Bike Snobbery Gets Its Day in the Sun

BikeSnobNYC got some props in today's NYT. If you aren't familiar with his harsh and funny blog, do yourself a favor. Snob dishes out snark on all of cycling's absurdity, particularly when it comes to marketing and gross consumerism. Good stuff.

On that same note, Outside Magazine recently published a hilarious -- and apt -- article lamenting the death of the Angry Bike Mechanic. An excerpt:

The humiliations go like this. You walk into a bike shop with a crisis: a brake pad that's rubbing. A greasy-fingered mechanic with a chainring tat and a Cinelli cycling cap takes a quick look and says something about a barrel adjuster. You ask, "What's a barrel adjuster?" He glares at you—and then at your carbon-fiber ride—as if you've just ordered a Shirley Temple in a dive bar.

You feel invisible. You fork over the bike and your credit card and skulk out, worried that the laughter coming from the back room is about you. Of course it's about you.

Read the entire article here.

We can relate. Of course we try to be nice to every single customer...but sometimes it's hard. For example, people that demand instant service. Which is unheard of. Sometimes if Ron is all caught up, he can do a flat or a simple adjustment while someone waits, but it gets to the point where we don't even want to do that lest people begin to expect it. We have to be firm and say, "Sorry, you are just going to have to drop your bike off!" We work our tails off to get bikes back the same day or next day. And that is really fast. But some people are always going to want more..and the inner snob comes out! <end rant>

Popscycle

If you've never checked out Sweet Juniper, you should. It's a great slice-of-life blog about a family that lives in Lafayette Park. We've gotten to know them pretty good (in a regular customer kind of way) this season as they've taken to biking with gusto. You must read their post about the incredible Popsycle bike. It is beyond adorable.

Kelli's bike is famous!

...well, not famous, but it is featured at OldTenSpeedGallery! OTSG is a cool blog that, with a mix of love and tongue-in-cheekiness, lets tried-but-true bikes (by their very nature that are not eligible for such glory as promised to those at FixedGearGallery) have their day in the sun. Isn't Erie pretty?