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Another High Quality bicycle for a kid story....

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Another High Quality bicycle for a kid story....

Old 10-24-05, 01:04 PM
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Another High Quality bicycle for a kid story....

I had posted before that early in the summer I purchased a used Giant MTX 225 for my 9 year old daughter from a LBS (Giant dealer). It was a 2001 model, mountain bike style with 24" wheels, 21 speed. We had gone in to buy a Burley trailer for the toddler, and the big kid fell instantly in love with this bike sitting out front. Even though the price was a bit high, (asking was $150, negotiated was $135), I went with it as she desperately needed to move up from the 20" / 5 spd she had outgrown. They sell the new ones for about $100 more, and it was this or some misfit from Wallyworld. I had not seen a decent quality used youth model for sale, so felt pressured to jump. Everything works fine, she rides it almost every day, but it was obvious that it had been well used.

Fast forward to this past Friday. I was at an off-site meeting, down the street from the local Trek dealer. I stopped in to look at accessories for my ride, and sitting out front was the used youth bike dreams are made of. A 2002 Trek MountainTrail 220 (same basic specs as the Giant with some slightly upgraded hardware), in my daughters favorite colors in the whole wide world - purple and white! Darn thing was pristine. Nubs still covering the tire tread, near perfect paint. Had anyone actually ever ridden this bike? Asking price? It had just been traded in, and was being offered as an off-season special at $85.... The new ones on the second floor were priced at $249. What to do.... what to do..... Be a good egg and help out a friend? I called our occasional riding partner family who needed one also for their same aged daughter. Left a message. When I got back to work, I e-mailed with a link to the Trek archive site. Never heard a thing back....

Saturday morning I mentioned what had happened to my wife. She thought for a moment, then offered up that if they didn't jump, go get it & sell the Giant. So that is what I did. Exactly 24 hours after placing the call, I went to the shop and did it! My daughter went nuts! I think that the constant heavy rains for 2 days was what saved me. I was the only customer in the store on both visits Friday and Saturday. I heard from my friend later in the day - they were waiting for the weather to improve before venturing out! Too late....

So now I have to make good on my promise and sell the Giant. Any suggestions on the best way to market a bike? I was thinking of asking $125 or so for it. That is only a $20 loss ($10 plus the sales tax) to me for what I think was a worthwhile trade-up.

Steve
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Old 10-24-05, 02:39 PM
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Can you sell it to the friends you tried to tip off about the Trek, without destroying the friendship?
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Old 10-24-05, 02:51 PM
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Craigslist it
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Old 10-24-05, 04:02 PM
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I'm a little unsure how to approach it. I got a "what, you bought my bike???" response when I explained what had happened. I thought I would let the dust settle first before even broaching the subject.
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Old 10-24-05, 05:16 PM
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You could also stash it for your toddler...many of us have multiple bikes in our collections. It won't be that long before you need it, and the younger one may not like white and purple! Or...it could be a good peace offering at $80, special guilt rate.
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Old 10-25-05, 08:54 AM
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If I had a place to stash it, I would just keep it and have a spare helmet so when your daughter has a friend over, the friend has something to ride.
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Old 10-25-05, 09:06 AM
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I did think about keeping it, until my wife did a 180' turn on me yesterday. She even said "you could have bought new for less at Walmart". Boy, did that hurt.... I made the mistake of trying to compare Trek/Giant to Next (their house brand), but I didn't get too far! My best bet for avoidance of the 'dog house' is to get it out of the garage ASAP.....

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Old 10-25-05, 12:11 PM
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Fibber,

I'm not sure what your Giant is worth locally if you try to sell it-- but craigslist.org is the easiest way to move a bike. Where I live, you couldn't sell a used kid's bike for more than $30, because WallyWord is selling new them for $70. Never mind that the Giant is a way higher quality ride-- it doesn't really work that way when you're selling. If you're buying, yeah, you pay $$ for quality.

Bikes are only a good deal moneywise if you buy them and ride them into the ground.

The question you have to ask yourself is, are you really going to miss the $135 that you paid for the Giant? That aint a lot of money AND your kid had a good summer of riding, so maybe the bike investment already paid off? Nothing wrong with keeping the bike around for the family to use. You could also give it away. Or you could sell it, but don't be upset if the buyers think $80 is too steep and try buying it for $40. That's all I'd give you (nothing personal, of course, but I'm a savy lowball bidder for used bikes)

Kudos of the newish Trek-- buying it was a good thing to do.
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Old 10-26-05, 07:58 PM
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"are you really going to miss the $135 that you paid for the Giant?"

If it wasn't for the spiraling cost of health care, energy, etc., no, I could get by without it. But now it has become a choice between heating the house or selling the bike!!! Just kidding..... It is harder to sell a bike this time of year in the NE, and I would consider trying in the Spring if it wasn't for the evil glare from my wife every time she walks into the garage! Maybe I should just hide it under a tarp and hope she forgets???

I did ask my friend, basically said to make an offer, but he respectfully declined. Even he now wants to wait until next year, figuring it will get limited use now that the weather is changing. On the other hand, my diehard kid was out there in the cold until after dark enjoying her 'new' bike.

Steve
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Old 10-30-05, 09:40 PM
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The only item missing from this Trek kids bike was welded in bosses for the mounting of a water bottle. The Giant had them low on the underside of the downtube, and my daughter wanted the new bike to have the cage down there as well, if possible. Using something new (to me...), I added them using rivnuts. If you want to see more about my experience of doing this (including photos), go to the General Cycling Discussion page, and look for the post entitled "How to add a water bottle cage - no threaded posts".
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Old 10-31-05, 09:42 AM
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Originally Posted by Fibber
I'm a little unsure how to approach it. I got a "what, you bought my bike???" response when I explained what had happened.
"MY" bike, huh? That friend is an idiot.
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Old 10-31-05, 10:20 AM
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I don't think the friend is an idiot. You gave him, what, 12 hours to respond to phone call/email over a Friday night/Saturday morning before you decided to snatch up the bike for yourself? Did you warn him that if he didn't respond, the bike would be yours? I think you ought to consider offering the Trek to your friend to follow through on your original gesture of goodwill. That's a win-win outcome, because your daughter already has a bike she's happy with.
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Old 10-31-05, 12:37 PM
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I just went by a local Performance shop and they had the '05 models on sale. A 20" Giant was $150 from $200. Not as good of a deal but still a better deal. The person there also indicated that they may have a sale prior to the holidays.
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Old 10-31-05, 01:33 PM
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Nah, truth is I don't think he was that terribly interested, having told his daughter they would go shopping in the Spring. I think his comment was a joke, coupled with a slight bit of remorse at not having at least gone out to look at it.

Let's face it, I first called him from the store at 11:30 am on Friday, and sent an e-mail later that afternoon. My daughter and I were out on Saturday and stopped by around 1 pm. If it wasn't for the bad weather, I am sure it would have been snapped up by someone else. Great deals just don't sit on the shelf forever. All it would have taken was a phone call and $10 credit card deposit to hold it.

Now that I have customized it for my daughter and she is out on it almost daily, how could I possibly contemplate taking it away?
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Old 10-31-05, 06:09 PM
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You can't.

Congrats on a great find.
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Old 11-01-05, 12:36 PM
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Don't feel bad because you got the deal and your friend didn't.

Congrats on the find and glad to hear that your kid is riding frequently.
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Old 11-01-05, 01:30 PM
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She is really hooked, and I think in part a good bike has something to do with that. I only wish I had more time to ride with her. We are prisoners on our road given the lack of shoulder, hills, high posted speed and blind turns that make riding dangerous even for the seasoned. We have to rack'um up and drive just to have a safe ride.

We need to work on technique a bit. She likes the lower gears, and I think she 'spins' too fast, sometimes jeopardizing stability. I have to keep reminding her to upshift.
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Old 11-01-05, 03:49 PM
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Originally Posted by Fibber
She likes the lower gears, and I think she 'spins' too fast, sometimes jeopardizing stability. I have to keep reminding her to upshift.
Don't be too quick to remind her: spinning is good. Better for cardio, better for your joint longevity. I can't spin at nearly as fast a maximum cadence as I'd like, and I bet if I'd worked at it as a pre-teen my top spinning speed would be better now. That's because I suspect it's like a second language or playing the violin...if you learn it early it gives a big advantage over people who try to start later.

RGC
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Old 11-01-05, 08:51 PM
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I agree. I only get concerned when I see the bike start to wobble and the path meander. It looks like she is in danger of loosing it. I know we learn from our mistakes, but this father just does not want to see her daughter crash!

Steve
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Old 11-04-05, 11:02 PM
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Trade used bike for used trail-a -bike? Generic copy of an adams. !00 miles on it aprox.
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Old 11-07-05, 12:04 PM
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Went to the store that I part time in with my wife and daughter to return a pant and while talking with the guys I noticed that my wife and dauther were looking at a bike with interest. My daugther had never shown any interest and doesn't know how to ride but seemed that Saturday was the day to get started.

All of the sudden so comes to where I am and tells me that mom had approved the bike purchase, to my surprise she had chosen the Gary Fisher Tyro in Purple. I took it home along with a helmet, so far only 1 attempt to ride has been made due to weather but she understands that the ball is on her court.

Don't burn me for buying an expensive bike for a kid that doesn't even know how to ride, I had told her that all she needed to do was to tell me when and the bike will be hers.



I don't mind expending money on quiality bikes as long as they're used and taken care off, we'll see how this goes
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Old 11-07-05, 02:46 PM
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Originally Posted by scott L R
Trade used bike for used trail-a -bike? Generic copy of an adams. !00 miles on it aprox.
Hi Scott. I submitted a post to my companies 'swap & sell' board that should be posted next Monday, asking $120 obo. Figured that I would float this as a trial balloon and see if there are any bites at this price. Hey, it is less than I paid...

My youngest is in a trailer now, and I would not have a use for a trail-a-bike for probably two years, but would certainly entertain it. Can you tell me more? Web site for the unit, etc? I don't know much about them, so I need an education.

I guess NY - PA might be do'able for a meet & exchange if it clicks. I'm about 1.5 hours from the PA border.

Steve
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Old 11-07-05, 02:51 PM
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Dirt Devil,

I'm really surprised. With your riding prowiss, I assumed that your kids would have been born knowing how to ride! How old is your daughter?

I like the bike you bought. Only consideration is the beating it might take while she learns how. I started my first daughter on a 16", graduated to an 18" to which I added hand brakes to get her prepared for the 20" w/5spds. So I did it in steps, and will probably do my almost 3 year old the same way. But she is very petite, so I am thinking of getting a 12" for her to start on.

Steve
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Old 11-07-05, 03:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Fibber
I'm really surprised. With your riding prowiss, I assumed that your kids would have been born knowing how to ride! How old is your daughter?
She's the total opposite if her younger brother, he's active and she's passive. When she came to me asking me to buy the bike it really took me by surprise, she's 11 btw.

When she was around 6 she got a 16" Barbie Toy's R Us bike with training wheels, she never demostrated a lot if interest but rode it once in a while. One day I took them to my syster's place and took the bikes along so they could ride with their cousings. She fell and scratched her face and a black eye to go along, she was wearing a helment but it didn't helped much..

Since that fall cycling became a thing of the past and her interests remained on singing, drawing, painting, etc and nothing sport related until now. One of her friends that lives near by ride with her parents once in a while around the block and I believe that's part of her new push to ride. Guess that peer pressure really works or she wants to tag along, who knows.


Originally Posted by Fibber
Only consideration is the beating it might take while she learns how.
I'm also a bit concerned regarding learning to ride on a bike with gears. There's no way to install training wheels and the possibility of bending or breaking the dropout is there even though the bike has a protector on that area.

A smaller bike would have been too small for her and she knows what a Gary Fisher is because I used to own one so the familiar name and the bling that comes along probably was another factor on choosing it. I part time were I bought it and they only sell Cannondale, Trek, Fisher, Lemond, Ellsworth and the bike was the only 24" girl bike available so I got a great deal.

I spoke to her yesterday and told her that I complied with my part of the deal (buying the bike) and that I at least expected a 110% effort on her part, we'll see if she finally learns or not. Stay tuned, you never know if a girls GF Tyro will be offered here

Tommy
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Old 11-08-05, 03:11 AM
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Oh geez that sucks.

The Wal-Mart house brand is a chinese-made POS.
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