[eminva]

@thecyclingeconomist 33731 wrote:

If the owner isn’t the primary mechanic, or trained the primary mechanic, and they don’t do full-customs, then they are more likely to be more of a chain than not. If their primary line is a big-brand, then the shop doesn’t control and awful lot of the aspects of their store (and few do anymore).

That doesn’t mean that you won’t find a great mechanic (someone that’s been wrenching since steel was the only option), but the likelihood diminishes quickly. Within the brick-n-mortar bike business, mechanics don’t last if they are really good because the owner simply cannot pay them enough. So, what happens? They either leave the business, or they open their own shop. It’s what happened to me (and I am by no means the greatest mech at all.) I couldn’t hack working for $9 an hour, even though I truly loved the gig and the shop. We made our own line of steel-carbon custom road bikes. It was awesome to learn the craft from someone that really knew what they were doing (I didn’t build, simply because I am not a good enough welder to mess with the really high end tubesets that my boss was using; especially when he fillet-brazed most.)

I hope that Dirt or others on this board will read this and make some recommendations of shops where really good, knowledgeable mechanics can be found around here (and maybe it is FreshBikes… I hope!)

Best,

Justin

Thanks for this post, although it is scary to read, as someone who is in the same boat as KLizotte. I have a long commute and put high miles on my bike, but am no mechanic myself. This puts me at the mercy of bike shop mechanics. My judgment is limited by what I know. And the sad thing is, even I could identify problems with the work done by some LBSs.

I’m thinking of going to bike school for a weeklong course. Not that I could become as knowledgeable as you, but at least learn enough to do the basics myself and communicate more effectively with the mechanics if there is a problem that’s over my head.

I’ve noticed on this forum that when discussing LBSs, we offer general praise, or even specific praise (“X at Y shop helped me solve Z problem and saved me money too!”) but rarely have I seen any condemnation attached to a specific shop, nor have I seen anyone say a particular shop is better than any other. I always assumed it was a function of wanting to support all the local businesses as well as YMMV. But if anyone knows of a shop that fits all your criteria in the area, I’d be interested to know as well.

Thanks.

Liz

[eminva]

If you are crossing Key Bridge, you could consider what I often do to avoid this — I turn left on the sidewalk along Fort Myer Drive (in front of the Marriott) and cross the upstream side of the bridge. On the DC side of Key Bridge, you have two choices: cross M Street in the crosswalk, roll along the sidewalk in front of Bicycle Pro Shop and those other businesses there, position yourself in the southbound left lane of 34th and make a left onto M with the light. Less awkwardly, you can cross only the right turn lanes, then, at the island in the center of the street, position yourself at the front of the lane of cars heading east on M. You have to wait a while to get the signal again, but I’m not conviced this is slower than going through the Lynn Street mess.

Liz

[eminva]

@CPTJohnC 33654 wrote:

So, this is what I met this morning when I arrived. So far I’ve only shared with one other bicycle. Am I being too passive aggressive by parking close to the motorcycle instead of just parking at the far side of the rack?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]1858[/ATTACH]

The sign on the wall says “Motorcycle Parking Only” — ! That is one confused arrangement.

Liz

[eminva]

If Certifried is in, I’m in . . . I’ve got some swag for him from WABA.

Looking forward to it!

Liz

[eminva]

Thanks very much — all excellent advice. Much appreciated.

In answer to some questions, it will be a supported tour. We will have parent(s) driving the gear-stuffed van and meeting us at campsites, so the scouts will just have to carry what they need for the day.

Thanks for the advice on tire width/bikes. I’ll have to give this some thought. When I brought it up with my husband last night his response was that we could not have a net increase in bikes in the house, so if I have to get another bike, we have to figure out which one to get rid of. See what logic comes of having two cyclists in one teeny tiny house . . .

Liz

[eminva]

I’m going to assume you are not interested in my bright yellow Livestrong sports bra (yes, they slapped the logo on everything).

Liz

[eminva]

@Tim Kelley 33546 wrote:

It’s been posted before, but: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j1PgmMbug8

Thanks! I’ll have to forward that to my mother; she used to live in Trondheim!

This might inspire more people to actually try the Rosslyn hill. Hard to guage steepness from the video, but it looked comparable. The downside would be that we have to share space with pedestrians (and a lot of them) there, among other obstacles.

Liz

[eminva]

@pfunkallstar 33508 wrote:

Seriously just put in a freaking ski lift starting from the crossing up Rosslyn Hill and charge a nickle for each axle.

I like this outside of the box thinking!

Liz

[eminva]

League Cycling Instructor.

Liz

[eminva]

@cephas 33429 wrote:

I’m curious what kind of winter cycling jackets were expensive mistakes. I just picked up my second (reflective heavy waterproof windbreaker). The first, a Nike I found at 50% off, I loved and wore to death, even after puncturing it through a tree encounter (I didn’t even hit the tree or go down, a branch just punctured it as I rode by too closely), and various other scrapes, falls, and mishaps. I finally picked up a new Novarra. But on both, the bright yellow windbreaker, complete with reflective strips give warmth to my body, and (some) peace of mind to my soul. and I couldn’t imagine either being mistakes, even if they were kinda pricey…

The first two were rookie mistakes when I had just started commuting. I asked for a jacket for Christmas and my mother gave me two. I didn’t really know what I needed or what to look for so my request wasn’t very specific. She gave me an insulated vest and parka, basically, that one would wear for hiking or being outdoors in the cold, but that turned out not to be too suitable for a bike ride. I still have the parka and it’s great for other purposes. The third didn’t live up to the billing — you feel like you are cooking inside it on all but the coldest days and the waterproof finish didn’t survive the first wash. Also, it’s way too bulky and the color picks up stains easily.

Hopefully breaking out of this rut, this past summer I got a hi viz Gore windbreaker on Amazon.com for $35. My limited experience is that it is water resistant at a minimum and comfort is about what you’d expect from a high tech fabric (great in colder temps, less great if it is warmer). I hope to be able to get through most of the winter with that and layers underneath. I am terrified to wash it, after my experience with the other jacket, though.

@Greenbelt 33433 wrote:

Only 4 flats in 8 years? Dang, I need to lose some weight or something. Even with the superduperest tires I can find, I get 3 or 4 a year.

I have no idea to what I can attribute my good fortune here. I do check the air pressure every single morning, but I’m sure others do, too.

Liz

[eminva]

Very happy to hear you are feeling well, but keep in mind some injuries might not show up right away. Have your bike checked out carefully by a bike shop to make sure there is not any hidden frame damage, etc.

Sorry about your accident but happy it was not worse.

Liz

[eminva]

@TwoWheelsDC 33311 wrote:

I picked up a flashing arm/ankle band at REI last night. I got it mainly for running, but I think it’ll be a nice addition to my cycling gear. It’s basically a reflective band (like the yellow BA ones), but with flashing LEDs built in**. The main downside I noticed is that it’s definitely not weatherproof, but it’s still pretty neat. I think that, when attached to an ankle, the moving/flashing light would really make you stand out. I may pick up a second one to make a visibility collar for my dog!

http://www.rei.com/product/842484/amphipod-micro-light-flashing-reflective-armband-green

**for those interested **ahem**, it does come in pink….

I have two very similar to that, and they were among my very first safety equipment when I started bicycle commuting. They are still going strong eight years later. I put one on each ankle. I have gotten numerous comments on how beneficial they are for visibility over the years.

Liz

[eminva]

@vvill 33291 wrote:

Joined eminva on her commute from Falls Church to DC this AM. Easy to recognize that Lazer helmet!

I thought I may have spotted rcannon yesterday PM on the Custis but not sure.

Nice riding with you this morning!

Although I’m not sure vvill likes Georgetown traffic on the late shift — he got to see that my nemesis, the Blue Moon beer truck, is not a figment of my imagination — it was double parked this morning, forcing M Street down to one lane.

Liz

[eminva]

@dasgeh 33212 wrote:

Was the dog in the wedding?

No — she was a super hyper just-beyond-puppy at that point, so even if we’d been so inclined, we probably would have dismissed the idea. If I recall correctly, she was going to the kennel a couple of days later while we went on our honeymoon, so we just got her in early and outsourced the clean up job.

Liz

[eminva]

@Dirt 33189 wrote:

I had a dog that got skunked once. He wasn’t a happy pooch.

Yes, this happened to my dog . . . the day before my wedding.

Liz

[Author]

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