visited the LBS today: bike is too small :(

[Trek420]

Ask if someone there is certified/trained to do a fit. Not all shop owners or employees are certified and if they are not it may not be worth any price. Find a certified fitter nearby.

I was ready to throw my first road bike into the bay. I took it to my LBS which was not where I bought it. He saw the bars were to wide for me. $30-35 later for new Dedo women specific bars and it felt like a new bike. That wasn't even a fit. He just saw me ride in.

The right LBS or LBS employee can do a lot with very little.

Why do the LBS's seem to be so hard to deal with? As a new customer, they should be happy to be making my money. I think they probably already make tons being as they are the only shop in town.

Sadly there's not a lot of money in the cycling industry. Some shops do very well such as my favorite Bay Area shop. But I think that has more to do with his capturing a high end bike market and good solid business practices such as a low inventory. It's a tiny space and he does not keep much on hand. Yet they can get anything you want or need quickly or that he needs to complete the job.

Most shops have a lot of bikes and inventory on the floor and yet do not get a lot of money back. They also have to compete with everything from online deals, box stores to Craigs and eBay. I don't think owners go into this industry for the money. It's more about the love of cycling and cyclists.

Cycling is a very customer service focused sport. As you can see if a bike and even parts of it are not fit to the rider you can hardly suffer through a few miles. I think this is why we must support our LBS, work with them and buy from them when we can. Without good LBS service it's not much fun.