Appreciation for your favorite local bike shop
 

I have a one man (owner) bike shop here in St Cloud.. The guy could rebuild anything. We're just on the same wavelength. Merry Christmas Rod.

Rock on Wheels in Cheyenne, Wyoming is truly awesome. Merry Christmas to George, Cody, Dan.

For me, here on the Treasure Coast of SE Florida, I have Treasure Coast Cycle Werks in Port St. Lucie, FL. Merry Christmas Chris (owner), Lisa, Pepe and Pepito!!!

I'm lucky enough to have two! Happy Solstice Sage and Sprout of Moon Cycles, and Merry Christmas to Jen (owner) and the gang at Adventure's Edge!

Bring him lunch, I bought the owner/mechanic of my favorite bike shop lunch last week. Prob can get a free repair if I come in with a problem later lol.

You're a real humanitarian.

I frequent the Bike Connection in Bethany Beach, DE. I have a very good relationship with them. I like to stop in just to say hello, show my latest changes, look for something to buy, or just to stop in to give them a treat of some kind. A little bit of kindness goes a long way in the bike shop environment. The owner still asks me to work for them a couple days a week. I have no interest in doing that. I do not want to work on others bikes, nor do I want to deal with the public in a retail setting.

International Pro Bike Shop in Bellbrook, Ohio. Roger cares for my entire vintage fleet. He speaks Campagnolo and sells new bikes as well.

Kettering Bike Shop in Kettering, Ohio is run by third generation Tegtmeyers. A great shop that carries modern bikes including e-bikes. When they say they'll "make something right" they do because the reputation of their father and grand father rides on it.

Philadelphia Bikesmith, for one.

When I do something for the bike shop employees, I never expect to get anything free. It does happen, I appreciate it and let them know that verbally. There are times when I want to somehow show that more than verbally, and that is nixed with the "Already taken care of.", reply. That is how I interpreted the above reply from LarrySellerz.

Nothing wrong with the ole quid pro ho-ho-ho I think Larry was kidding, lets have some Christmas cheer guys :cheers:

My mechanic is gone from the small shop. He was good on things I did not have tools for and fair with the price for those ~5 minute jobs (esp on Tuesday mornings when he opened the store). The rare type of mechanic who could talk and work at the same time - the type of talk that if you asked a good question (and listened well) you learned useful stuff. Used to be an occasional source for vintage things to buy - saddles, derailleurs, etc. He kept the caps. A morning coffee, instead of beer was his favorite reward, one cream no sugar.

i don’t visit many bike shops. Not any more.

Absolutely the finest shop I've ever encountered: Kindred Cycles

Time and time again, they have gone "above and beyond" for me with no prompting. Several times, they have taken a substantial hit (to their profit margin) just to ensure my complete satisfaction, in ways that other shops would never consider. This is why almost all of my LBS spending goes to them, and I never haggle, never whip out my phone to price check them (even though their prices are often BETTER than online). In fact, I have sometimes chosen to buy something substantial - something I may have been merely considering - because I really want to give them more business.

Y-Not Cycling & Fitness in Lexington & Mt. Vernon Ohio. Owner Eric Peterson. 2nd generation owner. Absolutely the most friendly and knowledgeable bike shop I have ever visited.

My favorite shop growing up was Rincon Cyclery here in Santa Rosa, CA. Bunch of really laid back older guys. My whole family frequented the place and the owner and employees were particularly fond of my brother and. We could roam around the back of the shop all we wanted. If I needed an older spare part, they'd let me root through the old spares drawers and bins and if I found something useful, they'd typically just let me have it for free. Brother got his first bike shop job there too. Unfortunately, the place went out of business a number of years.

These days, Bicycle Czar is my go-to for older parts, it's what they specialize in. Another shop my brother worked at for a time so I know all the guys there and it's fun to talk shop with them.

The other shop I frequent is my brother's one man service only operation, Precision Bicycle Repair. The family bike tool collection migrated there, so it's where I need to go for more in depth servicing and rebuilds. Also, his skill with a wrench and knowledge of older bikes is rivaled by few I know. Plus, he's my twin brother so, well, I'll go just to shoot the breeze. It's also a good meeting point before taking off on a bike ride, motorcycle ride or off roading trip in our trucks.
Merry Christmas man.

Amusingly, the owner of our favorite shop that closed (Rincon Cyclery) is now a regular customer of my brother.

Favorite Bike Shop
 

Glendola Cycles in Wall N.J.Like me Paul appreciates the Classic and Vintage. If it is supposed to be pedaled to roll, it's his kind of stuff. Paul has been in bicycles all his life. Dad had a shop before him. He and his son are top flight!
Merry Christmas Guys and a very Happy New Year !

A couple of good shops

Flythe's Bike Shop In New Bern sponsors a lot of bike charity rides and a holiday ride in a well decorated neighborhood where they play Christmas music from their 3 wheel utility cycle. Good guys !
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Also Two Wheeler Dealer in Wilmington

Not a shop but a mechanic. Tahn Rehmer (formerly of willow glen bikes in San Jose, currently on hiatus from Silva Cycles in Campbell). Mans a genius. Always made it a point to bring him a 6 pack when I stopped by. Built up 2 bikes for me.

The Used Bike Shop in Lincoln Ne is a great shop. It is also the best new recumbent bike and trike dealer in town.

Shout out to Bike World in Urbandale, IA and West Des Moines, IA. There is also a store in Ames, IA, but have only been there once.

My local shop in Erie, PA is Competitive Gear. Pete, the owner, has been a Trek dealer for 38 years, which is amazing because I don't think he's turned 59 yet. All of the bikes listed under my name were bought there. He sells Trek and Open bicycles right now. In the past, he's also sold Gary Fisher, Lemond, Specialized, Bianchi, and Klein.
I bring them craft beer occasionally as tips. Sometimes they don't charge me for small jobs like swapping out a tubeless tire and resealing it or tweaking a derailleur.
Merry Christmas to Pete and his staff, Jackie, Tony, and Frank.

Two bike shops come to mind. I ride vintage steel so most bike shops don’t do it for me. The first that is closest is Open Air bikes in Ventura they’ve been around for a long time and Mark can work on just about anything . They are reasonable and friendly always a cool place to visit. The other is Bills Bike shop in Camarillo, same thing. They have been around for quite some time and have a great classic racing bike collection on display.

I stopped at the shop yesterday and bought them a Christmas lunch. A kindness to others is a kindness to oneself.

Hamilton Bicycles & Outfitters in Richmond, Michigan. A small family owned business with great service and people. Been buying from them for the past 10 years and probably will never go anywhere else.

I've pretty much always spread the wealth so to speak. I do most of my own work but have purchased parts or had service from virtually every shop in town (and we have quite a few).
Sometimes I choose convenience going to the closest one with the item I need sometimes to others I trust more for service. The co-ops as well.