Outspokin' set to open new store on Monday

In a great sign for local bicycle retailers, a lot of shops have moved to larger locations in the past year, including Oliver's, Revolution, Florida Bicycle Sports and the Bike Room. Now it's Outspokin's turn. They will open the doors for the first time at their new Clearwater location Monday. You can find them in the Publix plaza at 2241 Gulf To Bay Blvd.

Outspokin' carries Giant, Cervelo and Cannondale, so now matter what type of riding you're into, they'll have something for you.

If you can't make it Monday, the have a lot of other cool events coming up:

April 27: Official Grand Opening Party.

May 2: Giant demo truck will be visiting for test rides.

May 3: Jeff Lenosky, World Champion Mountain Biker and Stunt Rider, performs.

May 4: Ribbon cutting ceremony. Register to win free merchandise and services.

Service, not sales, is Clearwater bike shop's top priority

Marco Ortega of Clearwater fixes a flat at Hands On Bike. The shop provides stations where customers can fix their own bikes and pay for only the parts. Photo by Atoyia Deans/Times

By Demorris A. Lee, Times Staff Writer
In print: Tuesday, December 30, 2008

CLEARWATER — Henry Johnson was given a new pair of jeans for Christmas, but the seat on his bicycle was so tattered that he didn't want to risk ruining them.

So Friday, Johnson, a landscaper, carefully pedaled his only mode of transportation to Hands On Bicycle located in the city's East Gateway area. There, he got a new seat and his bike was given a quick safety inspection at no charge, courtesy of the shop's owner, Robert Ferrin.

"He's a real good dude," Johnson, 31, said. "He likes to help people. Last time, I had a hard time with my gear switch. He fixed that for me and I didn't have no money."

Johnson had money this time, but Ferrin refused to take it.

Open two months, Hands On Bicycle isn't your typical bike shop. Ferrin said he's trying to provide a community service with his business.

Continue reading...

Bike biz gets a reality check

It's too early to tell if bicycle sales eclipsed automobile sales in the U.S. in 2008 for the first time since the early 70's, but this winter, bike shops across the country can only hope next summer's numbers are as good as this year's, the New York Times reports.

Pinellas bike shops map

I got a list of all the shops in Pinellas County from Chip Haynes. If you click on the magnifying glass right above where it says "Pinellas" you can zoom in and get a better look. I'm working on an interactive version, but it's going to take awhile. Thanks again for the info Chip!

Bike shops succeeding in tough economy

By Dominick Tao/Times staff writer

Revolution Bicycles in St. Petersburg has seen a 15 percent increase in bike sales in recent months, mostly from people gone pale at the price of gas, said Greg Hodges, the store's assistant manager.

"We're seeing a large percent increase of people looking to repair old bikes, buy new bikes or just look for an alternate means of transportation," Hodges said. "Bike prices have gone up a little bit, but riding a bike is still cheaper than driving."

Other businesses doing well:

• Used auto parts
• Pawn brokers
• Recycling centers
• Community colleges
• Video games

Read the full report here.

Bike Green wants to saturate downtown St. Petersburg with free bikes

Brent Bruns and Andrew Blikken have an ambitious plan: inspired by free-bike programs in Europe, they want to flood downtown St. Petersburg with 8,000 bright green bicycles for the public to use for free. The program, BikeGreen, is funded by $.25 Altoid machines scattered around town as well as from donations.

Sound familiar? It's been done in Tampa Bay before. The Tampa Downtown partnership put 50 orange bikes on the street in 1997 and they vanished within a week. Eckerd College has a similar program with their yellow bikes on campus. Most ended up destroyed, abandoned or locked away behind a fence, though the bikes seem to be enjoying more success lately. Bruns says he realizes many of the bikes will disappear quickly: he's planning on losing 1,000 per month. The thought is that by providing so many bikes, the demand will simply overwhelm the desire to steal them.

What's not clear is where these bikes are going to come from and how they will be maintained. Donated bikes spray-painted green and maintained by volunteers will be of marginal operational quality at best. Trying to turn people on to cycling as a practical means of transportation is not likely to be accomplished by broken bicycles. Paid bike rental programs like Velib in Paris are still the most rational business model to make a program like this succeed.

I'll keep you posted on the future of BikeGreen and I wish it the best of luck, but it seems the program has a long way to go.

Sheldon Brown: 1944-2008

What more can be said than the world has lost a true innovator and one of its most passionate cyclists. Sheldon, you will be missed.

Is Performance coming to Tampa Bay?

Word on the street - actually according to Tampa blogger Alan Snel - is that Performance Inc. is looking at the Tampa Bay market to open a new location for its chain of bicycle superstores.

The North Carolina based chain already has locations in 15 states and offers a massive online catalog and discounted prices. Consider it a "big-box" version of a bike shop.

What this means for local retailers remains to be seen. The chain could seriously undercut the already fragile entry-level market, as independent shops must competing with sporting goods stores and online retailers.

If a Performance shop opened near you, would you shop there?

[via Alan Snel | Bike Stories]

Grab one of Team Discovery's bikes on eBay

Due to the disbanding of the Discovery Channel cycling team after the 2007 season, their management company, Tailwind Sports has put several of their now-useless bikes on eBay. According to Tailwind, they are race-ridden and are being sold "as-is". Each identifies the name of the rider who rode it and comes with a certificate of authenticity. The Trek Madone 6.9 and TTX time trial models are (obviously) the top-of-the-line models.

I've got my eye on George Hincapie's. We're about the same height:

But if you want one, or want to grab one for that special someone for Christmas, better hurry. The auctions end December 20.

Oh, how much? Bidding starts at $10,200.

If you're looking for something a little more affordable, the bidding on authentic team time trial helmets starts at "only" $250.

You ain't seen nothin' yet

The fixed gear crowd in Tampa Bay has been drooling over the release of MASH - San Francisco for a month now. To celebrate it's arrival, 66Fixed in St. Petersburg is hosting a viewing party at Cafe Bohemia at 9 p.m., Thursday with the projector on the outdoor wall. What is MASH you ask? It's a film by Gabe Morford and Mike Martin featuring some of the most amazing fixed gear riding you will ever see: