The West Side

It's hard not to be reflective during the Holidays.  I will keep this simple.  I'm thankful for everything I have.  I am looking forward to 2011.  There are better things coming.  Of this I am sure.  I hope each and every one of you have a great Holiday, a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year. Chris

It's nice when you can take something and make it usable again. Take this old Cannondale hybrid for example. It had clearly seen better days, but it had some sentimental value, and the owner wanted to see if we could inject some new life into it.  But of course we could. For the sake of full disclosure it should be noted that this bike belongs to my girlfriend, and was not what you would call a normal case. Nearly every part was replaced. Not something we would expect most people to do, but many of the parts used had been languishing in boxes for years.  They were cast offs from old bikes of mine.  It was nice to see them used again.  She loves the bike, and it's a great example of what can be done to make a bike useful again.  Check out the photos.  I think it's a pretty dramatic before and after. Ride on! Chris

Things are happening at the bike shop, but it's winter and it's slow going.  I've been meaning to update the blog.  As soon as I organize my thoughts a little better, I will.  Promise, or threat?  Take your pick. Ride on!

For as long as I've been around bikes there have been rules.  They were mostly unwritten.  I believe this was mostly by design.  Unwritten rules keep the "unwashed" from your chosen method of worship.  The rules went something like this; if you ride this type of bike, you wear this type of clothing.  Don't you dare wear this type of shoe with that kind of bike.  Don't even think about that kind of accessory on your bike if you're going to ride with that group. I'm here to tell you that any rule that keeps you from enjoying your bicycle is dumb.  I'm throwing out the rules.  From this day forward there is only one rule. Ride your bike, and have fun. I guess that was two, but you get my meaning. Ride on!

I bought a Salsa single speed road bike a couple of years ago.  It seemed like a good idea at the time.  It was simple, made of steel and relatively inexpensive.  I never really took to it. I've offered it up to a few customers over the last year or so.  None of them really took to it either.  I started playing around with it a couple of days ago.  I installed a different handlebar, put on some different grips and took off the clipless pedals.  You know what?  I love this thing now. I'm not saying that I'm going to ditch the carbon road bike, or the pedals and shoes. It just seems like having a bike that is easy to ride; a bike that is comfortable to ride just makes sense. The trend in the industry has been to make the bikes lighter, and stiffer.  Make 'em just like the pro's.  My sense is that there is a push back coming.  Maybe it's been there all along, and I just didn't notice.  If you could have a bike that had a...

This is the greatest catalog I've ever had the pleasure to carry home from a trade show. Thank you SBS, thank you.

Another Interbike is in the books.  It was my first show in a couple of years, and it probably will be my last for the foreseeable future.  The thinkers have decided to move the bike show back to Anaheim CA for the next 3 years.  I did my first couple of shows in Anaheim.  I'm in no hurry to return. I don't know what the thinking really was behind this move.  I do know that there has been plenty of whining about the show being in Vegas.  Not family friendly they say.  You are there for a trade show, are you not?  Dirty, loud, obnoxious and smoky.  Not the right city for a industry that trades in good health.  Maybe so.  Las Vegas is all of those things, and probably a couple more.  I know this.  There isn't another city in the world with as much entertainment, and really fine dining within walking distance of your hotel.  There is one thing stuck in my craw.  The people that have screamed the loudest about th...