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October Tours
Hard to believe that our season is coming to an end. We have just 9 public tours remaining!
If you’ve been hoping to join us all season long, don’t wait! In fact, we are offering a discount on our Urban Agriculture tour set for this Saturday, 10/2! Use the promo code FALLFARMFIVE at checkout to save 5 bucks!
It’s the last Urban Agriculture tour of the season and is absolutely the best time of year for it. Harvest bounty awaits!
Find out more and register HERE; the full roster of tours can be found HERE. Or, if you’d rather book a private tour, reach out to us at info@wheelhousedetroit.com and we’ll get you all the details on that option. We hope to ride with you during the absolute best month of the year to do so!
Shop News September 2021
Just a quick note as we round into (IMHO) the best riding weather of the year: fall!
We have received a handful of bikes from Giant, Kona, and Brooklyn Bicycle Company, and will continue to see a trickle through the end of the season. We keep wheelhousedetroit.com/bikes up-to-date, so keep your eyes on what you’re interested in there — or come on in for a test ride!
Our distributors all tell us that supply chain issues will continue through next year, possibly even until 2024, so things aren’t changing any time soon in terms of our ability to get parts and bikes. But we are doing our best and that’s not half bad these days!
Our fall hours are in effect, we are now open six days a week — closed on Tuesdays.
We are currently operating with a mask requirement in the shop per the City of Detroit’s Health Department recommendations.
Our tour schedule is complete and we’re already seeing some October dates filling up. Our public tours cap out at six or 10 riders — depending on the route — these small groups make for excellent experiences but most do sell out. Visit wheelhousedetroit.com/tours for more info and to book.
Looking to book a private tour? Please reach out to bookings@wheelhousedetroit.com sooner rather than later. We are getting a lot of last-minute requests this season and it’s even more difficult to accomodate than usual because we are, like everyone else, short-staffed. We want to ride with you and the more time you give us, the more likely that is!
Finally, I’d like to thank our amazing team for working their tails off in extreme heat and with, to be honest, too many not-kind people. They’ve performed extraordinarily and I am very very grateful. Kudos to Tatiana, Rob, Judith, Linda, Joseline, Tera, and Blake.
Happy riding, Kelli Kavanaugh (owner)
2021 Tour Calendar Complete!
All public tours are viewable and bookable at wheelhousedetroit.com/tours. We encourage advance bookings because at just a max of 6 or 10 riders per tour, they tend to fill up quickly.
Mask Update 08-11-21
As of August 11, 2021, due to the rise of the Delta variant and per the City of Detroit’s Health Department, we will be requiring that masks be worn inside the shop and during all staff interactions.
August Shop News
How’s the shop this year? I get asked that a lot. Well, it’s better than 2020, that’s for sure, but it’s still not a “regular” year. We have zero corporate outings, no international travellers, are still grappling with supply chain shortages, and now there’s the rise of the delta variant and stupidly stubborn non-vaxxers causing another mask/shutdown threat. (On that note, our entire staff is fully vaxxed.)
But it’s better than 2020!
Onwards…
Our service turn-around is amazingly fast right now (thank you Judith and Rob!). We’re looking at same day for minor work (flats, gear or brake adjustments, accessory installs) and less than a week for major work (tune up or wheel true). Come on in and drop your wonky ride off and you’ll get her back rolling like a superstar!
New bikes are still coming in…at a trickle. We have back orders with Giant and Brooklyn Bicycle that we still expect to come in this year. Stay tuned at wheelhousedetroit.com/bikes as we keep that page very updated. Plus the THREE used bikes we have in stock are 25% off! And they’re beauts.
The same supply chain issues have affected our service parts and accessories, so our stock has sometimes been a bit light this season. But, good news, we’ve just secured a pretty big order (for 2021 that is, for a “normal” year, it would have been a weekly order) so by this weekend, we’ll be looking good. Come by and check out the cool and useful accessories and parts we’ve landed!
Finally, while we always recommend reserving rental bicycles ahead of time online — you know for sure the bike of your choice will be available, you save 10%, and you can even sign a waiver online saving valuable time at pickup — we want you to know that are happy to accomodate spontaneuous walk-up rentals!
Your support of local small businesses is more important than ever. Thanks to all that have and do.
Sincerely - Kelli Kavanaugh (owner)
July Shop News
Public tours are back! July is fully scheduled and some of August and September is as well; look for more dates to populate later in the season as we confirm. Be sure to reserve as we are only riding with max group sizes of 6 and 10 depending on the tour, so just a couple of bookings can sell out a tour quickly. Visit wheelhousedetroit.com/tours for more info, dates, and reservations.
Private tours are also still very much available! We are currently working with group sizes up to 15. Find out more HERE.
Our service staff is really killing it this season! Minor repairs are basically on-the-spot (within reason, obviously) and tune-ups are being turned around in under a week. Pricing and more info HERE.
Great news! Our entire shop staff is fully vaccinated and, considering our space is highly ventilated, we aren’t requiring masks to be worn any longer.
Not to end on a not-so-great note, but please be aware that the supply chain nightmare is not looking any better for the rest of this season. We are still slowly getting in new bikes that we pre-ordered — as they arrive we update our website — so keep your eyes peeled, but we aren’t special order-ing any because the turn-around could literally be a year and, by the time one hits the pipeline, the price will have ineveitably gone up. We are seeing major price increases in literally everything we stock. We know this is hitting across all sectors, and we appreciate your understanding as we continue to navigate these tricky waters.
July Used Bike Sale
All used bikes are 25% off! We have just a few options, but they are great ones. Check ‘em out at wheelhousedetroit.com/bikes and come in for a test ride. These won’t last long!
June 2021 Tour Update
Finally! Public tours are back! We still have a ton of work to do on our season’s calendar but we were anxious to get going, so we have tours ready for the weekends of June 5-6 and 12-13.
Keep reading for dates and even a discount!
We have Corktown Saturday 6/5 at 1PM (SOLD OUT), Public Art Sunday 6/6 at 11AM, Architecture Saturday 6/12 at 10AM, and Auto Heritage Sunday 6/13 at 11AM.
For one week only, we are offering $5 off these four tours: book using the promo code SPINGTOUR5. You have until June 8 to take advantage of this offer.
Oh - And our Tuesday Eastern Market Tour is back!
One thing we learned during the 2020 season was how great smaller group tours are, both in terms of riding and more personal interactions at stops. We therefore decided to make our public tours smaller; groups will now be just 6 or 10 as opposed to 15. We have accordingly slightly raised our prices, but we feel that the increased quality is more than worth it.
Follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram for the latest news on tours being added to the schedule. We also have a Google Calendar that we keep up to date.
We will continue to offer private tours for groups up to 15 riders, group rentals are available for up to 20, and our Self-Guided Tours are always available as a download at your convenience!
More Info: Group Bookings / Self-Guided Tours
Random June News
It’s finally June! May was a busy month for us, not just in terms of daily operations, but in plotting and planning for the Summer days ahead.
Read ahead for info on new partnerships, hours, and more.
Some Tidbits:
We’ve partnered with the Element Hotel on their Detroit Renewal and Refuel weekend package: two nights at the hotel + our self-guided bicycle tour of Corktown + a tasting at Detroit Whiskey Factory + a tour of Detroit City Distillery + cocktails at the Monacrc Club! Find out more about this amazing package HERE.
We’re so happy to be included in KAYAK’s Detroit Travel Guide!
Watch Kelli (complete with some early pandemic-type internet issues) on Civic Center TV discussing our tours and the supply chain HERE.
Back in 2006, Kelli was named to the inaugural class of Crain’s Detroit 20 in Their 20s. They recently checked in and offered a chance to reflect. Kelli had some words about work/life balance; you can read it HERE.
Shop Talk:
Remember, our Self-Guided Tours are available at anytime! We have Corktown and Auto Heritage (so far). They’re $15 a download on the free TOTAGO app and include a route and a video guide at each stop.
Our Service Department is killing it this season! Our turn-around on big jobs like tune-ups has been a week or less all year. We’re offering delivery and pick-up several days a week and Fix-It Fast Fridays for walk-in repairs.
Inventory has been better than 2020, but not perfect. We’re running a bit low on new bikes at the moment but expect more from Brooklyn Bicycle Co. and Giant this month. We finally are fully-stocked in saddles after seeing almost none for a year! More info on supply chain woes HERE and our current bike inventory HERE.
Finally, starting June 8, we will be open 7 days a week!
Tour Update - May 2021
With Michigan’s COVID numbers still not looking great, we are going to continue to hold the line on offering private tours only, for up to six people. Current info on pricing and booking HERE.
But! There is light at the end of the tunnel!
We’re using the “MI Vacc to Normal” milestones to help guide our decision-making process. We will begin booking public tours for up to six riders once Step 2 (60% vaccinated) is achieved and, when Step 3 (65%) is met, we will open our public tours up to 12 riders.
We update our website and social media regularly as to the latest and greatest news. Stay tuned!