Why do we sell what we sell?

Trek, Specialized, Cannondale, Giant, Scott, Felt, Bianchi, Intense, Santa Cruz, Kona, Yeti, Serotta, Pinarello... the list goes on. And on.

All of us here at Joyride Bikes are riders first. Some of us race, some commute, some just cruise. We sell what we, as riders, want to ride. In Kory's 15+ years as in industry person and Brian's 12+ along with everyone else in the store we have seen, ridden and sold it all. There is a difference. A Pinarello does things in a unique way that other brands do not. While a Bianchi may have some similarities, neither is a Trek. Roast beef ==> prime rib ==> filet mignon==>?? For those that are omnivores, can you tell the difference? Both will satiate the palate but they do it in a different way. (For those of other dietary preferences I'll leave you to your own analogy.)

I'll elaborate some, my personal experience sums to 70+ nice bikes I have personally owned. Titanium, carbon fiber, steel, aluminum, mixed construction and all have been Ultegra or Dura Ace, SRAM Red, Rival or Force and Campagnolo Chorus to Record. That doesn't even begin to count the bikes I've demoed and otherwise learned about. The includes the big brands and many that most have never heard of. I've ridden about every wheelset out there. I'm certainly not stating this to indicate that I am the end-all when it comes to bicycle expertise. Just that I can take my expertise and adapt it to help you find the very best bike for your needs. That is really what Joyride Bikes is about.

Value is another thing we take seriously here at Joyride Bikes. We pay for our stuff too and appreciate getting the best bike for our dollar. We look at the variety of components and weigh the overall package of fit, ride quality and performance to help guide people to the best bike they can find. Not all carbon fiber is the same. Fit does vary tremendously among brands. We'll help you sort and figure it out.

The next time we are asked by a customer is a Pinarello is really as nice as brand 'X', we'll have an answer for that customer. The answer will be 'yes' and if desired there is an accompanying explanation to go along with it. How much time have you got?

Yes, we 29.

We get it. We have for a long time. We don't wax evangelical about the virtues of 29er wheels and consider anything else a kids bike but we have owned, ridden and compared 29er bikes for the better part of 10 years.

There is a movement to push 29er bikes into the establishment with most every manufacturer offering a bike. Even some than openly criticized the notion of wagon wheels only a few years ago have now jumped in and their marketing departments try to convince us they were on board all along. No longer the domain of single speeders and pariahs with Unabomber-like beards. There is a 29er for all.

We offer Felt Racing with some of the most solid values in twenty-nine inch bikes starting at $599.99. Others have sold $599.99 bikes before but they were fairly junky. The Felt beats everything we've seen close to that price-from anybody. Rocky Mountain offers 29ers in every variety, those that have tried have liked. GT has some monster-truck chrome-moly, rigid fork monsters that are just fun. Ride it to school. Ride it to work. Ride the trails and take it to Cape Horn if you want to. Scott takes the light and fast approach to their 29er as usual. Intense has a sweet VPP Spider 29. Serotta, Salsa and Niner have made their way out our doors with 29ers.

So the next time someone asks your opinion as their bike expert, suggest they come down and check out some of our offerings in the big-wheel category and find out what all the fuss is about.

Ventures are here!

So what do we do in the Wintertime? Funny when we get that question. One of the things that makes living in Cache Valley is the variety of outdoor activities we have to pick from. The cold and dark takes away from cycling but opens up new sports that make us better athletes and improves our fitness in ways that a single sport simply cannot.

We've quitely offered Venture Snowboards for a couple of seasons now. Venture was a brand that was easy to believe in: local manufacturing-they do everything in house in Silverton, Colorado; a green ethos that germinated way before the recent fad of companies being environmentally conscientious; they are a small company, Klem and Lisa own the brand. Everything is done by them and their crew in house. A tight knit crew and they ride and manufacture the stuff they want to ride. A good outcome is a foregone conclusion when the you want to ride the best and own your own company.

We're proud to shout out and bring to Cache Valley the best splitboards, and solids, on the market. I've owned, ridden and demoed about everything. The Venture boards stand apart and just like the way a truly dialed mountain bike does, makes every ride more enjoyable and opens up new terrain. Snowboarders can now split and tour almost as fast as skiers and enjoy the flow of riding sideways down our local inbound and outbound terrain. So for those that see the madness in why we choose the brands we do, come in and check out the craftsmanship and design that stokes our fires the other five months out of the year. If anyone is so inclined talk to Kory about a demo and start to discover where your own two legs can take you this Winter.

Yes, it is cyclocross season..

The season has already begun for many and a couple of local racers already have a couple of races under their belts. The Utah series officially starts next Saturday, Oct. 2nd. Many from the Joyride crew are planning a pilgrimage to Victor, ID for Moosecross on the 2nd as well. I heard it was a great time last year and a great way to go gently into the CX pool. Join us for that if you can.

Practices are in full swing and happening on Tuesdays at 6:00 at the Cache County Fairgrounds. About an hour long and a great way to have a fun workout.

We have our largest CX team roster ever at 23 racers and growing! Finally, the new skinsuits are here and looking sharp, just begging to get dirty.

It's better to be lucky than good.

I did it. I won a major award. We had the chance to attend Dealer Camp at Deer Valley last month and ride some of the future goodness we'll be offering in the store this next season. We also got to check out some of the other brands we don't carry-always on the lookout for the best for us to ride.

As part of the Dealer Camp there was a drawing for a pretty nice and serious prize. I managed to win somehow, no skill required, and scored a sweet new 2011 Fox Talas 180. This is a waay nice fork and should find a happy home on my new Slayer with a grin attached to me while riding it. It's about an $1100.00 fork! I was pretty stoked about that obviously.

I also checked out some cool new bike goods. I rode a couple of Ibis bikes, the cyclocross Hakkalugi as well as a Mojo SL. I'm a fan of DW and SDL (short dual link) bikes such as Intense that we offer. The Mojo was fast with a fairly firm feel and lot's of anti-squat. Made me think that someone unaccustomed to full suspension or just wanting a firm feel to the back of the bike would be really happy on one of those bikes. Checked out some road and CX offerings from Blue. Jonathan Page's influence is doing good things for those bikes. One of the pure speed machines I rode was the new Scott Scale carbon 29er. Think a full carbon 29er ready to rip at under #21. The frame is under 949 grams. That's more than likely lighter than the road frame you are on. Crazy. Demoed the new SRAM 2 X 10 in a couple of variations and one was on a Transition Covert. That bike descended great. Climbing you had to stay seated and smooth to make it work but the SRAM and Rockshox goodies are taking performance up in a serious way.

All in all a great day and a fun way to call what I did work. Like I said, it's better to be lucky than good.

Be careful out there!

As I write this I'm thinking of two cyclists I have known for a long time. Both of these individuals are experienced riders with thousands of miles and hundreds on hours on the saddle. Both of them were recently hit by cars and made trips to the hospital. I wish both of them a full and speedy recovery.

This thought along with the passing of Laurent Fignon has me in a somber mood. Each year there are thousands of bicycle/automobile accidents. The exact number is unknown because these accidents are very under reported. Some of the accidents result in serious injury and death.

We all know the rules and the risks. We all ride and eventually settle into a comfort zone and feeling of security. As motorists we feel rushed and don't fully comprehend the constant changing landscape of risks. Lack of attention on either end result in accidents. As riders, let's be hyper vigilant. Help those in your pack. That might include not running a light or shooting a gap that may tempt others to do the same. For those driving, get off the phone. Pay attention to the task and responsibility at hand.

With schools back in and the University at full swing, the chance for conflict is greater than ever. In the end we are all people who ultimately want to go home safely after our ride at the end of the day.

Here's a link that has some common ideas to help safety: http://bicyclesafe.com/

Be careful out there riding and driving. The person riding the bike will lose in a collision with a car and is probably a friend of mine.

He will be missed..

On a sad note today one of the giants of cycling has passed away. The article on Cycling News tells:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/laurent-fignon-remembered

He was one of the first I remember growing up watching. His distinct style and flair did nothing to cover how fiercely competitive he was. Even recently in the 2010 Tour he criticized Contador and Schleck for being too friendly with one another. Fignon's nature demanded that in the greatest sporting event in the world, the one who would be champion must be aggressive and take the victory from all challengers.

Fignon was the last French winner of the Tour de France and one of the true champions of his generation. My own jingoism wants to trump the spirit of American athletes but Fignon resides at the level of Jalabert, Hinault and other great French cyclists who demonstrate the true character of champions and gives us something to admire.

In his battle with cancer and his desire to live he truly showed us that he was not the man that lost the Tour de France by 8 seconds. He was the Champion that won the Tour de France twice.