Hi Indysteel,

I would also go by what the reviews say, not what the LBS says. It sounds to me like he doesn't know what he is talking about. I had the same situation over where I live. For my new bike I started looking for a good LBS around here. Some LBS stores just told me so much crap, it's like they were doing "let's tell this girl a whole bunch of crap because she can't tell the difference". Ha! With forums like this (love you girls) and those review sites I can get a prettuh good idea about what's crap and what's not. In the end I have 2 LBS stores, one local for the small stuff (bike gear) you occasionally need and one LBS further away for my bike. I gave the local guy the option to order me that bike but he wouldn't do that, his loss, I will spent my $3250 somewhere else where I can get what I want, even if I have to drive 45 minutes for it. The local guy wasn't pissed but he didn't really like it either because he thought I would never go to his shop anymore.

Can't you get you friend to go to another store (one you have super experiences with) for a second opinion??? Just to let her feel and see with her own eyes what the difference in LBS is?