Author: Richard Masoner

Prices or service

Richard MasonerAugust 28, 20076 Comments on Prices or service

Guitar Ted rants a little about bike shops that still don’t get that the winning proposition of the Local Bike Shop is not everyday low prices but excellent service.

With pressure from online vendors and even Wal-Mart apparently entering the high-end bike market, there’s more pressure than ever for the local bike shop to compete effectively. Unfortunately, stories of intimidating visits to bike shops with smarmy employees and patronizing sales personnel still seem to outnumber the “I had a great experience!” experiences.

I’ve been fortunate enough to visit some great bike shops with outstanding and helpful people. When I visit a new shop, though, the help I get is usually indifferent if I can get any attention at all. I’m a knowledgeable consumer, so I can imagine the neophyte will be completely intimidated.

I’ll close by quoting G-Ted: “I think a lot of folks need to wake up to the reality that it’s more about the service and relationship with the customer and a lot less about the prices. If that happens in your bike shop, I know that a lot of people will buy items from a shop like that even if the prices are a bit higher because they are getting something else money can not buy.” Read more of his rant here.

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Motorist’s brilliant suggestion to improve bike lanes

Richard MasonerAugust 27, 20074 Comments on Motorist’s brilliant suggestion to improve bike lanes

From “Letters to the Editor” in the Menlo Park Almanac, August 22, 2007. This motorist clearly misunderstood the answer to his question and the problem. There’s debris in the bike lane precisely because it’s been swept there from the passing cars and trucks.

Bike safety in Portola Valley

I have asked various bike riders for their views on certain safety issues.

Q. Why do many bikers ride directly on the white line of the bike lane rather than within the lane?

A. Debris can be seen and avoided.

Based on the foregoing, one might ask why not put the white line of the bike lane in the middle so debris could readily be seen, and double yellow lines on the outside to delineate the lane, thus encouraging both the bikes and the autos to stay out of each other’s lanes.

Name Withheld
Santa Maria Avenue, Portola Valley

Posted to the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition mailing list.

Posted In facilities | safety

Bicycling news

Richard MasonerAugust 27, 20072 Comments on Bicycling news

Quick links before I run off to a meeting.

Runners face terrorism charges for sprinkling flour in a parking lot to mark a course. City of New Haven spokeswoman Jessica Mayorga said the city plans to seek restitution from the Salchows, who are due in court Sept. 14. “You see powder connected by arrows and chalk, you never know,” she said. “It could be a terrorist, it could be something more serious. We’re thankful it wasn’t, but there were a lot of resources that went into figuring that out.”

Grist on Industrial Agrodiesel: “We need a new bumper sticker: Biodiesel: feeding the planet to our cars.”

The Economist on higher fuel taxes: “It’s possible, maybe probable, that substitution away from driving might entirely counteract the rebound effect mentioned above. If an increase in fuel costs causes a commuter to switch from driving to telecommuting, for instance, his tailpipe emissions don’t just drop in proportion to the fuel cost increase, they disappear.”

50,000 bikes to rent in Beijing for the Olympics.

An Aussie company does a bike for a company car.

Eurobike is this week. I imagine Carlton will provide some excellent coverage, as usual.

Women who ride: Pregnant pro cyclist photo blog.

Steephill.TV: Vuelta a Espana coverage page.

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As web fuels bike thefts, victims turn vigilante

Richard MasonerAugust 27, 2007Leave a Comment

By the time he got the call last month, Martin Moulton had given up on his stolen $3,000 bike.

The caller, a friend, had been browsing through bike ads on Craigslist when he spotted Moulton’s 2005 Cannondale with its unmistakable, custom-ordered Spiderflex saddle.

Moulton, who is by no means scrawny, enlisted the help of a friend and set out to confront the seller with evidence that the bike was his. Once they were face to face with the seller, he planned to call 911.

Read more in the Washington Post. Hat tip to VeloChimp.

Posted In Uncategorized

Pink Lady’s 85 lb bicycle

Richard MasonerAugust 27, 2007Leave a Comment

Pink is a heavy burden is cute.

The first thing you see is a riot of pink. She rides a touring bike with front and rear pink panniers. She wears a pink jersey and pink gloves. She has a pink helmet on her head and a stuffed bear is tied on her rear rack with a pink ribbon.

What I want to know is where in the world do you find pink panniers? Read more at Team Alameda. Hat tip to Tommy who found it at Kent’s Bike.

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