Bicycle Garage Indy is a sponsor of the Hoosier Outdoor Experience, Saturday & Sunday, September 18-19, 2010, at Fort Harrison State Park, Indianapolis, IN.
The Hoosier Outdoor Experience is Indiana's largest, hands-on outdoor recreation event. Featuring over 50 activities and 120 grassroots partners, this no-charge weekend at Fort Harrison State Park in Indianapolis will provide the opportunity to learn the basics of outdoor recreation activities available across Indiana's extraordinary public lands.
I'm Kat and have been a Bicycle Garage Indy customer for years!! I love all the staff,they are helpful and accomodating at times when I needed them! I currently own 3 bikes,all from BGI and I LOVE every single one for what they are to me!!! My Hybrid bike is a Giant Sedona.It is my Cadillac.All comfort,upright positioning,moderate in weight and solid...great for touring,camping and the NITE RIDE!!! #2 bike is my Cannondale Six road bike-my sports car!!! Wow,light and FAST and incredible!! Never thought in a million years I would love road biking (MTB biker at heart..)..Beautiful bike!!! Gets lots of looks...#3 bike- my dream bike,Cannondale red Mountain Bike!!! Wow!! This bike eats trails like crazy!!! Did Town Run many times and Westwood...so, at 49 years old,this old lady can still run the trails..may take me alittle longer,but that doesn't matter to me!! Thanks BGI for great service and the amazing bikes in my life!!!
Name: Kat Andrzejewski
Bicycle:
Giant Sedona/
Cannondale Six/Cannondale MTB
City: Greenfield
State: Indiana
Thank you Kat, from everyone at Bicycle Garage Indy! Glad that we can be part of your bicycling fun!
My wife researched vacation spots and settled on Blowing Rock and nearby Boone North Carolina as picturesque artist communities full of galleries, good restaurants, and close to the Blueridge Parkway. We made cottage reservations and, when we arrived in the area, were energized by the narrow winding tree-covered roads up mountains with folksy names that suddenly swept down into the ‘hollers’ where homes clung on the hillsides. Many times we came up on road cyclists grinding out the long serpentine climbs and each one gave me a chance to pine for my own bike which hadn’t made the agenda for this trip. But I had wanted to try off-road biking so, on the last day, I rented a mountain bike, got directions to a set of trails near a local reservoir and took off to try it out. I wish I had the space here to express how fantastic the experience turned out. Little did I know. A week after returning home I was amazed to read a bicycling magazine article that identified the area as one of the top five mountain biking areas in the country. Dumb luck indeed.
Name: Alan Edgar
Bicycle: Cannondale Synapse 3
City: Yorktown
State: IN
Alan: Thanks from everyone at Bicycle Garage Indy for sharing your story with our Customers, Friends and Fans.
Our 12-bike household requires 24 tires, with the four of us riding around 12,000 miles a year. This summer 4 bikes were ready for new tires, so I get to try a wide assortment of the tires available at Bicycle Garage Indy.
First up was our Santana Sovereign tandem. It got a pair of 700x28's Continental (wire bead)
Ultra Gatorskins. Based on a durable carbon black compound, a well regarded puncture protection system and DuraSkin-anti-cut fabric, the Ultra GatorSkin have a reputation as long wearing tire. They weigh in at 330 grams and are a tandem team favorite. We also carry a 700x25 Ultra Gatorskin folding tire as spare on the tandem.
Next up was my wife's 2008 Trek 1.2 WSD and our youngest son's venerable, hand-me-down `90 Trek 1200. Linda rides for sport and triathlons, while Justin is riding to school, and on club and family rides. For their bikes I went with the durable and economical
Serfas Seca with Flat Protection System (FPS). The Seca is a great all-round wire-bead road tire a with long tread life, great cut resistance and superior road feel. Linda got 700x25's, and with Justin's teen riding style, I opted for 700x28's.
Finally, my `83 Trek 850 commuter bike was due for new rubber. I had to replace (mid ride!) one tire last summer, so on the rear I have a Bontrager H2 Hardcase 26 x 1.5". My front tire, which had plenty of tread left, but had sidewall breakdown after 3 years of all-day, outdoor parking was replaced this spring with a
Continental Contact 26 x 1.9". Both are smooth road tires, great on this on former mountain bike now dedicated to commuting.
I will keep you updated on wear over the coming months on all four sets of tires. And odds are, I will have another set to replace soon enough.
Continental, Serfas and Bontrager are just three of the many brands of bicycle tires Indianapolis found at Bicycle Garage Indy’s two locations, North (Clearwater area in Indianapolis) and South (just west of I-65 on County Line Rd, Greenwood)
Wow, Giant did me right. I had a frame failure on my old bike, and I got to upgrade to the new
Trance Advanced fercheep. It's a 4" travel full-suspension mountain bike that feels like it has bottomless travel, but climbs like a road bike. Giant's Maestro suspension flat-out "works." It keeps the rear wheel planted over climbing obstacles, and doesn't need a fancy shock to overcome pedal-induced bob. I added Ergon grips and my favorite saddle (
WTB Laser V), and I'm good for flat'n fast Town Run, or rock-strewn Brown County State Park. Love it!!!
Name: Mark Finney
(Sales Staff at Bicycle Garage Indy North)Bicycle: '08 Giant Trance Advanced
City: Indianapolis
State: IN
Mark: Thanks for Your Bicycle Story. Bicycle Garage Indy features the Giant Advanced Trance as part of a full line of off-road Giant Bikes Indianapolis.
2 years ago I did my first MTB race, a week later I had an accident that put me off my bike. Last weekend I did my first
DINO Race since my accident at the Brown County State Park race. I would like to say I placed but for me, I beat my previous time by 17 minutes which was a win for me.
Name: Rick Beauchamp
Bicycle: Kona Hoss
City: Indianapolis
State: IN
Rick: Congratulations on your return to racing and PR from everyone at Bicycle Garage Indy. BGI is a very active sponsor of the Hoosier Mountain Bike Association.
About 9 years ago I purchased a
Giant Sedona hybrid bike and tag-a-long to tow my autistic son on the Monon Trail. This was actually the first "new" bike I had ever had in my life and LOVED it! My son soon outgrew the tag-a-long and we purchased tandem recumbents to replace it. My poor hybrid just sat unused in my garage for a couple years all by itself. When I was introduced to mountain biking and "real" road riding in 2008, I fell in love with sport! My sister Julia saw how much I loved it and started riding my hybrid. I eventually gave it to her as a present in 2009 but she quickly graduated up to a MUCH nicer road bike and has been quickly become an avid rider herself. Julia then gave the hybrid to our sister Brenda who began taking her kids on family bike rides in Beech Grove. Brenda has since started losing weight and became more interested in road bikes. Her oldest son has "filched" the family bike and frequently takes it out for rides. If you have a bike languishing in your garage, use it...or give it to someone who will. You will be amazed at the diffence it can make in a persons life!
Name: Linda Waddick
Bicycle: Giant Sedona
City: Westfield
State: IN
Linda: Everyone at Bicycle Garage Indy thanks you for Your Bicycle story. The Sedona continues to be a popular "starter" Giant Bike Indianapolis at Bicycle Garage Indy.
I wanted to write and thank Bicycle Garage Indy for my Trek Commuter bike conversion. I originally bought this bike for my daughter several years ago. It wasn't expensive but it was a great entry level Mountain Bike that we used a lot around Indiana...esp the trails at Brown County. For her 16th birthday she got a new dual suspension
Cannondale Rush and we were deciding what to do with this old Trek. Since I was interested in commuting the always awesome Toby Holsman suggested that I convert this bike instead of buying a new commuter bike. So we put smooth tires on, fenders and a new handlebar stem & seat post to make it fit better. Needless to say I love it :-) I even rode it to the track this week for the Indy 500. The only way to get to the race :-) This picture is taken in front of Starbucks on the circle in Indianapolis....my usual parking spot.
Name: Chris Baggott
Bicycle:
Trek 4500 Mountain BikeCity: Greenfield
State: IN
(Thanks Chris- we will pass your thanks along to to Toby and the rest of the staff at Bicycle Garage Indy)
Thank you to all who were patient enough to give Town Run Trail Park time to dry after last week's rain and flooding. The HMBA has inspected the trail, and TRTP will be OPEN as of Tuesday 5/25! Details in the HMBA Forum
http://www.hmba.org. Thanks to HMBA member and BGI employee Mark Finney for this update.
Bicycle Garage Indy supports Mountain Bikes Indianapolis and HMBA events through sponsorship and staff support.
All Cannondale bikes at Bicycle Garage Indy are on sale now through May 23, 2010. You can find the details for this special offer in our latest email newsletter, linked
here.
The Discover Cannondale Event details are:
• Every Cannondale bike on sale (hundreds in stock)
• 15% off all Cannondale Clothing
• 10% off biking accessories when buying a bike
• 20% off any helmet when buying a bike
• 12 months, zero-interest financing for every bicycle purchased. See stores for details.
• Complimentary Intro Bike Fitting session with the purchase of any bike.
Also in this edition of the the Bicycle Garage Indy Email Newsletter, you will find information on
The Discover Cannondale Sales Event takes place at both Bicycle Garage Indy locations, BGI North, (Indianapolis, E 82nd St. in the Clearwater area) or BGI South (Greenwood, just west of I-65 on County Line Rd).
My 1983 850 was the
first Mountain Bike from Trek. Most of the original components looked like they came from a motorcycle, and are long gone via swap meets. The Deore Thumb shifters and head set are the last original parts. Until jobs changed, I was commuting 2,000 miles a year to downtown Indy with it, hence the title UAB (Urban Assault Bike).
Name: Jay Hardcastle
(Marketing Manager, Bicycle Garage Indy)Bicycle: 1983 Trek 850
City: Carmel
State: IN
The Carmel Sprint Triathlon was held this morning, Sunday, April 18, 2010. My 4 year-old & I biked to 110th St and watched the turnaround point of the bike portion.
This rider was the first female to reach the turnaround of the bike leg. (Shameless plug: notice she's on a
Serotta bike!)
Here's a pic of BGI alumnus Scott Mansberger, riding his Cannondale road bike:
There was a freeze warning last night and the 9am temperature was in the low 40s. It was interesting to see folks racing side by side with completely different biking clothing. There were jackets, sweatshirts, bare arms, & even some bare torsos.
I have no picture, but here's a shout out to racer #285: "Your helmet was on backwards." I suppose that's easily done in a hurried transition from the Carmel High School pool.
Among all the high performance bikes, there were plenty of racers on mountain bikes and hybrid bikes. This woman is riding a Trek hybrid bike, which is built more for comfort and less for speed. She must have had a strong swim, because she was racing in the midst of men on $3,000+ triathlon-specific bikes.
This lady is showing a very efficient & aerodynamic position on the bike:
Racing on 110th St, just east of the Monon Trail:
(Congratulations to all Carmel Sprint Triathlon participants. You will find Triathlon Bike Accessories Indianapolis, and Triathlon bikes in-stock now at Bicycle Garage Indy North in Indianapolis, and Bicycle Garage Indy South in Greenwood. Blog Editor)
Mountain biking in Indianapolis is just around the corner. The sun is starting to shine, the trails are starting to dry up and my Cannondale Mountain bike is ready to get muddy! Today I stopped in at the Bicycle Garage Indy Spring Bicycle Expo and picked up some fantastic gear. I am really excited about my new Re-spun Cannondale bike jersey. The coolest thing about this jersey is that it is made from discarded polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles or excess fabric scraps.
Name: Kaila Woodside
Bicycle: Cannondale
City: Indianapolis
State: Indiana
(Thanks Kaila from everyone at BGi. We hope you in enjoy your Cannondale Re-Spun jersey.)
I am 52 years old and have not been on a bike since highschool. Having some back issues, I have let myself get in really bad shape, so I decided to get a bike and see if I can lose some weight and condition myself. I went to the Bike Expo 3/19/10 and bought a new Giant Boulder XL Mountain Bike. Really a nice looking bike. I tested it at BGI and I really liked it. After I got home and rode it for about 4 miles and the gears started shifting bad. Called BGI and they told me to bring it back to have them look at it. When I got there they had me bring the bike in and they had readjusted within 15 minutes. The Tech told my that it was just do from cable stretch. I am really impressed with the quality of service at BGI and I love the new bike. I am glad I picked this bike and BGI to purchase it.
Name: Bill Hawkins
Bicycle:
Giant Boulder XL City: Danville
State: IN
(Thanks Bill! All of us at BGi are glad we were able to take care of your shifting issues. Enjoy your new Giant Bicycle and good luck with your goals!)
I was getting into mountain biking more and more a few years ago and my old department store bike just wasn't cutting it. Late last summer I got a call from my older brother saying that he was going to give me his bike that he had built up. Ever since I've ridden it many miles, both on and off the road. It's a great bike that I plan on using until it falls apart. It is definitely better than all of the old, outdated clothes I got when we were younger.
Name: Ryan Kee
Bicycle: Cannondale Rush Carbon
City: McCordsville
State: Indiana
It's been a long cold lonely winter, as they say, little darlings. Spin class (excuse me, Mr Copyright, that's "Indoor Cycling" to those who haven't bought into the franchise) is fine, but after a while it starts to suck the brain out of my head.
Last week's warmth was a wonderful relief after too many weeks of snow. Now mind you, I like snow better than slush and ice, but enough's enough! When I was riding sportbikes, "PMS" meant Parked Motorcycle Syndrome. It was that time of year when everyone got a little grumpy, and argued about which oil or tires were best. The same thing happens in the cycling community, but I'm not sure what it's called.
Well, to co-opt another famous line: Free at last, free at last, thank god I'm free at last!! We got out on our mountain bikes for the Hoosier Mountain Bike Association's "Thirsty Thursday Urban Ride Downtown" in the past few weeks, and I even got a few miles on the road bike last week, as well. Wow, does it feel good to have the wind in my face again.
Judging by the number of people in Bicycle Garage Indy's store on the side in Castleton (and our Greenwood store, to, I assume), I'm not the only one. People are more upbeat, and are talking about plans for rides big and small.
I discovered a new favorite pair of cool-weather gloves (see my previous blog) , and am re-discovering my cool (not COLD!) weather riding gear. ...And I'm jonesing for some new tires and maybe some wheels.
BGI's big Spring Expo Bicycle Sale is this weekend, and I'm surprisingly excited! The prospect of long days in the saddle is a bit daunting, but the energy of being surrounded by excited cyclists is contageous. We have over a thousand bikes, and will be putting up our biggest tent ever (150% as big as the store!). It's so big that we're going to use the parking lot back by the movie theater (immediately to the West of our store, due North from the light at 82nd & Dean Rd.). ALL the bikes will be in the tent, and everything else-- cycling shoes, jerseys, bib shorts, bike helmets, bicycle tools... whatever you need(!) will be in the store. We're even going to have trolleys to shuttle folks back and forth!
We're going to be closed on Thursday to prepare, and we'll be going full bore from then through the weekend. See ya there!
Passing along an update on local trail conditions from Mark Finney, an avid off-road rider and BGI employee.
Please, if you see people with MTBs and/or gear, do your best to dissuade them from riding the trails for the next few weeks.
As the ground thaws, the trail turns into "grease mud" with a layer of ice beneath. It is VERY susceptible to damage from tire ruts (or footprints), which hold more water and create more mud. If the trails get to thaw and absorb without being disturbed, they can be re-opened WEEKS earlier, and without requiring a ton of volunteer labor from the Hoosier Mountain Bike Association to repair the damage.
Town Run is officially closed (gate closed @ 96th St entrance), but too many people still "poach" in from other points. Other trails to avoid are Westwood (New Castle), Brown County, and Versailles.
Rangeline (Anderson) is the exception. It is an old gravel quarry, and is less prone to the freeze/thaw cycle.
Please refer to
http://www.HMBA.org/ (and specifically to the fresh info in the Forums area) for more information.
Thanks to Mark Finney on the Bicycle Garage Indy Staff for this trail update.
Since today is such a nice day with the first hint of spring I wanted to make sure that people make a point to get to Brown County this season. The Hoosier Mt. Bike Association (HMBA) has done an amazing job here, creating a truly world class track with miles and miles of awesome trails and routes for the entire family regardless of skill level. I've ridden here with my 9 year old and I've ridden with people from around the country who made me beg for oxygen. (of course all on Bikes from Indy's best bike shop) Brown County is close too. There are a bunch of us in the Indy Business community who meet early on Friday mornings there and are back in the office before lunch. A great way to top off the week....Indiana Mountain Biking.
Name: Chris
City: Greenfield
State: IN
My name is Sandy Spears and I work at BGI South and this is the story of my first bike ride of 2010. I like many others have been itching to get outside and ride bicycles, the weather on the other hand has not cooperated, unleashing on the city mounds of snow and bitter cold temperatures. This past Sunday however, held the promise of warmer temps enticing me to make a date with my bike and my friend, I was not going to let this opportunity slip through my pedals. Donned in my cold weather clothing I loaded my bike on to the car rack and made my way downtown to meet my friend. They sky was cloudy and the streets were wet and sloppy from a light misting of rain and melting snow, I knew my bike was going to be a mess before I even started to ride, but I didn’t care I was not to be denied this day or the anticipation of the simple pleasure of being back on my bicycle. On the road we encountered a wide array of conditions including puddles of water, sheets of ice, piles of shoveled snow and light drizzling rain. Now you might be thinking that’s a little reckless getting out on a road bike in those conditions. Rest assured this was not a job for my road bike, nor would I be using one of my mountain bikes or my hybrid, no this ride was going to take a very special type of bike to handle these conditions. I would need to use my sweet little single speed Trek Wasabi for this journey. Oh the fun that was had that day as we rode around the Canal and White River trails. We barely noticed the 39-degree temperature and wet feet as we pedaled away the 14.5 miles made up our adventure. Ah, how could it possibly get any better? Well you end it all with a shared meal and more relevant conversation. “Life is Good”
Name: Sandra Spears
Bicycle: Trek SS Wasabi
City: Indianapolis
State: IN
On November 14, Sgt. Joshua Shaughnessy was injured and his bike was totaled when he was on-duty riding in downtown Indianapolis. While his injuries were not serious, the bike was damaged beyond repair. When Bicycle Garage Indy/BGI Fitness learned of Sgt. Shaughnessy’s accident, first there was a sigh of relief that the officer was not seriously injured. Then, once it was determined the bicycle was damaged beyond repair, BGI President and Founder Randy Clark opted to donate a replacement bike for the officer to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD). The new bicycle, a Trek 2010 Police Bike, was presented to Sgt. Shaughnessy on Tuesday, December 22, 2009. (Photo L-R: Joey Antico, BGI Fitness Commercial Division, Sgt. Joshua Shaughnessy, Sgt. Robert Hipple).
“It is my vision that Indianapolis become as bike-friendly as possible and that includes having active bicycle patrolmen with quality equipment. BGI has been involved with outfitting bicycle police and security officers for many years. We wanted to take this opportunity to give back to the community and to those who serve us day in and day out, keeping the city safer. It is truly our pleasure to support our local police force and we all very happy that the accident didn't result in any major injuries to those involved.” Randy Clark, founder and president of Bicycle Garage Indy / BGI Fitness.
“I’d like to thank BGI for making such a significant contribution to community policing in Indianapolis. This patrol bike will enable officers to more effectively deter crime through proactive crime fighting initiatives. On behalf of IMPD, we are very grateful to BGI for their donation and positive role in the community,” Sgt. Joshua Shaughnessey.
In addition to the police bicycle donated from Bicycle Garage Indy/BGI Fitness, there were four mountain bikes (Giant Yukons) and helmets (Trek Vapor) presented by CIBA Foundation board member Irwin Prince. The bikes and helmets were provided to the IMPD by a $2500 grant from CIBA Foundation. CIBA Foundation has given more than $220,000 in grants supporting all forms of bicycling. Through its grant program, the foundation strives to provide resources to partner organizations that support its goal of promoting the benefits of cycling to the community.
Sgt. Robert Hipple, IMPD Bicycle Liaison, states “The four bicycles will allow IMPD Downtown District Officers to continue policing by bicycle while in a plainclothes capacity. The IMPD Bicycle officers appreciate the tremendous support from the CIBA Foundation and the Indiana cycling community.”
(Photo L-R: Irwin Prince, CIBA Foundation, Sgt. Joshua Shaugnessy, Sgt. Robert Hipple.)
Connie Szabo Schmucker
Advocacy Director
Bicycle Garage Indy / BGI Fitness
Indianapolis & Greenwood, IN
cschmucker@bgindy.com
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