Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no10

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no10
November, Movies Movies! And more Parties!

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the Spoke Wrench.  This is the tool, according to Randy, that can either make you a hero or a scape goat.  Or, a little knowledge can kill you.  Truing your wheels is important, very important.  Doing it right is even more important.  A little tension goes a long way.  Too much tension, and your previously mostly true wheel can resemble a taco.  And while a spoke wrench is the key to a true wheel, at least as important is knowing what to do with that spoke wrench.  So watch for our classes in January, so you can learn to use this tool.

Movie Night and PARTY!
Repairs for Spring!
Trainers are In!
Road Bikes, Single Speeds and Cyclocross, Oh My!
Sugoi clothing
Electra offering a rebate!
Gift Cards!

Movie Night and PARTY!
Monday, November 30 7PM David, Art Bull and Trevor Smith will host a slide presentation on their Great Canadian Adventure to Montreal and Quebec this past summer.  This is also David’s good-bye party, as he embarks on a new adventure to New York City.  As usual, with movie nights, Hors d’œuvre and drinks will be served.  RSVPs are a must, call the shop, or email Randy, bicycledoctor@continentalbikeshop.com

Repairs for Spring!
I know, its not spring yet.  Its not even technically winter yet, but its been pretty cold, and then again, pretty warm this month.  But, now is the perfect time to bring your bike in.  You can get it back quickly, stock up on some cold weather riding gear, and most importantly, beat the spring rush.  Or, instead of getting your bike back quickly, you can leave your bike for its own vacation, and we can upgrade your kit, do a drive train clean and tune up, and make your bike better than new for spring.

Trainers are in!
Cyclops trainers are here!  We’ve got the Mag, Mag+, Magneto, Fluid2, and rollers in the store.  Trainers are a great way to get a head start on spring, and keep riding.  They’re also a great way to use up a mostly used tire that’s still got some life in it, because the last thing you want to do is put your brand new Vittoria tire on a trainer.

Road Bikes, Single Speeds and Cyclocross, Oh My!
700c go fast bikes are on sale!  From 15% to 25% off, depending on the bike!  Sale applies to in stock bikes only!  Come in and test ride before the bikes are gone and the snow flies!

Sugoi Clothing
Need some cool weather gear?  We’ve got it from Sugoi, the newest addition to our clothing line up.  We’ve got arm and leg warmers, balaclavas, gloves, tights, and shoe covers for your cool weather riding pleasure.

Electra Rebate!
Electra has decided to reward cool weather cruisers.  If you buy any Electra bike, with a retail price of $399 or more, between now and 12-31, you can get a $25 rebate right from Electra.  We’re not sure why they decided to do it, we’re just happy they are.  Every Electra you buy qualifies for the rebate, and if you buy two, then well, you get $50 back.  If your chosen Electra retails for less than $399, don’t worry, they will still send you a rebate.  This time for $10.

Gift Cards!
It is that time of year!  Get your holiday shopping done right!  Know someone who likes to shop at Continental?  Want to convert your ridding buddies into Continental customers?  There’s no better gift than a gift card then.  They never expire, we’ve upgraded to real cards, no more paper gift certificates, and we don’t charge pesky fees like some credit card companies do if you don’t use your card.  So stop in, or give us a call, and make your holidays a cheery yellow and black.

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol3 no4

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol3 no4
June 2007

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the letter “K” for Kona. Ever wonder if people really jump off mountains while mountain biking? They do. But generally mountains are required. The people at Kona believe that if you can ride it, they should make a bike to handle it. And they do. They also sponsor all sorts or advocacy and trail building. And the Kona Midwest Mountain Bike Team. All in all, we think they’re a pretty cool company, with a lot of style. Check them out at Konaworld.com

New Hours!
If you’ve seen our website, listened to our answering machine message or happened by, you’ve noticed our hours have changed slightly. Now, and until we decree otherwise, we’re open ever weeknight till 7PM! That’s right, Monday – Friday is now 10-7! The change is for the summer, or until we decide other wise, somewhere after the end of summer. We promise if things change, we’ll have just as much fanfare next time!
Back to the top

BRING YOUR REPAIR IN NOW!
Its summer, finally, in Michigan: those fleeting three to four months of riding when every charity ride known to humanity takes place in Michigan. This is a special reminder for all you charity riders out there, especially the WAM riders. Please! Please! Please! Bring your bike in now! If you bring it in the day before the ride, we won’t laugh at you, (or at least we’ll try not to) but we will politely remind you that there are 300-700 other riders who wanted the same thing. And no, you can’t have your bike back for the ride the next day, it’s just not possible. So, before it’s too late bring in your repair, and we should be able to get it back to you in about three days. I’m sure there are rides I missed, and we’ve got nothing against them. But that’s what the LMB calendar is for.

Knock out Lock out
Suspension is great. It helps keep your wheels on the ground and you on the bike. But what if you don’t want it right now? Can you turn your suspension off? If you’re not riding a Cannondale with a HeadShok, it can be a mighty large order to fill. But, we’ve got a solution for you. Actually, its Kona and Rock Shox that have the solution. Rock Shox Turnkey. Turn it on. Turn it off. Can’t get a whole lot easier than that. Rock Shox is now part of the lovely SRAM family, so you’ll hear no complaints on that from us. It’s easy to use, with a little knob on the top of the right side of the crown, which flips from on to off with little effort, but it’s not something that you’ll accidentally hit without meaning to. If that’s something you’re looking for in a mountain bike, don’t wait! If it’s a Kona, and I haven’t got it, it’s probably not elsewhere to be had. So don’t sit and twiddle your thumbs, come on, get acquainted with Turnkey!

Bianchi Celebrates Celeste
Celeste is one of those colors that you either love or hate. Very few people can manage to be ambivalent towards it. One thing is certain. When you see that color on a bike or jersey on a race podium, you know it’s Bianchi. To commemorate their 120th anniversary, Bianchi released the 1885 frame, in celeste, with ‘1885’ printed on the top tube. The 1885 features an aluminum frame with carbon fork and seat stays. To commemorate the three times a Bianchi team won both the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia, (1949, 1952 and 1998) they released the ‘928 Carbon’ and ‘928L’ carbon lugged frame. With 120 years of experience we have to figure they’re doing something right. Both frames are available in a couple of different parts configurations, from both Shimano and Campagnolo. We’re personally fans of the 1885 with a Campy Veloce setup, and the 928L with Campy Chorus. And we unanimously agree that everyone should at least test ride them. (Well, I’m sure it would be unanimous if I bothered to poll anyone. But John definitely says “Test Ride one!”)

Did you know that supposedly celeste was the color of the Queen of Italy’s eyes? Thankfully, celeste has evolved over the last 120 years, from what Bianchi now calls ‘vintage celeste’ or ‘gang green’ (hazel green) into the very bright celeste we all know and love. I would worry if the queen’s eyes were modern celeste.

Salsa! MMMM! Spicy!
No, we haven’t started serving chips and salsa, even though it sounds yummy. Bike grease + salsa just doesn’t sound very tasty. However, we are serving up some Salsa frames. Last month was all about 29ers, and I may or may not have mentioned, that two of our 29ers are lovely Salsas. If you’re looking for a soft tail 29er, the Dos Niner is the way to go. For a less is more approach, the El Mariachi is the way to go. With a rigid frame and fork, and a 1 x 9 set up, its fun, and no frills, it’s as cool as a single speed, and more practical for those of is, (me included) who think gears are an important part of riding.

Single Speeds
Ever feel like you want to ride BMX, but maybe you’ve out gown it? I missed BMX, my parents rightly figured I’d try to jump over something I shouldn’t and would never let me try. But there’s something alluring about just having one gear, even though I pretty firmly believe in having at least three, preferably seven. So if you want to recapture those glory days, or try your hand at the BMX riding you never had before, try a single speed mountain bike. We’ve got quite a few to choose from.