bad experience at bike stores
 

man...service is not what i anticipated. no fitting, no chit chat on what i use it for for offer advice or suggestion, and just plain cold shoulder attitude. i always thought all bike shop have those bicycle trainer to put the potential customer on to custom fit the bike; which should involves more than just adjust the seat height. the two shops i visit just threw me bikes that don't even fit and i had to adjust them using my tools from my car. one sale dude (always a kid) stood there while i obviously had a hard time pedaling away since the seat was low. he's more concern with his ipod.

without the top notch service, these shops are not even worthy of asking price for their bikes. now i need to get on craiglist and buy from private salers and do the fitting myself, which is apparently a requirement as well from bike shops.

It's called keep going down the list until you find a shop responsive to your needs.

Ya can't get good help these days...

Not all lbs are this way. That being said w/rising gas prices and more and more people looking to cycle-commuting as an alternative you'd think that this type of experience would be non-existant. Not so, unfortunately. Gave a friend of mine an old Raleigh 3 speed. He went to an lbs and told me later the guy 'seemed annoyed' that he was even in his shop. Haven't been in an lbs for about 3 years, now. And that was an emergency situation when I needed a derailleur cable. Was, probably 5 years before that. My gear is all purchased online and I do all my own mechanical work, including wheelbuilding. Feel sorry for people just starting out. An lbs can be an indifferent enviornment, that's for sure.

Yeah, you're doing the right thing. There's plenty of good, solid, dependable commuter use-type bikes available for 200.00 and under. Then buy all your accessories online. http:www.brandscycle.com (50.00-no shipping charge) http://www.bikeisland.com (no shipping minimum) Invest in basic tools and frequent the Mechanics forum w/questions. Those guys over there REALLY know their stuff. The library is a good resource for books on bike repair I've found. All the best. Too bad your experience wasn't good, but I'm not surprised.

I have three main criteria in order of importance that causes me to either shop at or to ban an LBS:

1. Skill/Knowledge
2. Price
3. Attitude

My favorite bikeshop is mainly for maintenance needs, and I find their knowledge/skills very very good. They take the time to teach me maintenance as well. Their prices are high, but it's worth it.

I shop at my local Performance Bikeshop, because they have some killer deals sometimes. Their attitudes are so-so, and their general bike knowledge/skills is almost non-existent. I don't ask many questions when I shop at Performance. It can be a waste of time. Keep in mind, I've been to some great Performance shops. I'm only talking about the one close to my house.

And lastly, I just bought a high end mountain bike from yet another shop, because they had a deal going on that saved me over $500. I had to take the bike back a couple times to have parts repaired/rebuilt. I was charged for parts, and they still didn't repair it. I ended up rebuilding parts of the bike myself. It will take another major sale for me to ever go back there!

:thumb: One of the LBS I frequent regularly - the owner personally fits the bike - costs a few $$ - and you are there a while as he sets you and your bike on a trainer on a platform and has you start riding - and watches and comments on your riding style - how you sit on the saddle, etc etc. Put a shim or two into my one shoe's cleat, adjusted the other, measured items and showed me what the measurements meant, lots of stuff. He is good and is known for it. So ... he can't be the only one - talk to some local bicyclists to see A) if they were ever fitted and B) where they went.

That is bad. Keep looking, they are out there. The owner at my bike shop has stayed late just to spend time with me answering questions, even after I told him I was buying a mail order bike. They helped me a couple more times after that, they even helped fit me as well as they could knowing I was planning on buying a mail order bike. I didn't buy the mail order bike.

One of the "top 100" bike shops is within 30 miles of my house, and there is another closer LBS which is very small, but run by biking / commuting fanatics! I had such a good sales experience that I nearly bought a bike that cost 3x what I needed to pay (though a much better bike, admittedly). Hard to say why, but around here one bike shop seems better than the next. May be competition? I say if LBS doesn't do the job, make an effort to find a more quality outlet, even if you have a drive to it (just bring a bike rack with you, you might come away with new wheels).

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/downl...-booklet08.pdf

+1, sorry about the luck you're having, its gotta be frustrating. Keep looking.

Are you located in/near a big city? My experiences tend to be that lbs's out in the 'burbs are all about weekend roadies spending $1000+ on bike plus equipment, & going to them for all their mechanical work. They have absoluteley NO interest in transport/utility cycling. I'm sure that's not all of them. All the lbs's in the burbs of Philly I've been to, anyways. (about 6)

Go into the City, there's three here in Philly I'd call excellent, although each has it's own sub-specialty. But they all treat utility/transport cyclists with respect....even more so if you show some mechanical knowledge/skill. So, I'd ditto the other posters who said just go down the list till you find one that doesn't treat you like you just interruped their lunch break all the time. They're out there.

bad experience at bike stores
 

I agree with the others, not all shops are bad. Please keep trying. We have two near me, one won't give me the time of day because I am a commuter but the other is awesome! They have everything for all kinds of riders & take the time to help you even if you don't buy from them.

Good luck.

Claire & The Girls
www.connecticutratterriers.com

From some tool companies you can buy a hunk of cheap steel that's called an anvil; they're crap compared to the tool steel anvils, and blacksmiths disparagingly call them "anvil shaped objects"

I think what you have found to date might be called "LBS shaped objects" not a real LBS. As others have said, there are several kinds of LBS; many won't talk to you unless you're dropping thousands on carbon frames, some are just there to look like an LBS and charge more money for cheap bikes so people who don't know any better but heard that they should "not get a department store bike" can go and spend more money, and occasionally you'll find a bike shop that wants to help you find the right bike.

When I first got back into cycling as an adult, I was appalled at how bad service was at most stores. The LBS is an anachronism in today's economy; it's like a leftover from a different time. There are so few locally-owned businesses left. For whatever reason, the bicycle industry thrives on that model and has survived big box retailers where other industries haven't.

But, for some local shops, their workers aren't particularly helpful and sometimes don't know any more than the clerk selling bikes at a Wal Mart.

I"ve always had trouble finding a bike that fits right. I'm 6'1, but most of that height is torso, not legs. Almost every LBS I went to simply asked me my height, then told me to go with a 22 inch bike. No measurements, no help in sizing me up.

Then I found one small store (Newhall bikes) where the staff actually gave me the time of day, measured me and the bike, let me test ride it, adjusted it, and promised satisfaction. They got my money.

I was telling someone the other day both LBS's I frequent have great service, and how bike shops must be the last bastion of good service. In Indianapolis there is lots of competition, at least a lot more than there used to be. I cannot think of a single thing to complain about. Find a new shop.

I had a very bad one. It was a bike shop on a fancy neighborhood. I wanted some work done on my son's BMX; either a bigger cog or a new wheel with a bigger cog. The guy looked down on me from the start. He gave me that look... the 'you don't belong here' look. He told flat out that it could not be done.

I went to another shop down in Orlando and had the work done in little over 15 minutes. I also ended up getting a bike for my wife ($450) and around $200 more in gear to go with it (lycra, jersey, bottle cage, water bottle, helmet, gloves, seat bag, computer, etc).

OP here,

i am glad i am not the only one experiencing this problem. i thought it was something about me they didn't like so i immediately sniff my armpits to make sure "I AM SURE."

from talking to the folks here and watching youtube as well as reading online/hardcopy bike rags, i was all excited to going shopping. i brought my rack, helmet, water bottle and was ready to flop down the cash to buy a nice bike this weekend. the experience left me stunned. one sale kid even went looking for me after 5 or 7 mins test ride even though i parked right next to the door and he saw me pop my truck to grab my helmet. i guess he felt i shouldn't need to test anything since i am at a bike shop, not xmart.

i guess it could be that i am not dropping thousands on the latest trek or cannandale and look deck out like lance. i am simply a commuter looking for a sturdy, no non-sense bike. my budget is limited to 1000 but i do prefer keeping it halfway that. i go to bike shop because i want a bike assembled correctly with test proven parts, even for low end models. personally, even the lowest price hybrid there still smoke my super old destiny mountain bike with around 20 services on it. since this is my second money bike (the first being my bmx bought 11 years ago at the same shop) i like to start at a reasonable price bike and improve my skills first because i can appreciate higher end stuffs where an ounce less in weight is a matter or life and second place.

there are only 2 shops near my resident and they're still 35 miles away. the next one is about 70 miles away. that is pretty far and actually defeat the purpose of "semi car-free" living. i am buying a used trainer craiglist so i can do the fitting myself properly.

quick question: how does one mount a bike with quick release on trainer?

Sad to say that about half the LBS's in my area are just horrible. Staffed by jerks. But the other half are not. And at least one is excellent. There is one that is about 6 blocks from my house that I would not buy a tube from. Just to spite them. Sometimes I feel like going in there and showing them the checks I have written to other stores.

Keep shopping around until you find yourself a winner. Life is too short to deal with jerks.

jim

We've got two LBS in our town. One has great service: Friendly, knowledgeable people who seem like they really car'e whether you get the right bike with the right fit. The other, well, makes a guy feel uncomfortable unless he's prepared to really spend. Funny, that shop doesn't even have good prices. Somebody's buying, or they wouldn't be in business. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt in one respect. Maybe they get a lot of the "just looking" replies when the salespeople come around, and so they've given up on acting interested until the customer demonstrates real interest. Still, it's an uncomfortable environment. I won't shop there again.

Then, there's the MSU bike project. they've got great prices, friendly people. It's the kind of place you walk out of feeling good. Of course, it's like a co-op. Probably a non-for profit. But the place has spirit.

OP here,

it is hard for me to believe that bike store admission requires a purchase every time we walk in. how can someone buy a new bike every time they wandered into a bike shop when their spouse is either at the macy or golf shop next door. i just got back into biking and spend a lot of time with it because, unlike my other hobbies, this one is actually good for me. i like to look at a lot of bikes to know what's out there and what i should save for. in a way, bike stores hurt themselves by creating this atmosphere so people just decide to not show up and stick to their bike, which is probably more than they need to begin with and see no reason to update or treat themselves to a new weekender.

the two shops i speak of have been around for about 20 years and are the only game in town. a lot of people with money i guess. i always thought a purpose of riding a bike is to save money by living responsibly but i am having second thought by the price of these bikes. :>)

Definitely. In my area, I know of two small LBS's in my area that are in the process of expanding and one that's opening a new location. I can't wait, because one that's opening a new location will be about 2 miles from my house - about the same distance as the Performance which is currently closest. From what I've read, the new shop is run by good folks who know what they're doing - even if I have to pay a bit more, I can tell you who's getting my money from now on.

I think once there's an established cycling community in an area, you see independent shops start eating in to Performance's market share. Cyclists who know what they're doing don't want service from a 16 year old kid who doesn't ride a bike.

As far as bad service goes - I think it's tough in the high season (ie, now). You get a ton of people buying new bikes, getting old ones ready to go and such, that even good shops have to hire summer help, and the quality necessarily suffers a bit. Doesn't excuse it, but it seems to happen a lot.

Hit and miss on lbs ... good help at the wages that the owner can afford is hard to come by.

I also have issues with the service provided at LBS. I purchased a new commuter bike three weeks ago. If I had not gotten advise on-line, it would have been a frustrating experience. My strategy is to combine on-line advise with discussions at the LBS and take those important test rides. The outcome of my bike purchase was very good.

Michael

Dunno how reasonable it is to expect fitting to be free, unless you've got a very lackadaisical definition of "fitting". Sizing, yes, but that's a different matter.

I have a big lbs about 5 or 6 blocks from my house and the service is totally hit-or-miss. Depends who you get. From the owner down, the sometime attitude or feel of "how-dare-you-come-into-our-store" is stunning to me. They are selling bicycles, right? Bicycles are fun, right?!

Them's the facts. What I've mostly found is that there is a tremendous disparity in help / courtesy even in the same stores. Where I purchased my new bike, I had the owner's attention. He explained a lot of stuff to me, emphasized that it was their priority to get people on bikes and keep them on bikes, and then when I got the bike I asked an employee to order a frame pump for me...

And he never did it. Even after I returned and asked him again. I refuse to go back in there now unless I need something done to my bike, because they offered free service for life. I always feel bad for the owner because his help are sad sacks; the day I came in, he was helping me, answering the phones, helping other customers, all while his help stood around making sure I didn't step in their dog's poop. I still almost did after it pooped right next to my foot at the cash register :lol:

At another shop I went to later, one closer to my apartment at the time, I bought a Brooks saddle and returned because of the service to get some other things. I had a bucket attached as a pannier, and the next thing I knew the guy at the LBS gave me a set of his old panniers. :thumb: Needless to say, I love that store.