I want to say something about buying bike related stuff

Now more than ever we have amazing choices for cycling products. Awesome frames, forks, cranks, shocks and so much more... the problem is.. where do begin to decide what to get?

well you can jump on mtbr.com or god forbid pinkbike.com and ask the "experts" but you'll soon find out the only answers you'll get are a bunch of crap biased answers.. even from me. More recently i've been buying from shops and company's directly that have treated like their business depends on my $. I'll name 2 real quick... 1 shop and 1 company.

Shop: Universal Cycles... this name probably rings a bell even if you don't live in Portland. Universal Cycles has a big online shop w/ multiple warehouses. They carry a shit ton of goods at reasonable prices. I've bought many of the finishing touches for my Legend at the shop and Aaron at universal even put the whole thing together for me. Sure the work they do there on my bikes is great and they get me products real quick.. but whats best is that they take the time to answer my questions, they call me by name and they help me out with problems i have w/ certain components *cough..el *cough*..ixers.. uh* even though i didn't buy it from them.

I know they might not do this for everyone .. but i was in a bind and needed some work done on a Friday so i could ride on Saturday morning... i can't remember what i needed done but it was probably something time consuming and.. well long story short.. i explained that i needed to ride on Saturday and they had the bike ready Friday afternoon when i dropped it off that morning. These guys do a great job of treating everyone great and staying approachable... if you're in portland .. drop by their shop at 1820 NW 18th Ave. If you're not in Portland go to www.universalcycles.com to check out the massive amounts of inventory they have.

So that leaves us with the company..

Company: Deity - Holy crap, what can i say. Super fast, very personalized experience to say the least. I met Sadie and Eric at Sea Otter in 2010. Ever since i've bought, bars, 2 sets of pedals, 2 sets of grips, a stem, t-shirt and Sadie sent a t-shit out for my girlfriend. Its funny that i've bought all this (and plan to my exponentially more from them) when the first experience i had with their product wasn't the best. I bought some grips from an unnamed retailer and for some reason i only got a couple of screws for the clamps. It was a bitch getting the replacement screws from the retailer.. and they said they weren't accusing me of trying to get free shit but it sure felt like it. .. Well I just about gave up then i ran into Sadie and them at Sea Otter.. i told her about it in more about it and when i got home from the trip she called me at work and got my info to send everything out. In like 2 days i got my grips on and ready to roll. What a great experience (or as we say in my industry.. service recovery). Every purchase since has been rad... did i mention they are fast at sending stuff out... if they have it in stock it'll get to you quick. Beyond their service.. their product is amazing... i saw a guy w/ a mid-20lbs Ibis Mojo at blackrock recently.. and it was equipped with the new Decoy LT pedals.. nice choice if you ask me.

So all in all when you're buying bike gear.. go somewhere that is going to treat you with respect and not make you feel like a you're inconveniencing them. You're spending a lot of money on something you're going to break.. your business is important.

The 10 Step Guide on How to Save your $$$$ to afford a DH/FR bike

Yes we all know it. Cost of entry into the Mountain biking world is a lot. So I have devised 10 clever ways to put money aside without having to make significant lifestyle changes.

*disclaimer* some suggestions may make significant changes to your lifestyle

1. Bum rides off your buddies and when they start asking for gas money, just tell them you'll get it next time. You'll at least get 8 to 10 more rides before they kick you out. Then just move onto a new friend. Repeat until out of friends.

2. Poop at work or on the go, toilet paper can really add up... if you schedule your trips around your bowel movements you can have the Starbucks' and Wal*Marts of the world front your monthly toilet paper bill.

3. They make "man cans" for a reason. Man up and get yourself some Steel Reserve instead of that yuppie crap that actually tastes good. Spend a buck or less on your all the refreshments you'll need for the evening.

4. Stop buying crap! We all buy useless garbage. I once bought a plastic lens on eBay that was supposed to turn a 15 inch tv to a 120" projection. Needless to say I got jipped. Hell, my brother bought a Terry Cloth T-shirt that was wider than it was long. I'm sure he wish he could go back on that transaction.

5. Sell the crap you used to buy. It is amazing how people will buy your garbage from you.

6. There is a reason I eat burritos every day. They are cheap. Be sure to make them.. not buy them.. otherwise you're just screwing yourself out of money that could go towards your bike.

7. Get a part time job at a bike shop.

8. Move in with your parents.

9. Use one credit card to pay off another, it will get so confusing that you'll forget all about your debt.

10. Steal

*disclaimer, I don't endorse stealing but you have to admit it could potentially save you a lot of money that you could put towards your bike.