"Cyclists"

Q.) What do you call two people on bicycles?
A.) A race
In the natural evolution of most activities sooner or later they become competitions. And the "highest" level of the activity becomes the competition. Then there is a whole family of clothing, equipment and accessories one needs to participate at the "highest" level. Heaven forbid the enthusiast who doesn't use the latest, greatest gear. That person is a poseur!

In the shop, we have copies of the Boise Road Cycling Guide for sale. This is a great resource for people who might be wondering about local bicycling friendly routes, put together by local guy Steve Stuebner.  On the cover is a photo of Kristin Armstrong riding her high end race bike.

I have met Steve Stuebner and Kristin Armstrong. They have both been in the shop. They are both nice people. Steve is a great bicycling advocate and has published books about outdoor activities in the area. What can I say about Kristin Armstrong? She has  accomplished great things on the bicycle. I love watching her dice with the best  men in the local road races and making them suffer.

  I have a concern with the photo of Kristin Armstrong on the cover of the Boise Road Cycling Guide. There is a supraliminal message here that, in order to be a "road cyclist" one must wear a racing strip and ride a superlightweight bicycle that is too small. Methinks this does not encourage the average person to want to become a "road cyclist" It seems elitist, expensive, and intimidating.

My concern is not limited to this instance. It is pervasive in bicycle publications and websites and advertising. You almost never see a person "just riding along". If they are on a "road bicycle" they are hammering out of the saddle, and if they are on a mountain bike they are standing on the pedals, hurtling down some gnarly singletrack. When did riding a bicycle become an extreme sport?

I don't even like the word "cyclist" because that conjures up an image of the roadie who is a legend in his own mind, trying to school other riders on Hill Road. Also because it increases the disaffection between "cyclists" and "motorists". Sometimes "cyclists" might be "motorists" and vice versa, and I think those words make it more difficult for the two to
co-exist.

So, whats The Point! ? The point is this. Try riding slow. Try a micro-tour. Look around. Stop once in a while. Don't always be on a training ride. Rediscover The Joy.

New at the shop

The Surly Long Haul Trucker has been popular with my customers the last couple of years, and it is easy to see why. It's a solid, dependable, well spec'd bike with very good riding manners. For 2010 there is a new color. Surly calls it blue velvet.

While I have not been crazy about every color Surly has used for the LHT, I think this is a winner.

In previous years, bikes 56cm and larger only came with 700c wheels, and the smaller sizes had 26" wheels. This year every size will be available with 26" wheels. Since this is a bike that can be taken out of the box, assembled and then ridden around the world, 26" wheels and tires may be easier to find if a replacement is needed in, say, Croatia. A smaller rim will result in shorter spokes with a wider bracing angle and may be more durable for the rough stuff rider as well. 

Also new to HPCS, and very exciting to yours truly is the Ostrich Handlebar Bag from Velo Orange

In real life it is a great army green color. There is a separate pocket in front and two small pockets which face the rider as well as flap pocket on either side. Andrew will be using one of these on the upcoming Texas Buckaroos tour in February, so we will be able to give a review then. Sorry, I don't stock the Ebisu. Maybe I should?

Monetize!!!!

I've added a widget! I'm so proud of myself. (actually, I have added two) The other day I signed up for a daily cartoon from Gapingvoid.com. I just added a widget for  Bicycle Touring Pro dot com. This is a good site for information and articles about traveling by bicycle. There is also a store where visitors can purchase items related to bicycle touring..... books, panniers, rack top bags, mirrors, etc.

If you click on the Bicycle Touring Pro link or on the widget over on the side here, you will be directed to that site. If you purchase something there, I will get a commission! Pretty cool, yes? At first glance that seems like a conflict, since I sell bike stuff too. But BTP generally sells different products or brands than I do, except for Brooks saddles. But a person can buy a Brooks saddle from a number of sources and if you are reading this, and need a Brooks saddle, you should buy one from me anyway!

I am doing this for two reasons. First, there is a lot of good information already out there on the internets, so why re-invent the wheel? The second reason is to try to make some money. Yes, I said it. I am doing this blog to promote my bike shop in order to make more money. Making money is a good thing.

So, if all seven of the people reading this blog buy something after clicking on the link, I may be able to buy some beer!

At The Bike Shop

   I've been using some of the winter slack time planning for 2010. Our 2009 sales were even with 2008, even though the margins were slightly lower. That's pretty good given the overall economic climate. I'm basing 2010 forecasts on another flat year. 
  My retail career now is going into the sixth year. I feel like I have a PhD and an MBA from the University of Trial and Error. The current trend of the shop is toward a narrower selection of inventory. Things that I use and believe in and products I know will sell. Grant Petersen at Rivendell has always been about simplicity, and I am going to try to follow that paradigm even more closely this year. That means "niche", a word some people don't like. But I can either try to be all things to all people... an almost certain recipe for disaster...or I can focus clearly on a smaller market. I can also either try to compete on price or I can add enough value to what I do and sell, that customers may not be quite so focused on getting the cheapest price. Although it never ceases to amaze me when people buy stuff online for very close to the same as they would spend buying from me. There is some sort of conditioning going on there. Do they automatically think buying on line is a better value? Is it just more convenient? Do they buy from certain websites so they can feel as if they belong to some inner circle?
   My guy, Hugh Macleod talks about "social objects". I'm not sure if I'm getting it exactly right, but the idea is that things have no meaning by themselves. A bottle of wine sitting on a table or a bicycle sitting in a shop has no meaning. If one connects the thing with a memorable time they had while they happened to be sharing the wine or with a hint of adventure when they think about using the bicycle to go overnight camping, then the thing has value. Not sure where I'm going with that.
   When I bought the shop five years ago Sheila Spangler of Capital Strategies represented me. When I sat down with her earlier this year, I found out she spent the last several years learning everything she could about marketing. Now she consults with business owners to help them add value to their own businesses. She made me think about what business I am in and what I sell, and she cracked open a door.  
    Here's my thought process:
If I do a break-even analysis, my total sales will equal my direct costs plus my variable costs. I have some control over my variable costs; I can take advantage of vendor discounts and freight allowances and terms. I have less control over the fixed costs. But, if I call salaries and wages fixed costs and if I have a pretty good idea of what my total sales and associated variable costs will be, based on the last two years, I can work backwards and make some plans. One thing I think I have learned this last year is that I need to pay myself first, not only if there is some money left over. That means I will have less budget for employees. OK.
- I can not be open 7 days a week, because I can't work that much. Historically, I know which two days of the week are slowest and I can close on those days.
- I need to be selective in the type of service work we do, because we won't be able to take care of everything that comes through the door. How to filter this could be a little tricky. I'm open to ideas! I want to take care of good, loyal customers first.

Comments are welcome, in fact I'd really like to here what customers expect out of a brick and mortar bike shop.
  

Resurrectio

Once in a while I get to do a project which is especially enjoyable and rewarding. When Mike came in and rode the Rivendell Hillborne, I'm not sure if he was aware of the connection between Rivendell and Bridgestone but the test ride was an eye opener for him. We started talking and he told me he had a Bridgestone X0-2 in his garage, and we discussed fixing that up to make it ride like a new bike. The bike had been a little neglected but was generally sound.

The drive train was shot and he needed new chain, bottom bracket, crankset and cassette. The rear wheel had been replaced recently but the front wheel and hub were fine after cleaning and lubing. We also put on new tires, a new Nitto stem so he could raise the handlebars, new brake hoods and bar tape. Not too bad for a well used 17 year old bike.

First though, we stripped the bike and he took it to a local painter to get the frame powdercoated. I think the color he picked is great.

Facing the head tube

After facing the bottom bracket shell I cleaned up the threads.

New drive train and Schwalbe Big Apple tires

I bought the "Resurrectio" decals from rivbike.com

The finished bike looks pretty good, I think.

I really like the shape of the original Nitto handlebars.

The thing that's so satisfying is working on a product which was made to last the first time and  is still worth putting some time and effort and money into 17 years later. He paid as much to fix the bike up as he paid for it new, and now the bike is good for another 17 years.  That seems like a good definition of value to me.

There are more photos on Flickr

Oregon Handmade Bicycle Show '09

We were in Portland  November 1 for the '09 Oregon Handmade Bicycle show, mostly to try to hawk some Zimbale bags, but also to see what the denizens of this Northwest bicycle hub are up to. This show was so much more energizing than was Interbike. The exhibitors and the attendees who were here are fascinated by bicycles and their many uses.

All the bikes were steel or ti with some carbon forks here and there. Some frames were left "raw", without paint, like Rivendell has done on some bikes. Many of the bikes were obviously "riders", with dirt and scuffed paint. Many different types of racks.... custom, integrated with the bike, integrated with the bike and fenders (Ti Cycles Fabrication), and a very cool cargo bike with a front rack attached to the frame and not to the steering (by Ahearne). He wants to make this a production bike. I remember Ahearne from the NAHBS in Portland a couple years ago as one of my favorites, and he had a customer's bike here which looks just about right.

Cielo is a bicycle making company put together by Chris King. Their entry in the Oregon Manifest Constructor's Design Challenge was extremely well thought out.

Jan Heine of Bicycle Quarterly writes about this event in the winter '09 issue, and he compares it with the trials in France in the 1930's. These events were like a brevet in that a minimum speed was to be maintained over the three stages and 460 km. But, the bikes were penalized if they exceeded a certain weight and they were penalized at the end for any malfunction. This bred an enormous amount of innovation. It's really exciting to see a revival of an event like this in the US!

Mitch Pryor from Map Bicycles was there with a custom bike using a mix of new and old. He makes simple look easy and that's hard.

Andy Newlands from Strawberry Bicycles puts this show on and he had a booth showing his bikes. He has been making bikes here for many years, and he knows how to do it right.

Self Indulgence

In the '90's and early 2000's I used to show up at the start line of most of the local road races. I even participated in some of the races. That is to say, as more than pack fodder. I had a lot of fun and met some great people. I thought then and I still think now that anybody who wants to race a bicycle on the road has a character flaw. It's incredibly hard and the hours needed to be competitive preclude a lot of other activities. My wife is happy I no longer race.
Anyways, I was thinking about some of the more successful years I had racing, and I realized they were aboard my Serotta Colorado Legend TG bike. A very fine steel frame. It wasn't the lightest bike, but I was always convinced the geometry and tube configuration on this bike gave it an efficiency that made up for a little extra weight.
I bought the bike at Moo Cycles. In 2005 I bought the shop and named it Hyde Park Cycle Sports. And now the shop has evolved into one that carries steel bicycles predominantly. That seems like some sort of full circle coming.


At the start of the 2003 Birds of Prey Road Race.
Testosterone so thick, you can taste it.
















The return leg of the Birds of Prey race. Very cold and very windy. Tucked in safely as is my usual strategy




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The Eagle Hills Circuit Race. Designed by a real sadist. Too many laps with two sharp climbs per lap
















Bicycle road racing has the potential to be as much fun as one can have without laughing. It is a huge rush to fly along at 30 and 40 M.P.H. close enough to touch elbows with the rider next to you, and with people just as close in front of you and behind you. Part of the thrill is the fear...there is not much cushion from the blacktop in those lycra clothes.... and the survival level concentration. As long as everybody is a decent bike handler and of about equal abilities, the peleton is like one organism. Like a flock of birds or a school of fish, the shape of which constantly changes, but stays cohesive. At least until the repeated hard efforts start to thin the herd.

The religion of bike racing requires followers to observe certain daily rituals. Eating is an exercise in getting the right balance of protein, fat and carbohydrate in the optimal amounts. One must submit to the bicycle, with differing degrees of intensity, every day. And don't forget recovery and sleep! Eat, ride, sleep and repeat.

No racing for me anymore. Now it's back to the roots! Loaded touring!