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01-13-2005, 08:23 PM

> I can relate to this. At a local shop where I bought my
> "winter" bike in 2000, I was known as "the guy who rides in
> the winter", with that same tone of amazement and
> condescension you probably heard.
>
> It's never a good idea to laugh at your customers, but if
> you must do it, do it when they aren't there.

Well, what happens when you turn that on its head? In our shop, it's the
customers who laugh at me, because I'm the guy who rides every Tuesday &
Thursday morning, no matter what. Rain, cold, wind... I enjoy laughing at
the absurd (and my customer enjoy laughing at me).

More seriously though, don't expect to ride your bike in the rain and not
have to pay for it. We do have problems from time to time with customers who
believe they ought to be able to ride in a monsoon without worrying about
the effects on their bike. I mean gee, sealed bearings and all, why should
there be a problem? But sealed bearings are designed primarily to keep dust
& crud out, not water (and actually tend to trap water inside them if you
ride through enough). Chains? Yuck. All that grit you pick up from the road
guarantees speedy chain wear, which of course accelerates the wear of cogs &
chainrings. And rims? As long as you don't use your brakes, their fine! But
once you do, you might as well be using sandpaper on them, as the road grit
grinds away your sidewalls to the point that they sometimes actually explode
apart.

So, if possible, save your nicer bike for nicer weather and get something a
bit more pedestrian for use as your rain bike. Something where the parts are
really cheap to replace, and where things don't have to be maintained really
well in order to work.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

01-13-2005, 08:23 PM	#64 (permalink)
Mike Jacoubowsky Guest Posts: n/a	Re: Metal flake in brake pad... > I can relate to this. At a local shop where I bought my > "winter" bike in 2000, I was known as "the guy who rides in > the winter", with that same tone of amazement and > condescension you probably heard. > > It's never a good idea to laugh at your customers, but if > you must do it, do it when they aren't there. Well, what happens when you turn that on its head? In our shop, it's the customers who laugh at me, because I'm the guy who rides every Tuesday & Thursday morning, no matter what. Rain, cold, wind... I enjoy laughing at the absurd (and my customer enjoy laughing at me). More seriously though, don't expect to ride your bike in the rain and not have to pay for it. We do have problems from time to time with customers who believe they ought to be able to ride in a monsoon without worrying about the effects on their bike. I mean gee, sealed bearings and all, why should there be a problem? But sealed bearings are designed primarily to keep dust & crud out, not water (and actually tend to trap water inside them if you ride through enough). Chains? Yuck. All that grit you pick up from the road guarantees speedy chain wear, which of course accelerates the wear of cogs & chainrings. And rims? As long as you don't use your brakes, their fine! But once you do, you might as well be using sandpaper on them, as the road grit grinds away your sidewalls to the point that they sometimes actually explode apart. So, if possible, save your nicer bike for nicer weather and get something a bit more pedestrian for use as your rain bike. Something where the parts are really cheap to replace, and where things don't have to be maintained really well in order to work. --Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReactionBicycles.com