted by Amir R. Pakdel
There is no other bike shop within 60 KM from my house.
Vancouver is a BIG city. There is only one bike shop in Vancouver, BC?
Or are you saying the is only one bike shop that sells the brand bike you bought?

BTW: What bike did you get?

There are a lot of bike shops in the Vancouver main area, just not around where I live. Here very few people ride due to the terrain, and those that do are mountain bikers, not roadies like me.

My number is a bit off though, I think it's more like 40 km to the next shop, not 60 km... or somewhere in that range.