Wednesday, October 20, 2004

Bicycling Magazine - How To Buy A Bike

Bicycling Magazine - How To Buy A Bike

Are you thinking of buying a bike? Take time to read the article referenced above.

Excerpt:
With a transit strike looming last December, New York City's billionaire mayor Michael Bloomberg did what any sensible urbanite would do: He bought a bike for commuting. Bloomberg dropped into Gotham Bikes in Tribeca and, after a carefully scripted photo-op, walked out with a shiny black Cannondale F300 mountain bike.

Great PR for Cannondale, but bad news for Bloomberg. Instead of buying one of the company's more commuter-friendly models (or the suave about-towner Bianchi Milano just behind him in The New York Times' front-page photo), Bloomberg selected a bike with knobby tires and a suspension fork, better suited for the trail than the street. "We offered to put some smooth, Specialized Armadillo tires on the bike," says Ismael Torres, who rang up the $550 sale, "but he thought the knobbies would be more durable."

Even the insanely rich and powerful can end up with the wrong bike. "We try to encourage people to focus on their needs instead of their wants," says Torres. "But, obviously, it's hard."
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