So
I have made a few commitments to this blog and then just dropped the ball.
SO here I am again only this time I am making no commitments I will just
talk about some of my local suppliers as I find them. I have even added
the app to my phone so I will have two options for posting. So, on to my
new favorite local shop and a great example of a genre of shops that is
historically locally owned and operated - the bike shop. I purchased my
bike from Pig Iron a few years ago and they merged with another shop.
They were doing a fine job but I didn't feel compelled to go
back. I have been trying out other shops since then and a few of those
closed and none really knocked my socks off. I am not sure what I am
looking for but I will know it when I experience it. While I have a nice
bike I can't say that I am an expert, in fact the opposite. I once tried
to put new pedals on my bike and it ended up costing me $300 to repair the
damage I inflicted in the installation of these pedals. Suffice it to say I try
not to fix anything on it. This year I decided once again to try a new
place and I had a recommendation from a work colleague about Bicycles East.
Bicycles East is a bike shop in Glastonbury Connecticut. So I go in
with my bike about two weeks ago for its annual tune up and a potential issue
with the chain. Generally they take the bike and my name/contact
information and tell me they will call me when its ready and you’re out the
door. Not here. I was greeted as soon as I entered and was escorted
over to the service area where it was busy but I was helped almost immediately.
They took my bike and put it up on the little thing that they use to
fix it (that is the technical term) and he proceeds to ask me a series of
questions. When was the last time it was tuned? Am I having any problems?
etc. And then he did a pretty thorough once over, he took my contact
information looked at the schedule and printed out a receipt. He went
over the information in detail. The receipt showed me that they would be
working on my bike on Tuesday of the following week, and it would be ready for
pick up on Wednesday. It also showed the cost for all the parts and labor
with an estimate of the final cost. I loved it! I felt they were
experts and had great customer service. It is the kind of service I long
for. Then I was off on other
errands. Just like they said I got a
call on Tuesday afternoon letting me know that my bike was ready for pick
up. I went in the very next day and was
once again greeted with a smile and the women took my ticket and fetched my
bike. I was asked if there was anything
else I needed and I said no, she rang me up and asked me if I needed assistance
getting it in/on my car. I said no thank
you and I went happily on my way. I
would highly recommend them. Not only will I use them to service both of
my bikes (I have a Cannondale road bike and a Gary Fischer hybrid mountain bike)
but when I am in the market for a new bike I plan to check out their bikes. They sell a full line of great Trek bikes along
with a few other brands. This is the experience I look for. That feeling that they are good at what they
do and appreciate you chose them to do it. From start to finish it was a great experience. They were professional, courteous and
appreciative of my business. So if you
are in the market for a tune up, fix up, or the purchase of a new bike check
them out! I plan to continue to use them. Now if you are not in the Hartford area and
need to have work performed on your bike I hope you have the same
experience. If you do, tell me who you
use… Here is the contact information for
Bicycles East post a comment with your favorite shop and their contact information.
Bicycles
East
Address: 331 New London Turnpike Glastonbury, CT 06033
Website http://bicycleseast.com/
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