I finally took the time to join the fourm today although I have been a lurker for the last year and a half. I wanted to thank all of you for your great posts. After much research I bought my first road bike yesterday, a Bianchi Veloce same color as the one under my name here. As an older rider (58)the steel frame just felt right. I had to special order it as the shop did not have the color I wanted in stock. I could have gotten the same bike in red quite a bit cheaper, but thought if I'm only going to do this once, I'd better get the color I liked too. It should be in the shop and ready to go by next weekend.
I finally found a shop that worked the way I've read they are suposed too. I can highly reccomend The Continental Bike Shop in Hazel Park, Michigan. I drove 70 miles from my home to buy from this shop and am so glad I did. I did not know a thing about the shop other than I had called to make sure that they really carried Bianchi bikes that I could try out. No local bike shops carried the Bianchi brand even though several were listed on the Bianchi web site.
It was hard to find a shop to take me seriously as a biker. I think being an older female and not having an athletic body type had a lot to do with the poor service I got from many shops I tried. I have nothing against young people being hired by bike shops, but when I am thinking of spending a considerable amount of cash on a bike I don't like to be told that I don't want/need upgraded components and that I wouldn't know what wheels look cool. I guess the kid thought that I would be dead in a few years, so why should I bother with the good stuf!
Some shops did not even suggest that I test ride their bikes. I certainly wouldn't buy a car that way and I could have gotten a used car for what I was willing to spend on a bike. Randy at Continental put me on five bikes. He measured my inseam, put peddles on each bike that matched my bike shoes, aired up the tires, adjusted the seat and went through the operation of the gears with me for each bike. As I was riding one bike on a two mile loop he was setting up the next one for me and had it ready for my next ride when I got back. He did not tell me what I wanted in a bike but helped me find what worked best for me. When I pick up the bike they will do an extensive fitting for me. What a positive experience the morning was. I am so glad that I found this shop and am excited about getting my new bike just in time for the 60 degree weather that is to be coming to Michigan next week.
Again, thanks for all of your posts. Without this forum, I wouldn't even have known to consider the Bianchi brand of bike that I selected.
Happy riding to all,
Sandy