LBS rant (SadieKate, please read)

[Triskeliongirl]

This guiy reminds me of a LBS owner here. This guy is such a jerk that when I brought my terry titanium isis in for service he refused to work on her cuz she has a 24" front wheel. Yeh, you heard me. He tried to make me feel so bad about my purchase, when this was the only stock bike out there that FIT ME! My husband said he was just pissed I didn't buy my new bike from him. He is a calfee dealer and while I was very interested in a custom calfee, I didn't trust this guy to fit me properly since he is totally insensitive to fit issues specific to womens bodies. The net result is that I learned how to be my own mechanic so I don't need jerks like him. Enjoy your new wheels and don't frequent this fellows shop if you can avoid it!

[Bad JuJu]

This guiy reminds me of a LBS owner here. This guy is such a jerk that when I brought my terry titanium isis in for service he refused to work on her cuz she has a 24" front wheel. Yeh, you heard me. He tried to make me feel so bad about my purchase, when this was the only stock bike out there that FIT ME! My husband said he was just pissed I didn't buy my new bike from him. He is a calfee dealer and while I was very interested in a custom calfee, I didn't trust this guy to fit me properly since he is totally insensitive to fit issues specific to womens bodies. The net result is that I learned how to be my own mechanic so I don't need jerks like him. Enjoy your new wheels and don't frequent this fellows shop if you can avoid it!

Sounds like an LBS guy in northern New Jersey (about 15 years ago) who told me there was no bike that would fit me and I ought to just take up tennis or something else. Not only did I never go back there and consequently spent my cycling dollars somewhere else (ordered a Terry from another LBS, not 10 miles away), but I told my all my friends never to shop there. Not a good business strategy!

[7rider]

For some reason, bike shops can have this whole "If you didn't buy it from me, it must be crap" mentality.
Yeah - I did think of the Ford-Chevy analogy. Also, the cliche "Opinions are like belly buttons. Everybody's got one."
You did your research. You made a sound, reasoned decision. He doesn't have to like it, but it would have been nice of him to keep his yap shut. An offer to service is legitimate - but an "if you have problems" vs. "when you have problems" would have been a little better.

[CyclChyk]

....Also, the cliche "Opinions are like belly buttons. Everybody's got one."

Belly buttons??? Ohoh, my potty mouth has gotten that part wrong all these years

[Mimosa]

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?

[Bikingmomof3]

The bike store sounds a lot like my local one, which I refuse to spend money in. Their attitude is one of, "you did not buy your bike here, we will not help you, only tell you our beliefs". I found a lovely bike shop about 45 minuites away, not close, but wonderful.

Ignore what the owner says, he sounds like a jerk.

[spokewench]

The bike store sounds a lot like my local one, which I refuse to spend money in. Their attitude is one of, "you did not buy your bike here, we will not help you, only tell you our beliefs". I found a lovely bike shop about 45 minuites away, not close, but wonderful.

Ignore what the owner says, he sounds like a jerk.

I JUST dont understand why LBS take the attitude if you didn't buy your bike there, they won't help you???

They don't make that much money selling a bike - they do make a bunch of money doing repairs (MOST) and selling bike clothes, shoes, etc. They are just BAD Business People!

[btchance]

Belly buttons??? Ohoh, my potty mouth has gotten that part wrong all these years

me too!!

Also, go with your homework. You read up on the wheels, talked to people, so trust what you know, not what one guy at a LBS said (especially since he didn't treat you friend right either).

[indysteel]

After thinking about it more this weekend, I think I rubbed this guy the wrong way from the moment we met. After expressing some of my opinions about fit, I think he took the attitude that "this girl thinks she knows what she's talking about. Well, I'll show her...." What a little man to feel threatened by me.

I sometimes wonder whether I'm just "imagining things" when it comes to dealing with certain LBSs here in town, but your responses are consistent with my own experiences. I tend to think there are two basic mentalities among LBSs. There are those guys that think it's cool that you know something about bikes and that they want you to know more. They assume a positive role in your bike education. I can think of a couple of guys--the guy I bought my bike from and the guy that did my fitting--that fit into that category. They were great to work with, and I owe a lot of what I know to them.

Then there are those guys that think you have to know everything about bikes to know something. They further think that the average person is too dumb to figure it out without their help. That's a load of you-know-what. I appreciate their experience and acknowledge that they have a lot to teach me, but the truth is that bikes aren't rockets. They're actually fairly simple, mechanically speaking. That's why so many people successfully do their own wrenching. You don't need to work in a shop for 30 years to know a lot about bikes, especially with the wealth of internet resources that are out there.

My friend did buy the bike and rode it a couple of times this weekend. So far so good. I hope it fits her and serves her well. I'm not sure he spent enough time with her to make sure the bike is the right size, but she seems happy and comfortable on it. And unlike this guy, I'm not interested in spoiling her fun.

[Offthegrid]

There are shops that will treat you nice even though you didn't buy your bike there. AllezGirl's LBS double checked my fit, measured my bike, ordered me new parts and spent hours installing them for only $40 labor. But I also spent more than $400 on parts and accessories and would recommend them to anyone.

I was convinced my stem was too short, but it was actually the saddle that was bothering me. I was always trying to push myself farther back on the seat, and I equated that to the stem being too short. Shop could have profited by selling me a stem, but said it was the perfect size for me and didn't pressure me to buy a new saddle (although I did). With the new saddle, the top tube/stem feels dead on.

You'll have the last laugh by not going back there and not recommending the shop to others.