How to buy a bike when local shops have so few options?
 

I am looking to buy a new road bike in the $3500-5000 price range, which is a major expense for me. And I would very much like to buy a bike from a local bike shop where I can get a nice fitting, have a nice relationship with the staff, etc.

When I look over all the different models, brands, and configurations of road bikes I see online, in catalogs, and in magazines, I see lots of great and suitable options for me. But when I go to the local shops, I see the same 5-10 brands and models over and over again. And most shops only carry (in stock) a fraction of the brands they claim to deal in. Some shops have lots of bikes, but literally only one or two in my price/performance range.

Some shops say they can order a bike for me, but what if after they order it and I ride it I find out that I don't like it? I'd feel terrible making an LBS order five bikes just for me to test ride them.

(It's important to note that I live in New York City, where the one shop with the best brand selection -- R&A -- also has the biggest dickhead staff imaginable, and I'd feel terrible if I actually bought my bike there).

My conundrum is this: How does someone shop for their dream bike when the only actual brick-and-mortar store carrying the bike they want (and thus the only chance for a test ride) might be hundreds or even thousands of miles away?

An alternate question is this: How can people buy bikes online (for example, from Competitive Cyclist) when they have no idea how the bike/frame feels and fits?

This feels like a complete paradox to me. What do BF people do when they want a bike that their LBS doesn't have?

You can find any brand of bike you need in NYC or within a 1/2 hour drive, or train ride, or.... bike ride from here. What brands are you looking for that you can't find?

Even the smallest bike shop in my city (Population prolly 1/20th of NYC), has a huge selection.

All bike shops can order almost anything... Say ones a specialized dealer and you want an S-Works but they dont carry them on the floor because theyre too damn expensive to keep on stock, trust me, theyll order one in for you

+1 - I actually felt the exact opposite - that there were too many shops, too many options and that it was confusing me...

Is this a parody thread?

at the most a 1 hour drive. What brand of bike are you looking for?

Wow, that shop has alot of great brands to choose from. Beats the crap out of my 2 LBS who only carry Trek, Specialized, Giant, Raleigh, and Cannondale. I don't think you realize how good you have it. I'm sure if you dropped 5k on the counter they would turn into your best friends.

Pay for a good fit - then ask CC or whoever to hook you up with a bike that matches those specs. Yeah, you dont get to ride the bike but I imagine a 5-10psi difference in tire pressure probably affects your overall ride quality a lot more than differences between comparable bikes (more pronounced differences - eg, R3 vs S2 - can be figured out over the webz).

Is it ideal? No - but it gets you there.

V.

i live in NYC as well, upper east side. PM me if you want to talk more directly about the options around here.

i don't pretend to have a tenth of the knowledge that most dudes around here have, but i can share my experiences.

Metro Cycles is probably the company you're LEAST likely to like, since they pretty much only stock Trek and Giant (like most Long Island dealers). tried to sell me old stock, damaged one of my bikes.

Larry & Jeff's (upper east side) also has the big-name brands, but i believe they carry specialized as well. selection was too limited for me. tried to fit me to their stock rather than put me on a bike that fit.

Bicycle Habitat, IMO, is for tourists. tried to sell me "a red one."

i highly, highly recommend NYC Velo down on the lower east side. I've bought two bikes from them (Felt F3SL, the most amazing bike ever. and a bianchi pista.) www.nycvelo.com
(a) they have the most chilled out and honest guys working for them.
(b) they stock Felt F and Z series bikes, and at least one of every model Independent Fabrication makes. there's more (Salsa, IF, Scott, Kona, Bianchi, etc). with a $5000 budget, if you can't find something in their store, then you're not looking.
(c) they have an awesome dog that hangs out in the shop.

there is apparently another store that deals mostly in stuff like Cervelo and Guru, but i can't recall the name.

like i said, i'd be happy to talk to you about it more. i've done a lot of shopping around here.

Don't forget the espresso and the recreate-any-bike-geometry machine. Seriously, I've only been to this shop once, but I liked the vibe.

You can also go a bit up 9w to PCad's shop http://www.piermontbike.com.

Sunrise Tri on Long Island is a favorite of mine, but doesn't hold much in stock.

Thanks for the offer to help. My biggest obstacle to this approach is that l I don't drive. As for biking and train-ing to bike shops, that's certainly possible but doesn't add much to my list of options. But more specifically I would really like to patronize a shop that I can go back to often, one that I feel like is in "the neighborhood". Not to be too much of an urban snob, but a 1/2 hour drive is for me like visiting another planet. I'll consider anything accessible by subway a viable option.

That said, I'm not so much looking for the right shop based on brands. I'm trying to understand the bike shopping experience generally.

As for brands I am interested in, there are too many to count. That's the point. There are a hundred great brands, but local shops (in NYC or anywhere) rarely carry more than a handful of brands, and even if they have something I like they are unlikely to have them in stock, or if they do have it they don't have it in my specific size.

That's what I don't understand -- how does anyone buy a high-end bike anywhere at all without actually getting a chance to ride it? It seems to me that there are only these options:

1) Your LBS happens to have the model and size you like, and you test ride it and like it and buy it.
2) Your LBS has the right model in the wrong size, you test ride it and feel you might like it, then they order the right size and you pray that you'll like it even though you've never rode it.
3) Your LBS measures you and orders a bike they don't even have a single example of, and you pray you like that one.
4) You travel to 50 different not-quite-local bike shops in a 50 mile radius around your home until you find one of the above.
5) You buy whatever the closest match is in the bike shop(s) you like, and try to forget that you only actually looked at, much less test rode, less than 1% of the potential models in your price and performance range.
6) You order a bike online and pray you like it.
7) You get a custom bike built just for you.

I guess my questions are:

* Does anyone actually buy a bike they test rode any more? Or do most people buy bikes based on rough size and specs and then adjust to whatever they bought? In other words, is custom fitting about finding the right bike, or is it just about adjusting the bike you have (assuming that the frame is roughly the right size) by tweaking seat heights, stem lengths, etc.?

* Can we expect or ask bike shops to special-order bikes from the manufacturers/distributors in your size and specs just so you can test ride it, and if you don't like it can you just say you don't like it and leave?

Thanks!

Most (but not all) people who are ready to plunk $5000 down on a bike already have a pretty good idea of what they want - brand (or at least material), geometry, components, etc. Not that they don't want to test ride them first (although some don't), but they usually have it narrowed down to a few models before they even go into the shop(s) selling them.

Not that there's anything wrong with how you're going about it. It's just that few shops see a reason to stock that many high end options when the majority of their sales are in bikes below $1000.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions. I actually pretty much want to buy my bike at NYC Velo. I guess I'm just concerned about what if they don't have the best bike for me, and I see one elsewhere that looks right for me.

vkalia has a suggestion:

That's pretty much what the cold-blooded devil on my shoulder is telling me to do. But, again, I want to buy it from a shop. I want the selection of the internet and the service of a friendly LBS staff. I want NYC Velo to support my competitive cyclist purchase.

My ideal situation is this:

An LBS does a fitting for me
Then they sit down with me in front of Google and help me shop for and buy a bike online.
Then they configure and fit the bike to me.


Do shops do this?

first, man, you can't BOTH be obsessive about brand choice AND unwilling to travel to a few shops.

of course I defer to those more experienced, but you:
(1) try what's available. figure out what you like and what you don't like.
(2) research bikes you're interested in and see if one gives you a little more of what you like.
(3) express your concerns to a bike shop owner you trust
(4) buy something.

I tried a bunch of bikes
I tried a bunch of shops
I researched.

NYCvelo was my favorite shop.
they had a Felt F3SL, I tried it and loved it
done.

you're thinking too much. and I'm as OCD as they come.

This is pretty much how I feel. Most of the models I am interested in (based on web research) are either not available in local bike shops, and absolutely not available in my size. So while I have narrowed down materials, parts, geometry, etc, I don't feel all that great about possibly paying $5k for something I've never test ridden.

You're absolutely right about that! :-)

What are you riding now? You can narrow down the geometry that you want based on what
you like /dislike with your current bike.

I can't speak for anywhere in NYC, but that's how Sundance Cycles in So Cal sells Serotta, Land Shark, etc. They fit you on a fit kit, then discuss what you want in terms of geometry, frame material, ride characteristics, etc. Then they order the frame and parts and call you when it's assembled so you can come in and get fitted on the bike.


Just for your cosideration, pros don't get to test rides bikes before choosing a brand and model. Heck, they don't even get to choose that!

They will certainly do a fitting for you.

They may help point you toward some websites to read reviews on brands that they sell, but I highly doubt they will be doing any online shopping with you unless said shopping leads to a sale that is done through their channels.

If you do happen to purchase a bike online on your own, they will be more than happy to provide any build and fitting service, for a fee of course.

Can't remember the name of the shop, but a Serotta dealer on the UWS will do exactly that. They will fit you and tell you the geometry of a stock bike that most closely matches your fit, then order it, bring you back and work it up for you. That is, if you don't decide to go custom.

I don't think they will google shop for you though.

jeez, let's be real here. at 5000 you're looking at

-the top or near-top range of every manufacturer. which means stiff, aggressive carbon fiber with high-end shimano or SRAM. if you don't already know this, you don't need a 5000 bike. still, many shops in NYC carry this class of bike. I can't imagine that there is a HUGE difference between a Madone 5.9 and a Tarmac S-Works, but that's why I don't feel the NEED to ride either.

-a custom steel bike, from an expensive steel builder. like Independent Fabrication. but they will ask you questions about your riding preferences...but if you're able to answer those, you wouldn't be having such difficulty finding a bike that works for you, because you'd be able to easily detect subtle differences.

-a titanium bike. very few stock these. if you wanted this, you wouldn't be stressing between shops because so few offer them. so what, litespeed? seven? just pick one.

Im not trying to be mean, but I can see you're thinking too much.

No offense taken, I appreciate the help.

So you're saying there's no big difference in the ride and feel of any bike in the $5k range?

Again, it's not at all that I don't know what I am looking for. I have a lot of specific stuff I am looking for regarding parts, geometry, and styling. Hell, I could custom spec up my ideal bike from the ground up online right now, and I can probably even build it myself right here at home. It's just that I'd never get to test ride it before spending the money, and that concerns me a little. You seem to be suggesting that test riding is overrated. Is that what you're saying?

But there is a difference between an S3 and and RS or a Scott Addict and a CR-1, etc. etc.

If you are going to test ride, I would recommend a long ride, 40 miles or so, that's how long it take for me to feel the bike. Plus, your test on a 2k bike that is dialed into your fit will probably feel better than a 5k bike that isn't. Just something to think about. Good luck. I just spent my 5k recently...

no, I was saying that if there's an appreciable difference (other than weight), I don't have the experience to feel it. hence, I don't yet 'need' a bike in that range. at my level, I'd probably be happy with any, and end up buying on styling alone :) but you gotta know where you're at.

so what is it that you're looking for?