the ebb and flow of the bike business

so, a crazy couple of days. i got my bike part, finally. woohoo!

now i need a hands on lesson in re-spoking a wheel. perhaps i'll call @loosenutscycles or @nobrakesbikes and see if i can come in and watch them go through the motions. it's not that i don't want to pay...i'll pay for one wheel, but i think this is a skill that's better taught than learned by experience.

i was also contacted by two people this week for bike recommendations. one of them may want my help in refurbishing, the other one just wanted me to find her a good bike for a triathalon. and this is where the story begins.

boys bikes are hard to find in good condition. and men's bikes are either expensive or beat down. but women's bikes...there are a lot out there. unless you're looking for a performance bike. women who ride bike... who really ride bikes... are a diamonds in the rough. and they rarely part with their bikes unless it's an "almost new" price.

i recommended to this woman that she just buy new. go high end. and if she decides she doesn't like tri's, she sells for (new price - $500). even though she could probably get a lot more depending on the time between purchase and sale.

kinda sucks that i'm not restoring another bike for her... but, at the same time, i believe this is a better spend of her money. any thoughts?

OMB


"Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. It gives women a feeling of freedom and self—reliance. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel...the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood." ~ Susan B. Anthony