Like the local hardware stores (ahem, Berg Hardware Store – good riddance), the local bike shops are going to drive themselves out of business. They don’t even need online stores to do it, but that’ll help.
Steve’s $75 tune-up cost me a $300 wheel-rebuild. He ripped three spokes out of the rim overtightening them. Oh yeah, I bought another set of wheels to use during the two weeks it was going to take to get the parts in and get it rebuilt, so that’s another $350. At least Incycle threw in the tires.
Helen’s Arcadia wasted a week and two trips not tuning-up my bike. I called to see if it was ready after a week, they said yes, then when I got there, they told me they hadn’t had time to work on it. At least that only cost me a week on the bike and three hours going back and forth. Well, then another two trips someplace else getting it tuned up. But then I guess it was still cheaper than Steve’s.
Today, I went to Pasadena Cyclery to see if they had a bike seat, and the fellows behind the counter, who were doing nothing except popping bubble wrap from a new UPS box, got into an argument about who was going to have to help me. I walked out while they were hashing it out.
The guy at Incycle at least knocked off 15% for a three year old seat that might or might not fit… I get a week to try it.
I also bought some new tools to do the work on my bike myself. I used to do this all the time when I was student. It’s not difficult, just time-consuming. I’d rather pay someone else to do it. But given the last three experiences with letting someone else work on it, I’d be better off putting the drive time and money into doing it myself again.