Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no11

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no11
December, Happy Holidays! Stay Warm edition

As the year draws to a close, no matter what holiday you choose, we hope its merry, festive and bright and the best it can be.  So from all of us at Continental Bike Shop, Happy Holidays!

Holiday Hours!
Thanks for coming out!
Trainers
Gift Cards!
Repair Classes
Movie Night!
Electra Rebate gets Better!
Repairs!

Holiday Hours!
Hey, everyone needs some time off for the holidays.  We’ll be open December 24th, 9AM-1PM, for you last minute Christmas shoppers.  We’re closed, as always on December 25th.  For New Years Eve, we’ll be open 10AM-2PM.  Sometimes hockey really is more important.  We’re also Closed on January 1st.  Happy Holidays!

Thanks for Coming out!
For everyone who came out to the Slide Show/Farewell Party, thanks!  It was standing room only and a huge success.  We wish David all the best as he embarks on something new.

Trainers!
Why waste winter?  There are plenty of ways to make winter riding fun.  Either by dressing appropriately for the weather with our new Sugoi cold weather gear, or by keeping in shape on your trainer or rollers.  We’ve got the best trainers from Cycleops, the Fluid 2 and Magneto, with progressive resistance, and the Mag and Mag+ with adjustable resistance.

Repair Classes!
There’s always more you can learn about a bike.  Always.  But you have to start somewhere.  One of the best places to do that is at the Park Tool School.  Over four weeks, you lean how to tune up your bike, everything from changing a flat to adjusting your derailleurs and brakes.  Classes cost $125, and a $50 deposit is required when you sign up to hold your place.  The cost of the class also includes a copy of the Park Tool School, Big Blue Book of Bike Repair.  Dates are Wednesdays, January 13th, 20th, 27th, and February 3rd.  RSVP to Randy at bicycledoctor@continentalbikeshop.com.

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.

If you buy a $50 gift card, we’ll give you $55, for $100, you get $115 on the card, and if you buy a $200 gift card, you actually get $240 on the card.  Its our version of economic stimulus, no hidden taxes, fees, or long term repercussions…  To qualify for extra gift card money, you need top purchase the gift cards before December 31st!  Remember, gift cards never expire!

Movie Night!
Are you interested in another movie night?  We’ve got a copy of Catch the Wind, the Mike Walden story, that we’d love to show if there’s enough interest.  Please call or email Randy at the shop, bicycledoctor@continentalbikeshop.com.

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.

Like I said, it gets better.  Now through the end of the year, we’ll match whatever rebate Electra is giving on any Electra, in stock or special order.  And now we’ve got more Townies in stock to choose from.  They make great gifts!

Repairs!
I feel like a broken record.  Every year, all winter long we tell everyone to get their repairs in while its cold and you’re not thinking about your bike.  Because neither is anyone else.  And every spring, people want their bikes tuned up on the first nice day so that they can ride as soon as possible.  Now is the time to get your bike in for service!  NOW not April 1st!

And to make that a little more appealing, and easier… Tune up-Drive Train Cleans that usually run $150 are $100!  Now through February 13th!  Get your bike in now and get ready for the spring!  Airing your tires on the first warm dry day is far better than finding out something catastrophic needs to be fixed.

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 vol5 no9

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no9
October, Trick or Treat, Mostly Treats, Edition

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the Headset Wrench.  Threaded headsets require a couple of wrenches to get them good and tight, otherwise you’ve got play in your headset and that’s never good.  Headset wrenches are designed to tighten the locking cups of a threaded headset.  Always good for your bike.

Park Tool School Classes!
SoSS!
Women’s Clothing Sale!
Rewards Program
Movie Night?
Road Shoe Sale!
Cyclocross on Sale!
Spinning Class?

Park Tool School!
There’s always more you can learn about a bike.  Always.  But you have to start somewhere.  One of the best places to do that is at the Park Tool School.  Over four weeks, you lean how to tune up your bike, everything from changing a flat to adjusting your derailleurs and brakes.  Classes cost $125, and a $50 deposit is required when you sign up to hold your place.  The cost of the class also includes a copy of the Park Tool School, Big Blue Book of Bike Repair.  Dates are November 10, 17, 24, and December 1.  Call the shop 248/545-1225 or email bicycledoctor@sbcglobal.net to RSVP.

SoSS!
No, we’re not sending out bad Morse code.  And we’re not a ship- last we checked.  SoSS is Sale of Single Speeds.  And when I say single speeds, I mean road single speeds, not cruisers, and only bikes we have in the store.  Bianchi San Jose and Pista, Kona Paddy Wagons, and Giant Bowerys are on sale, 15% off.

Women’s Clothing and Shoes!
Women’s clothing is on sale, 40% off!  So if there’s something that’s looked interesting, but you weren’t  ready to get, now might be the time.  Also, all women’s cycling shoes are 20% off.  Diadora, Cannondale, and best of all, Sidi shoes!  Need new shoes?  Needs a second pair of shoes?    Need Spinning shoes?  Now’s the time to get them.

Ride Club Rewards
If you haven’t signed up for the Ride Club, why not?  Members get money back twice a year for shopping at Continental.  This year’s rewards went out at the end of September.  They’re good on anything in the store, but you have to hurry, they expire on November 1!

Movie Night?
Do you have pictures, a Power Point presentation, video, or some other way you’d like to share a bike trip with us?  We love hosting these nights, we just need riders who aren’t afraid to get up and talk about their trips.  Past presentations have included everything from Mountain biking in Mexico, to Vintage road rides in Italy.  If you’re interested, let us know!

Road Shoe Sale!
We’ve got a bunch of road shoes still, and we’d really like to help them find new homes.  So, we’re putting them on sale too.  All in stock road shoes are 20%off!

Cyclocross on Sale!
Just in time for some great cool-weather riding or your local cyclocross race, we’ve got all of our cyclocross bikes on sale!  2009 Kona Jake’s and one lone Cannondale looking for a new home are all 15% off!

Spinning Class?
Calling all spinning class aficionados!  We’d like to host Spinning Classes this winter at Continental, but, we have a small problem.  None of us have any experience running a spinning class.  If you’re interested, give Randy a call.  Classes would be after hours once or twice a week depending on interest level.

Hey! Just a note.  If its on sale, its only on things that are actually physically in the store.  Special orders only if available from the vendor and PAID IN FULL up front.

That’s all for this edition of the Spoken Wrench.  Here follows the legal mumbo Jumbo.

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no7

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no7

June, almost July: Why, yes, Virginia, there really is a Summer, edition.

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the Y-wrench. One of the most useful, unless you’re Jason, and you hate them, Allen wrenches around, Y-wrenches are just that, Y-shaped, 3-way wrenches that have either a 4, 5 and 6mm Allen head, or a 2, 2.5, and 3mm Allen heads. Because of the shape, Y-wrenches offer great leverage, but they can sometimes be hard to maneuver under a seat or while trying to install a bottle cage.

But for a seat post clamp, they work great.

Charity Ride Ready

Speaking of Repairs…

Send a ‘Thank You’ to Rep. Switalski

Web Specials

Carbon Crank Sale

Getting Ready for the 4^th:

1. Car Racks needed?

2. Closed Saturday July 4^th.

Are you Charity Ride Ready?

It’s summer in Metro Detroit, any way you slice it. With some really hot days behind us, and some really hot days that are sure to follow, it can only mean two things:

1. That we will once again prove all meteorologists and weathermen wrong and nothing they predict weather wise will occur.

or

2. It must be Charity Ride Season.

Well, unless Hell freezes over this summer, I’m going to have to say both 1 and 2 are probably correct, but this isn’t about weather. This is about the impending WAM, MS-150 (or whatever they’ve named it), DALMAC, and whatever else you might be riding this summer. While Randy and the Bike Doctor Van will be making appearances on a lot of rides, he can’t be everywhere at once. Its much better to be ready to roll well before your ride than broken down on the side of the road.

Once July rolls in, Charity Ride repairs tend to take over, so please allow at least a week between when you bring us your bike and when you need to leave. Because, no, you may not bring your bike in for an overhaul, tune-up or drive train clean and have it back tomorrow.

Speaking of Repairs….

It’s summer, and we think you should be riding, especially this week, because it’s supposed to be beautiful Michigan weather, when its not raining. But, if you’ve brought your bike in for repair, and we still have it, that might be a little hard. So, if we’ve got your bike, please, pretty please, come pick it up.

Send a ‘Thank You’ to Rep. Switalski

In Mid-June, the Michigan House of Representatives passed transportation legislation that included Complete Streets language and Representative Switalski was instrumental in introducing that language. The LMB would like to make sure that Rep. Switalski feels the cycling love, so if you’re inclined, stop by the form the LMB created and fill it out. It only takes a few minutes, and can mean a lot for the future of the legislation. (make sure to put your whole name in the ‘Name’ field as there isn’t a separate spot for first and last name.) http://citizenspeak.org/node/1666

Web Specials

If you’ve visited our website lately, you may have noticed new items on the homepage, especially the track wheels and new 2008 Cannondale closeout bikes, (for the vertically challenged, and the very un-vertically challenged.) Keep an eye out there for one-ofs, last ones, and other specials that may pop up…

Specials You Say?

Need a new crank on your road bike? Something light, stiff and stealthy looking? An Easton EC-90 crank set might just do the trick. Light, stiff, carbon with aluminum chainrings and X-type bottom bracket, the EC-90 weighs in at about 690 grams, (give or take one bearing race that was left accidentally in the box and once plastic wrapper and grease that was left on). Originally priced at $800 for the bottom bracket and the crank set, we’ll let it got for $625 (plus tax, obviously.)

Getting Ready for the 4^th

Car Racks Anyone?

July 4^th is traditionally vacation time, and lots of times you might want to take your bikes with you. Which, if the vehicle you’re planning on using is packed with people and luggage, bikes can be difficult to cart around. Same goes for small vehicles into which the bike wont fit on a good day.

We have Saris Car racks in stock, both the hitch and trunk mounted varieties in stock for your rack needs. To see if a Saris trunk rack will fit your car visit them on the web: http://www.saris.com/sarisfitsearch.aspx?ddlMake=&Submit=Find+Rack

By the way, car racks are not available for rent, nor are they returnable after a holiday weekend. Sorry. It’s been tried, and makes us rather unhappy. And thanks for your understanding.

Saturday July 4^th Continental Bike Shop will be closed for independence day. And since we’re always closed on Sundays, We will also be closed on the 5^th. See you Monday morning.

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no2

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol5 no2

February, Really, Enough with the Winter, Edition. Please.

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the Torx Wrench. Not to be confused with the torque wrench, the Torx is a six sided driver designed to eliminate the rounded edges that wear out normal allen wrenches. The most common place to find a torx is on disc brakes, where you really want to make sure they’re not going anywhere. Usually, they drivers are found on larger multi tools, but sometimes that means giving up the pocket knife and bottle opener that get way more usage.

We’re Sick of Winter and Snow and Cold Sale!

We’re utterly done with winter. It could be done tomorrow, and that still wouldn’t be soon enough. But it won’t be, and we know that. (And winter and cold and freezing is good for the water levels in the Great Lakes, so its not all bad.) So we’re having a sale, on February 28th. A Gambler’s Sale. Do you like to gamble? Such a funny question coming from the girl who hates going to Vegas because it’s all casino’s and gambling, but this is so much more fun.

So here’s the details, its a progressive sale.

• From 10am to 12Noon, parts and accessories will be 15% off, and 08 and older bikes will be 10% off!
• From 12Noon to 2PM, parts and accessories will be 30% off, and 08 and older bikes will be 15% off.
• From 2PM to 4Pm, pats and accessories will be 40% off, and 08 and older bikes will be 20% off.
• From 4Pm to 5Pm, parts and accessories will be 50% off, and 08 and older bikes will be ?!?!% off! We’ll surprise you!

So here’s where the gamble comes in, you’ll save more later on, but we can’t say what will still be around come 4PM.

The NOT so Fine Print: ALL SALES ARE FINAL. All of em. Its on sale, and we’d really like you to keep it. 08 and older bikes are on sale. 09 are not. Parts and accessories means almost everything that’s not a bike. Labour’s not a part of that. Supplies are limited to what we have in the store, on hand, in stock. Special order stuff is not on sale. Any other questions? Call the shop and ask for Randy.

Repairs, Repairs, Repairs, They’re Everywhere.

We have returned to that time of year, when everyone is itching for whatever warmth we can find, and want to ride the minute it thaws and the snow’s gone, and the temperature is above freezing for more than a half an hour. So, bring your repair in now, while there might still be some snow on the ground, and before the MAD FIX MY BIKE NOW! rush starts. Please? Thanks.

Happy Holidays!

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol4 no15

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol4 no15
Winter weather and Wrenches Edition

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the Allen Wrench. Next time you look at your bike, you’ll notice that along with the numerous Phillips head screws, mostly Allen bolts. In mostly 4 and 5mm sizes, though the occasional 3mm and 6mm bolt are not unheard of, it just depends on what that bolt might be doing. So, we salute the allen wrench. Without which, we’d get very little bike building and fixing, and seat adjusting done.

And Gene Diggs, who gave me the suggestion of wrenches now that we’ve moved past the alphabetical inspiration.

Give the Gift of Cycling (the easy way)

Bikes are notoriously hard to wrap. Its not like you can put it back in the box we took it out of, that requires more dis-assembly than most people want in a gift. I mean, its fun to put together Lego, that’s the point. Putting together a bike… probably not what you want to be doing. We’ve got shiny new gift cards that make gift wrapping a cinch. They don’t fit into water bottles quite as well as gift certificates did… but they go nicely with a Continental Bike Shop mug.

Gift cards, like their predecessor, never expire, never lose value, etc. If you can’t make it in, we can mail it to you for $5. We’ll ship it USPS Priority Mail, and make sure it gets where ever you’d like it sent.

Calling all Volunteers…

We’re looking for someone with some artistic skills of some sort, who’d like to create a window display for us. We’ve got two great display windows on John R that need some bike related love. If you have any ideas, or you’d like to get in on the nitty gritty, let us know.

A Bike Spa, You Say?

Actually, Waterford Precision Cycles says your bike could use a good spa treatment if you plan on riding throughout the winter. A good cleaning, lubing and polishing to keep everything working as it should, and protect your investment. Waterford’s in Waterford Wisconsin, and they get their fair share of snow there too.

Speaking of Bike Spas, now’s a great time to get your bike in for a little TLC. Why wait weeks in the spring when you can get your bike back the next day in the winter?

Slide Shows, Rides and Maybe More Slide Shows…

Dave, Art and Trevor will present their recent ride in Nova Scotia sometime in January, as soon as we have a date, we’ll let yo know.

If there’s anyone else who’d like to do a slide show about a recent ride let us know, we’re looking for a few more for January and February.

More Repair Classes…

There’s still room in the January repair classes, which meet Thursday, January 15th, 22nd, 29th, and February 5th, beginning at 7PM. Classes usually last about two hours, and we cover basic maintenance…

Classes are $125 and include 4 weeks and the Park Tool School Manual. They’re on Thursdays at 7PM, and are approximately 2 to 3 hours long depending on how much everyone talks. If you’d like to RSVP for a class, you can email me back, and I’ll put you on the list, or give us a call and we’ll put you on the list. Either way, in the fairly near future, we’ll be needing (at least) a $50 deposit to hold your spot. Which you can call in a credit card number for, or mail us a check. We’ll happily accept either.
If you have any further questions, let us know!

Advanced Repair Classes

If you’ve ever wanted to get down and dirty with your bike, in a much more detailed way than in the Basic Repair Class, we offer Advanced Repair Classes. The differences break down to the difference between a tune up and an overhaul, well, and you have to take the Basic Repair Class before you take the Advanced Repair class.

You’ll overhaul your bottom bracket, headset, hubs, replace a couple spokes, and a drive train clean. There’s not a whole lot you won’t be removing from your bike this time around.

Classes will run Thursday nights at 7PM, February 19th, 26th, March 5th, and 12th. Cost is $150 for 4 classes, and that covers the class and shop supplies, and us holding on to the pieces and parts that will rejoin your frame at a latter date. Like usual, a $50 deposit holds your spot. We’ve got room for 4-6 people… so if this is your cup of tea, or ball of wax, or… the bike related analogy fails me right now… let us know, and quick.

If you have any questions, please email us, liz@continentalbikeshop.com, or give us a call.

Holiday Hours…

We’ll be open Christmas Eve from 9AM to Noon. That’s all. Actually, it’ll be Randy. So if you need some last minute gifts, or to pick up that layaway at the last minute, we’ll be here. We’re closed for Christmas, December 25th. We’ll be back doing our thing on the 26th. We close at 3PM on December 31st, and we’re closed on January 1st. We’ll be back on the 2nd, bright eyed and looking forward to spring.

As 2008 draws to a close, we’d like to take an opportunity to say ‘Thanks.’ Thanks for making Continental your bike shop. Thanks for your continued patronage and support throughout 2008. Thanks for being you, and making our job all the more enjoyable because of it. (Thanks for reading the whole Spoken Wrench. Sometimes we save the best for last.)

Happy Holidays! Whichever holiday you may choose to celebrate, we hope that it is full of warmth and good cheer. May your 2009 be bright and full of everything you hope it can be.

~The Staff at Continental Bike Shop.

Closed for Thanksgiving!

Repair Classes!

When we originally scheduled repair classes, we figured both sessions would be on Tuesdays. Well, it turns out that Tuesdays’ have a prior commitment, and our January/February session has new dates:

January 15, 22, 29, and February 5.

Also, they have plenty of space, so if you’d still like to sign up, let us know!

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol4 no13

Continental Bike Shop presents the Spoken Wrench vol4 no13
Repair classes and one last Interbike moment, and things, edition.

This edition of the Spoken Wrench is brought to you by the letter ‘Y,’ for Yellow Jersey, young, youthful, yucky drive trains, snow yetis, and possibly others, but I’m almost to the end of the alphabet and you can bet we’ll find some other thing to start the newsletter with. These last few letters have been difficult to come up with.

Is your drive train yucky? Making noise? Grinding, or making other noises that make your riding buddies grimace and laugh behind your back? Perhaps its time for a drive train clean. They really do make everything better.

Repair Classes!
Randy’s take on Interbike
Call for slide shows!
Lights!
Women’s Clothing
Holidays and Stocking Stuffers.

Repair Classes
Right now we have two sessions scheduled, and if we get enough interest, we can always add more.

The first session runs November 11, 18, 25, and December 2.
The second session runs January 13, 20, 27, and February 3.

Classes are $125 and include 4 weeks and the Park Tool School Manual. They’re on Tuesdays at 7PM, and are approximately 2 to 3 hours long depending on how much everyone talks.
If you’d like to RSVP for a class, you can email me back, and I’ll put you on the list, or give us a call and we’ll put you on the list. Either way, in the fairly near future, we’ll be needing (at least) a $50 deposit to hold your spot. Which you can call in a credit card number for, or mail us a check. We’ll happily accept either.

If you have any further questions, let us know!

Randy’s take on Interbike
I can’t leave our fearless leader out of this, so the one thing that Randy wanted to bring home, followed by the things he really did bring home.

One thing: Randy’s all for the Bianchi Dolomiti. Why? Did you look at those beautiful lugs last time? It doesn’t hurt that Bianchi is known as a road bike company, celeste is their traditional colour, and its steel. As Randy put it, the bike is gorgeous, and he appreciates classic workmanship and unique design. He’s not big on the cookie cutter look a lot of bikes have. Nor, is he big on ipods.

Things he really did bring home:
Sometime in the middle of the summer, early summer maybe, earlier this year at least, we got new repair stand clamps. They’re yellow. We really like ’em. They were custom painted for us by Bret Flemming of Efficient Velo Tools. Bret’s the service manager at Bike Gallery in Portland, OR. We see a lot of bikes come through here. They are in a league of their own, with six stores in the number one bike commuting city in the country. Bret makes tools because he got tired of crappy tools.

They’re designed with mechanics in mind, well thought out, and as Jason said, ‘shop tools for shop guys.’ We’re expecting a new head set press, because the one we have, well,.we’ve met some frames lately that have too tall of a head tube to use it, a new wheel dishing gage, and new presta valve core removers. We’ve also got replacement Silca washers that never need to be replaced.

Call for Slide Shows
Every winter we try to have one or two, and sometimes three or more slide shows featuring some of the super cool places people ride. Frequently these are populated by whatever epic ride Dave did this past year. We’d like to get more slide shows, more rides, just more great bike things to do in the winter. So, if you’ve got photos and you’d like to tell us all about your ride, give us a call and talk to Randy, or email me back and we’ll set something up. I suppose, if you’ve got video, we can probably figure that one out too, we just need a little extra advance warning.

Slide shows around here usually involve slides, some talking, some eating, and some drinking, and make for a fun time all around.

Lights!
Try as I might to ignore the onset of fall, and the rapidly approaching end of Daylight Savings Time, it seems unavoidable that its getting darker earlier and faster and for longer amounts of time. To best combat this, you need a head light. (tail light too.) Light ‘N Motion is still our favorite with their Stella, Seca, and Vega lights. Vega’s are one piece, battery and light all in one. Stella’s range from the Double ‘EH’ which uses AA batteries, to the 200n with a long lasting rechargeable battery. Seca’s range from the very bright and long lasting to the less bright and long lasting. All of these are lights you can see by, not just to be seen and street legal, but especially in the fall and winter, being street legal means that cars can see you more than when their headlights hit your reflectors.

Women’s Clothing!
Women’s clothing is still 40% off, basically till its outta here. And there are signs now, and every one knows what’s going on. Shoes aren’t included. Gloves, jerseys, jackets, shorts, those are all included.

Holidays and Stocking Stuffers.
We at the shop, individually and collectively, collect pint glasses. We’re certain there must be others around who also collect pint glasses, or pilsners, or coffee mugs. If you know someone who likes bikes, collects or uses glasses and mugs and might like one, they make great presents. Also, before the holiday’s roll around, we will be entering the 20th century and getting gift cards. Actual plastic cards. We’ll let you know when they get here!!

That’s all for this edition of the Spoken Wrench. Here follows the legal mumbo Jumbo.