I'm spending the Christmas holidays here in Denver. I walked into Wheatridge Cyclery the other day and they had a Titus Racer X in my size and on sale. I haven't ridden it yet but if I like the feel I will probably buy it.

Does anyone know anything about this shop. The salesperson I talked to appeared very knowledgable and as far as I can tell the price is pretty good.

How are they on fitting? If I buy the bike I get a free fitting and I read on the web that they are Serotta trained fitters. I'm really concerned about the fit because I've bought several bikes that I thought fit, the salesperson thought fit and found out later that they didn't fit at all. Also, I won't be able to do the full fitting until I come back out in the spring, because I don't have my bike gear with me.

The frame felt really good to me and put me right over the pedals where I want to be, but since I'm spending a significant amount of money and being a small women I need to be sure I can trust the person fitting me.

My LBS in Cincinnati does not sell Titus so I'm looking elsewhere. I'm sort of in the dark as to whether or not I should trust this shop. It is also the only shop in Denver that sells Titus. I checked a shop in Colorado Springs but wasn't impressed. My other choices are to go to Pittsburg, Pa or Cleveland, Oh.

Thanks for your thoughts about this LBS.

Kathi

Wheat Ridge Cyclery has an A+++ reputation, and is nationally known.

Not to say they don't make mistakes - everyone does - but they are very well respected in the local cycling community.

Thank you DnvrFox. Like I said I was impressed but bike shops in Cincinnati are not the best. I was treated respectfully, despite my age and being a woman, the salesperson was sensitive to my concerns and when I called back today I got the same respect from a different salesperson. I found both salespeople to be very knowledgable.

I've had my eye on Titus and by my description of what I wanted and before I had the name out of my mouth the saleperson was recommending that brand. I'm also impressed that they actually had a small frame on the floor. You rarely find that in Cincinnati. They even agreed to store the bike for me until spring.

When I come out in the spring maybe we can get together and ride.

The bike trails around here look awesome and I can't wait to try them out.

Kathi

That would be cool!

But remember I'm out of shape. Since my accident in July I've only ridden about 100 mi. Weather in Cincy is awful in Jan and Feb. so I usually ski and ride the trainer.

I did some hiking today and didn't seem too bothered by the altitude. I leave Jan. 5. Can't wait until spring!

Kathi

When I ride with someone, I like to choose a periodic meeting/getting back together place and each person gets there at their own speed. I am NOT into showing how macho one is by racing, but prefer biking for the beauty and exercise.

There is a bike trail through Wheat Ridge paralleling Clear Creek. This same trail also goes very close to the school I teach at. It is my practice, during good weather and longer daylight, to ride every afternoon for about 1 hour+ after school on this trail. It goes from Golden through Wheat Ridge east to the Platter River, and from there, you can go north or south (and east and west again) many, many, many miles.

These are cement and paved trails.

I'm retiring at the end of Feb. and plan to spend mid to late march thru april out here. Eventually, we hope to find property so we can at least be here for summer and winter. Right now, I'm staying with friends who live 2 mi east of Arapahoe and Parker in Centennial.
We gave up on skiing, conditions aren't great and holiday crowds so we're hiking and plan to go snowshoeing on Wed.
My partner is out here til the end of Feb and he's been exploring all of the trails around here. I'm jealous but my turn is coming.
We went to Boulder yesterday and most of the riders we saw were on mtn bikes. Do riders use mostly mtn bikes or road bikes here in Denver?
Kathi

There's a good mixture of both. And many people (myself included) ride both. Around Denver itself, I'm always on the road bike. There's a pretty darn good network of paved trails, and some good roads to ride on as well. Summer weekends I'm almost always out of the city on at least one day hitting some mountain bike trails in the foothills around Boulder, Golden, Evergreen etc.

I've found it a great city for biking - for the less fit, the flat areas of Denver are amazing to ride around. On the other end of the spectrum, the mountain passes will challenge almost anyone.

I live about 5 miles south of Arapahoe and Parker, right off of Jordan Road.

The Cherry Creek Trail is almost completed under Arapahoe Road just W of Parker. If you go west on Arapahoe to Jordan and turn right (north on Jordan), in about 3 blocks or so, you will find a sign "Cherry Creek Trail" pointing to the east also on the same road as the Valley Country Club.

Park within a block, and you will find a cement trail leading north up a slight hill.

This trail goes through Cherry Creek State Park, and you can circle around the park (either west or east) and catch the trail which will take you downtown to Confluence Park, from where you can catch the Platte River Greenway Trail. You will also pass the Highline Canal Trail (70 miles long) on your way!

It is also a nice walking trail. Lots of wildlife.

I bought the Titus Racer X mtn bike from Wheatridge Cyclery. They're holding it for me until spring then we will do the full fitting and get it set up exactly right. I'm very happy with their knowledge, expecially with my requests. I use 165 cranks on my mtn bike and there was no objection to switching the 170's to 165's. My shop at home hestiated and had to think about this when I requested such a change on my mtn bike. They did it but lots of times I feel I'm educating them on a small persons needs instead of the other way around. Not so with Wheatridge.
Also, I resolved my reservations about aluminum bike frames for small riders. Given the right builder and shocks the bike can feel as good as steel or carbon.
So, Denverites, come late March or April, you might just see me on the trails on a little gold Titus.
Kathi