New Member with separation anxiety

[Berrybiker]

I have been reading here for quite awhile and decided it is time to join in. I just got back into biking this spring after 8-10 years of not riding at all. My husband and I were out running some errands in May and he suggested stopping at a bike store we saw. "Just to look around." My last two bikes were a mid-80's "sport-touring" Fuji (introductory bike but fun and I loved it) and a spur-of-the-moment mountain bike purchase (wasn't riding off-road--knobby tires on pavement felt slow and heavy, bike never fit right and I hated it). Then hybrids became popular and I thought I might want to try one sometime. This was my intent when I walked into the bike store this spring and proceded to test-ride a few bikes. I soon found out that there were several types of hybrids, and that what I wanted was more of a fitness/flat-bar roadbike. I tried a Trek FX 7.3, which I liked a lot, then I went to another shop and tried a Specialized Vita Elite. I knew immediately that was going to be my next bike. It felt faster than the Trek, seemed to have good components for the price, and came with a carbon fork and bar-ends. All of those were perfectly good reasons to buy one bike over another, but I have to admit that the hook for me was the color--a georgeous matte purple color they called Berry. The only problem is that the LBS said they were sold out in the size I needed. My husband (who you might guess by now is a major enabler) called around the found the Berry color in a 54 cm for me.

I love this bike! I know it isn't going to be my last bike--I am already fantasizing about a new road bike, but this is the bike that got me back into cycling and I have no intention of ever parting with her. Except...I haven't had her for a month now. Late in the summer Specialized has a recall on the carbon forks on some of their 2011 bikes, including mine. So I took the bike to the local Specialized dealer, as instructed by the company. The actual instructions were to stop riding the bike immedately, and when I called the shop they asked that I bring it in immedately. Okay..... inconvenient, but okay. I got nervous, though, when I dropped the bike off, and the guy I spoke to said that "Specialized hasn't told us what to do yet, and we have a few of these here already." ????? They called a few days later and said that Specialized was out of the forks, and that they would call us in about a week to give us an update. Well, that was a month ago. I decided to give them some time, but finally called a few days ago to check on my bike. The guy at the shop said that he was going to check with Specialized again, and that they even had a few 2011 bikes in their shop that they can't sell because of this. This just doesn't seem right, and I am not sure what I can do about it. I guess a month is not so long in the scheme of things, but I just want my bike back!!!

[TTUchick]

I feel your pain! My lovely charcoal grey Vita Comp was also included in the fork recall... the fork for mine is still on backorder I have two other bikes I could ride... but the Vita is my favorite all-purpose cruise-all-over-town bike.

[jyyanks]

Welcome to the forum! It's so nice that you found a bike that's an extension of you. It's too bad that its taking so long to get the bike back. Do you plan on riding in the winter? I figure that for me, there's only about 2 more weeks left of riding, though I'm only riding on the weekends now.

Did the LBS give you an ETA of when it would be done? I would continue to hound as I know that some owners were able to get their bikes fixed. Perhaps you can email Specialized directly?

[hebe]

Welcome! I hope you can be re-united with your lovely bike soon.

(The Specialized Vita Elite is on a shortlist of two for my next bike, it was great to read about your experience with it, thank you and also to TTUChick).

[Berrybiker]

Thanks for all of the replies--and the support. I have learned so much from this forum already. I have to admit it's the only one I have ever felt inspired to join!

The first thing I did after I took the Vita into the shop was get my "vintage" (sounds so much better than old/outdated) Fuji down off of the hook in the garage and take it in for a tune-up. It's not my Vita, but much better than no bike, and I'm actually kind of enjoying being reunited with it. (Did that sound weird?)

I am thinking about contacting Specialized directly, because I know some people did get replacement forks earlier. A lot of them seem to be back-ordered now, though, so quick results don't seem likely.

And no pictures yet--I should have taken some before but didn't get around to it, but I will try my best to get and post some once I finally get the bike back.

Jyyanks, I am going to try riding this winter, at least on "nice days", but I guess I will find out how hardy I am. I can only ride on weekends now, too. I miss the after work rides. I am planning to get a trainer and put the Fuji on that for the winter, so I will at least have an indoor option when it really gets cold.

[Owlie]

I completely understand your separation anxiety. When I left my bike at my parents' house last year (for about six months), I was not a happy camper when spring rolled around! (And let's not talk about how grumpy I got over the summer while she was it the shop.)

(And no, it doesn't sound weird to want to get reacquainted with your Fuji.)

[TTUchick]

Oh, one thing I forgot to mention about the recall... I did receive a quick replacement initially, but Specialized sent a fork with a matte black finish which IMO looked terrible on my bike with a glossy grey finish with white pinstriping. After discussing my disappointment with the asthetics, my LBS called Specialized and arraigned to have a new fork custom painted to match the original.

You might want to inquire about what the replacement looks like along with the estimated timeline for repair.

[radacrider]

Hmmm, I wonder, if you really want your bike back, if there is a way the LBS can provide a "loaner" fork, hopefully at Specialized's expense. I mean, you paid to ride the bike and it is not your fault there is a recall, so you should not have to overly suffer.

Just a thought, I guess. Good luck and happy riding.