City Cyclist is one of the newest bike shops in town. According to their website they opened in 2007. They were originally located a couple of doors over in the same shopping center but they quickly outgrew the space. They had their grand re-opening last weekend. This new location is a huge improvement and co-owners Debbie Bartlett and Mike Nichols are proud of it. They are geared toward servicing commuters, recreational cyclists and recumbant riders which means that anybody can walk in here with a discount store bike or ask questions without encountering "attitude". The shop has quickly become the favorite of a certain infamous supercommuter/ blogger known as Doohickie (here's his commuting blog).
My son's Trek needed a derailleur adjustment so I decided to have my older son run the bike over for some professional attention. I picked up the bike this afternoon which gave me the chance to have a nice conversation with the owners. Mike gave me a tour of their new space so I took the opportunity to snap a few photos.
Biria Classic Dutch Bike
I didn't notice at the shop but it looks like this trike is equipped with a generator hub. Pretty neat!
Mike told me that they wanted an open shop area so that customers would feel comfortable approaching the mechanics while their bikes are being worked on.
This area is going to be a bike cleaning station that will be available to customers. You can bring your own cleaners or use some provided by the shop (for a small fee). There is a drain in the floor and a small washout sink. There will also be an airhose attached to the line on the wall that can be used to dry your bike.
Owners Debbie and Mike
I may have convinced Mike to sponsor some short, easy paced rides starting from the shop and various locations around town. The guys from Bike Friendly Oak Cliff have started regular themed rides, it would be nice to have something similar.
City Cyclist is located at 6236 McCart Avenue in Fort Worth. Take the time to stop by and visit.
cool! sweet shop, it looks super friendly :) and with a coffee area, excellent!!
ReplyDeleteIt is a friendly shop. They're also fairly close to my house which is really nice. I'll have to try their coffee on my next visit.
ReplyDeleteIt is a friendly shop indeed, perhaps too friendly for their own good sometimes, so I try to refer them all I can. I stopped by the shop this afternoon and Mike was pretty excited after seeing this writeup.
ReplyDeleteWhich kind of shames me in that I took a bunch of pictures at their grand re-opening and never posted them!
The coffee is free (although there is a voluntary coffee kittie), and there are snacks near the shop area that they are selling on the honor system- just drop in the required amount of change in the box and take your snack. I hope that lasts; it's unique.
The new shop is much like the old one, with more room. I was worried they would lose their original charm when they moved into the bigger space, but the atmosphere is the same.
I'm glad they liked the writeup. I hope things go well for them. I've got a couple more bikes that need attention so I'll be spending more money with them soon.
ReplyDeleteNo need to be ashamed about not posting those pictures, we all get busy. I'm just excited that I beat you to it!