georgesnatcher

Generally speaking I have had nothing but good experiences with bike shops. If I felt that they were "blowing me off" or giving me bad service I would go elsewhere. Unless you are in the middle of woods there is always another shop just down the road.

lotek 

I've settled with 2 shops here in the dallas area.
One I bought a bike for my wife at (as a 1st time walk
in customer) the other has supplied enough parts etc.
to build a few bikes.
The shop that I frequent the most is the closest to me
and to my commute to/from work.
I'm guessing they know I'm gonna come in, browse for
a while, and then power shop for parts, clothes, shoes etc.
in the last 15 minutes (usually a 1 hour stop). If I'm with my
wife they KNOW clothing will be bought.
In both shops I've never been treated to rude behaviour
from the staff, even if I don't buy anything.

Klein, I think the point about employees making the shop
isn't about knowledge but about attitude towards customers.

While I have purchased things online, I will always support
the LBS. Online shops do me absolutely no good when it comes
to servicing what they sell the day before some big ride.

Marty

Flea77

I am kinda in the middle of the woods, at least as far as bike shops are concerned. I drive an hour and a half (no, I am not riding into downtown Houston traffic, scary enough driving) to my LBS. There are closer ones as long as you dont want any selection or snobbish people. I drive the long drive because I get treated as if I am very important to them, and how much money I spend that day doesnt matter at all. They have no problem staying even an hour late to help me pick something out. And of course in return, I buy virtually everything I need from them.

All you LBS employees out there take notice, service is king. Treat me right and I will be so loyal it hurts. Piss me off and it's bye bye charlie. And as far a just looking is concerned, I may spend an hour pulling down bikes and test riding them today and get them all dirty in the parking lot and not buy a single thing, as I did a few weeks ago at the LBS. Of course I went back last weekend and put a Trek 5200 and some EC90 carbon handlebars on layaway too :-)

Allan

Flea77

And what is wrong with that? I smoke and havent exercised at all in any way for 15+ years, bought a bike a couple months ago and now have a 30 mile ride this weekend. Now 30 miles may not be "long" to you, but for a 35 year old who has only been riding two months after 15+ years of being a couch potatoe? I think that is pretty dang good!

Smoking may prevent me from becoming Lance, but it doesnt mean I cant keep up with the pack. I have all the right equipment, and a nice bike, and I work out every day to get better.

Allan

Portent

I couldn't agree with you more. Seven months ago I decided to get fit and went to the LBS to buy a bike. From the moment I opened the door the owner was openly hostile. The first thing he said was "What are you doing here", I was so shocked that I replied with "I want to buy a bike" instead of turning round and walking out.

Once he knew that I was serious he mellowed slightly, but was very snobbish in his manner. For example, I wanted to buy a mtb and had £400 to spend and he started to boast that he stocked forks that cost more than that. Anyway I bought a bike from them since I really wanted a bike that day, and his shop is the nearest that specialises in mountain bikes.

However I have never returned and never will.

DanFromDetroit

Smoking is a disgusting practice. Chances are good that it will kill you. You are deluding yourself if you think otherwise.

All the "right gear" and all the pedaling in the world doesn't change the fact that smoking is incompatible with good health.

Dan

Granny Gear

Dan - settle down.

Don't alienate a fellow biker because he smokes. I smoked for 10 years and the only thing that made me quit was biking. I didn't quit when I started riding, I quit when I wanted to get better. And all the berating in the world won't make someone put down the smokes. You'll quit when you want to quit or when you die. Not before.

There, I'm off my soap-box.

Flea77

And a hostile attitude like that one will kill you a lot faster than smoking a carton a day, and win you less friends to boot.

And hate to break it to you but I am in much better shape than most of the non-smokers I know, and I have a MUCH healthier attitude :-)

Your berating me and calling me disgusting and delusional doesnt do anything but make me think less of you.

Allan

mechBgon

LOL, I'd be more inclined to point out the economic impact of smoking The less spent on smokes, the more is left for bike parts

Toothpick

I've never really had a "bad" experience in a LBS; however, the general attitude displayed by an individual at one shop led me to a mental note - don't leave your bike here for any work. If I go into the LBS (unless I'm in a hurry looking for one particular item for a quick repair), I'm going to purchase something.

cyclochica

This thread left me wondering how I should handle the upgrades I am planning for my bike. I know what kind of components I want, but will need help selecting new wheels, handlebar, and other things I can't think of right now. I want my LBS to do the upgrades, but my concern is that I can get the components I want less expensively from the UK.

I don't want to be a bad customer, but am I wrong to buy some of the parts elsewhere and buy the rest from my LBS? This is the shop that does all my tuneups and where I buy all my gear.

DanFromDetroit

I didn't think my response was hostile at all. You asked the question. I gave you an answer.

Don't confuse the finger pointing at the moon, with the moon itself....

Dan

mechBgon

If you rely on their expertise to select the new wheels/handlebar/etc, it seems only fair to buy from them. They will charge more, but they've earned it by helping you select the items, right?

cyclochica

I will be buying the wheels and other items from them, just not the component group, unless they can match the price I found in the UK. I used to work retail, so I can empathize with those trying to earn a living that way. If it is really ugly of me to come in with a box of components shipped from somewhere else, then I won't do it, but why not save $75 if I can.

Flea77

I dont think I was confusing anything. Saying you think smoking is disgusting and that it will impact your health is fine. Where you became rude with with this:

This is rude because I never said anything about it not being bad for me so you assumed. You also attacked me for saying I had the "right gear", or so it seemed to me and another reader.

I smoke, and I like to smoke. I am also a road rider, and I like to ride. Doing one does not prohibit another and it should not get me attacked because I choose to do so.

Also, from your last message you quoted "what's wrong with that?". If you read that in context that meant "What is wrong with the guy in the story going outside for a smoke and coming back in to talk about the long ride he was going on". It did NOT mean "what is wrong with smoking". So therefore my question still stands unanswered.

Allan

Crazy Cyclist

The shop were I sometimes go, only when it is an emergency, is not too bad, but it depends who is working on that day when I go. They have 1 guy there who is a real jerk, all I've seen him do is talk to his friends who hang around the store looking like their important. Also this LBS is way overpriced, and unless you have like 3,000 to spend, you won't even get the time of day. I have found a smaller BS, and when I need service, I sometimes go there as well but it is farther away than the other store.

DanFromDetroit

Because this post is supposed to be about LBS clerks, this will be my last post on this thread.

I believe you did say that "Smoking won't prevent me from keeping up with the pack". As a matter of fact, it does. The Surgeon General and every piece of literature published since the 1960's bears this out. Denial is a hallmark of addiction. Possibly it is rude to point this out, but it is no less true.

"I have all the right equipment, and a nice bike" are your words not mine. I just pointed out that this makes no difference whatsoever.

If you can't see the irony of the "Airborne Smoker" telling the LBS crew all about his planned long ride, immediately after puffing down a smoke, then I guess you just miss the point, and no amount of explaination will help.

Smoke if you want, but don't kid yourself into believing it has no effect on your riding.

Dan

bradw

I've had only one bad LBS experience, probably exacerbated by indecisiveness on my part.

Bought bike at Shop A because they accepted trade-ins. Bike developed problem. Shop A is far away, shop B is around the corner.

They replaced the item at shop B, but said go back to A to see if they can get a credit from the manufacturer.

I took it to A, explained the situation and calmly asked if getting a credit was possible. The owner started a paranoid rant about the other shop trying to get him, that the item could be easily fixed (a spoke hole on the rear hub became "enlarged" - that has to be replaced, not fixed, AFAIK). He grew louder, angrier, etc. I calmly waited til he was done, quietly left the store, and never returned.

It took a few months, but shop B got me the credit (it was only $20 - both shops deal with the same manufacturer).
Shop B also answers my questions, makes exchanges and adjustments without attitude problems. And they get all of my business.

They only other problem I've encountered at an LBS is a "culture gap" with younger, gung-ho clerks who sometimes don't seem to understand touring or recreational riders. Not all younger clerks, by far, just a few. Shop B is almost completely oriented toward more casual riding (and a little BMX), so I fit in well there.

Repp5

Please Do!

Flea77

As a matter of fact it does not. All the scientific proof says it reduces your athletic ability, it does NOT kill it off dead! I never said I could win top tier races, or any races for that matter. You seem to be implying that if Lance started smoking he would go from possibly the greatest cyclist in the world to not being able to ride around the block, and that is just ********. Yes, smokers will never reach 100% of their potential, but that doesnt mean they cant be fit.

Yes it does! It shows that I am serious about learning to ride an improving my self, and being serious about improvement will help tremendously in anything, athletic or not.

I see that YOU seem to think that anyone who smokes is incapable of riding anything that could be considered "long" and I am simply pointing out that you are wrong. Could you ride faster/longer if you didnt smoke? Sure! But that doesnt mean you cant do 100+ miles as a smoker if you train. The irony here is the level of ignorance, or just plain obsurdity you are implying.

OK, time for me to be rude. Obviously you either can not read, or choose to omit things that do not fit what you want to hear. I have REPEATEDLY stated that SMOKING WILL IMPAIR YOUR ATHLETIC ABILITY (or words to that effect). What I will not admit is that if you smoke you can not ride, because I am living proof that is garbage.

Allan

Repp5

Would you guys please take this outside (this thread)

Jersey Girl

I had a bad experience with my LBS. I'm new to riding and strictly a casual rider. I wanted to get a computer for the bike so I could see how far I've ventured, etc. My boyfriend has been into this place before but he's a bike fanatic so I guess they respect him a bit more.

I walked in and asked where the computers were. Naturally they were behind the counter. OK, I can deal with that (shoplifters ruin everything). The thing that pissed me off was that I told the guy I was just a casual rider, at which point he completely lost interest in me. The jack*** rudely threw a Cateye at me, told me that's what I needed, and then pretty much ignored me. Granted it wasn't the most expensive model they had, but I would have appreciated a bit of help looking at the +/- of the other ones they had. I will never set foot in that place again even though it's the closest store to my house.

By contrast the shop down near my boyfriend's house is fantastic. I've been in there a few times with him and they leave you alone when you want to be left alone, but when you have a question, I found them to be very helpful and polite. I just wish they were closer to my house. Such is life.

jim-bob

Well, to throw a wrench in the spokes and drag this sort of back on topic, the owner of the shop I used to work at was a heavy smoker. He was also a dedicated rider, and it wasn't unusual to see him gliding up hills with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. It bugged me occasionally when he'd smoke in the shop, but he kept it back in the repair area for the most part. I learned enough about bikes (and life, actually) from him to not begrudge him his vices, especially since they didn't seem to slow him down in the slightest.

He was one of those grumpy old shop guys that you either loved or hated, but he had an insane amount of knowledge to impart if he took to you.

SipperPhoto

I have for the most part good experiences in the LBS's in my neighborhood (there are about 5 within about 15 miles of me) Usually when I roll up to the store, and start to look around... the shop guys will roll up, and ask if I am looking for anything in particular... most of the time i am window shopping... if I see the shop is slow, I'll talk to the guys working... but if they are busy, I just tell them from the beginning, I am just browsing, so that they don;t waste their time on me... I used to work in an electronics store as a salesman... I hate when people stroke me for 45 minutes, and never buy anything, when all the while I see other people I could be selling to just wandering around... I know that some of thses guys work on comission, and I wouldn;t want to waste their time.... most of the guys I do talk to at my LBS are pretty knowledgable, and will talk at length abotu components, the advantages of certain wheelsets compared to others.. etc. but if I am talking to a guy, and i see that buyers are there.. I let him know it;s ok to leave me, and go help them... and I would expect them to do so... a good shop guy will do just that...

Jeff

FOG

I find no differences in dealing with LBS and any other kind of shop. Usually the owners and a coupld of old hands know the trade well and are impatient with bs, and there are a bunch of kids who don't have the knowledge, but who will in ten years, and who can't recognize bs as quickly.

I also find the old guys know a lot of things which are in dispute among regular participants in these forums and other bicycle writers, as well as among the old guys at shops. In some cases there is just no way to tell. It is extrememly unlikely that I need a different size frame in each bike store, yet I have been fitted with sizes from 55-59. I have been riding an overly large frame (25") so I am interested in exploring the impact of going to smaller frames. I know that only riding will tell me if they know what they are talking about. The things they all agree on I thought I knew before I got into the shop- such as the key to wheel longevity is even spoke tension. Get much beyond that and preventive maintenance and you get different views everywhere.

I think the bottom line is that the most knowledgeable shop owners and workers are the least flexible- that applies in other areas like skiing as well. Just be careful to distinguish their taste from yours, or accommodate and develop taste similar to theirs. The old hands' techniques work for them and for quite a few others.

Finally, I believe that there is a wide range of prices at which any particular transaction can take place. If you get too good a deal, the other party has little incentive to keep dealing with you and vice versa. There is a benefit to repetitive dealings with the same party.