One of the things that I treasure about Pedal is that we ride bikes. We love bikes. We’d love to help you solve your biking conundrum. Such text has been used elsewhere on this site.  Other places in the interworld say “We’re bikers!” and I wonder if that lovely slogan translates to the average dudette looking for a bike.

At Pedal, it means that we ride every bike we can get our hands on. We try to ride a few miles. We try to have fun. We talk about bikes a lot. We *know* that the same ride is better on a better bike. For you, beloved consumer, it means that we don’t want to sell you Some Thing; we want to sell you The Thing we think will make you happy, The Thing that represents a quality answer to the question you pose. “We ride bikes” = “We would like to share our experience with you.”

Although we’re not officially open yet (heck, we don’t have an assembled bike yet), people ask, “What brand of bikes do you sell? What clothes do you sell? What nutrition do you sell?” The following might be TMI, but transparency is a driving force.

Pedal could not be more pleased to be a Jamis dealer. Why? American company. Good history. Not wrapped up in the whole “spending a bazillion dollars to sponsor a pro tour team” mentality. Awesome value. Fairly unknown in the greater Kalamazoo area. Great bikes. Bikes as good as any other bike. Excellent triathlon geometry. Right now, on the cusp of 2011, Jamis is Pedal’s one and only bike brand because Pedal loves Jamis and thinks you will too. Will Pedal offer other brands? Yes. Pedal is looking for an American-made brand.  Pedal is considering a zooty race brand. But Pedal believes that those are niche markets (as if bicycles in general don’t represent a niche market) for enthusiasts.  Jamis makes a bike that’ll make you happy, and your happiness is our overarching goal.

Clothing is tough. Pedal loves Craft. And Skirt Sports. And Twin Six. And DeSoto. And others.  Like bikes, lots of great companies make great products, but we have very nice stuff that we think you’ll love. Will we carry other brands?  For sure, but we’re exceptionally pleased with the brands we carry.

Nutrition is more of the same.

What do all of these words mean?  They mean that we’ve taken great pains to become associated with brands that we love.  We’ve done tons of research that would bore you to tears and a little bit of research that would make you envious. However, it could be that you’re looking for something else.  If that’s the case, please drop by and talk to us.  We want to know what our customers — current and potential — desire.  As we lack supernatural powers, your feedback is the very best way for us to determine what stuff we should stock.

I had a chance to ride a couple of competitor bikes when I went to Louisville this fall.

Saturday's Bike

Saturday I rode an aluminum 54 Specialized with Zipp 303s and a SRAM Force drivetrain.  My cross bike is a 51 Felt, so I was a bit nervous about riding a 54.  My worries were for naught as the bike actually fit very well.  The Force was a bit nicer than the Rival on my cross bike and maybe not as awesome as the Red on my road bike, which seems as it should be.  The 303s were nice, but I never forgot that I was on someone else’s very expensive wheels.  This bike reminded me very much of my bike, which I think is a good thing.

Sunday's Bike

There were just no 51 loaners to be had in Louisville, so Sunday I rode a 54 carbon Cannondale.  This seemed to be a significantly bigger bike.  The top tube was dangerously high for a short-inseam person and I didn’t feel like I could get the front-end low enough.  The takeaway from this data is simply that a 54 Cannondale is a bigger bike than a 54 Specialized.  No harm in that, and a good reminder that you shouldn’t judge (or purchase) a bike by its stated size.  Despite being a tad large, it was a terrific bike (finished 1 and 2 in the pro race), and the Red drivetrain was super excellent.  I have to admit that I was a bit less nervous on aluminum clinchers than I was with carbon tubulars, perhaps because the aluminum rims had a more familiar feel.

The moral of the story is that there are lots of good cross bikes.  I crashed ‘em both and neither broke, which was very good news for my kid’s college fund.  I also preferred the aluminum bike over the carbon bike, but factoring in that the aluminum bike fit and the carbon didn’t, it’s hardly a fair comparison.  Both were a pleasure to ride and race.

My sincere thanks to Specialized and Cannondale for lending their bikes to a complete hack, and to Greenware for sponsoring the USGP of Cyclocross.  Fun on a bun.

We lucked into a super-nice location, but a bit of construction must be done before we’re ready for operation.  Herewith pictures and, hopefully, signs of progress.

Initial Framing

A Ladder Changing into Something More Comfortable

Old Neon and a Decent View

The Walls Are Closing In

More and More Drywall

Next:  pick the paint.  And the fixtures.  And every other darn thing.