The stupidest thing you've heard at a bike shop...

[chase196126]

At a local shop:

Customer: "Is it true that taking 1 pound of weight off your bike is equivalent to taking 10 pounds off your body?"
Sales Rep: "Yep. Some people think they can just skip breakfast and be faster, but that's total BS. You go a lot faster with a pound off your bike"
(for the record the SR was not being sarcastic at all...)


I wanted to say something to the customer, but since the shop is going to be my teams title sponsor next year I thought i would avoid burning any bridges..

[_SJ_]

Sounds like a dedicated Weight Weenie sales rep to me...

I've never (NEVER) had silly advice from the bike shops where I shop most. Then again, it's CRC, Starbike, Excel and Speedgoat - these guys know their stuff.

[mdeth1313]

Had just moved back to the NY/NJ area from Atlanta. Walked into a bike shop to ask if they could order a specific tire for me. Answer: "No, it's not really worth my time." Walked out, went 5 minutes further down the road-- they ordered me the tire, helped me purchased and assemble my next 3 bicycles and even though I now live over an hour and a half away (by car), I still use them for stuff I dont trust the LBS with.
That other shop lost out on thousands of dollars in business.

[LTR]

This is one I heard yesterday:

Customer: Can I grab one of these racks? *waives rack at me*
Me: Sure, Ill go grab you one
Me: Sorry, we dont have any in stock, and that one is our display model
Me: But how about this one *shows a similar rack we do have in stock*
Customer: *Picks up rack* Oh, no that one is far too heavy
Me: Errrr. Pretty sure they are about the same weight. They are both pretty much the same product.
Me: How about we weigh them? *pull out the scales*
Me: Oh, the one you think is lighter is actually 20g heavier... and it doesnt have any mounting or fitting kit...
Customer: But it FEEEELS heavier... I dont want heavier products on my bike
Me: *slaps head as customer walks out of my shop*

Im sure people have lots of stories about the dribble i come up with somedays to sell bikes...

[madcow]

This one happened in our own shop, a campus shop at the UofA.

One of our regulars is in the store. He's blind and is the stoker on a tandem. He has his dog next to him as he's trying on helmets. When he leaves one of the "higher education" students asks the guy behind the counter how a blind guy can ride a bike. The guy behind the counter says that "he rides on the back of a tandem"..... The girl accepts that, but then starts to look really confused. After a minute she leans over the counter and quietly asks the salesman in all sincerity, "how does the dog steer the bike?"

[stella-azzurra]

This one happened in our own shop, a campus shop at the UofA.

One of our regulars is in the store. He's blind and is the stoker on a tandem. He has his dog next to him as he's trying on helmets. When he leaves one of the "higher education" students asks the guy behind the counter how a blind guy can ride a bike. The guy behind the counter says that "he rides on the back of a tandem"..... The girl accepts that, but then starts to look really confused. After a minute she leans over the counter and quietly asks the salesman in all sincerity, "how does the dog steer the bike?"

That's a nice joke

[HammerTime2]

After a minute she leans over the counter and quietly asks the salesman in all sincerity, "how does the dog steer the bike?"

Was she really serious, or was that meant by her as a joke that is all the funnier because it's said in a serious sounding way?

And who knows, she might be Vice President of the United States someday.

[micky]

madcow..thats maybe the most funny one!

[geraldatwork]

There is a local family run bike shop near me that has been there for 20-30 years. It is not high end mostly selling bikes to families. Since it was local I wanted to give them my business. This was about 3 years ago when I just got back into cycling after about 20 years. The bike I purchased over the internet had an Ultegra 11/23 cassette and I purchased an 12/25 on ebay. When I went there for them to swap the cassettes they said they didn't know there were 10 speed cassettes which were out for about 18months-2 years at that point. I purchased a few items but swapped the cassette at another shop and haven't been back there since.

[critracer26]

i was trying to buy a bunch of new gels to try out, i grabbed a pack of the cola power gel things and went to check out. i was asking prices as he was scanning so i didnt overpay for gels, some shops get like 3$ for 1 GU.

He told me the single pack was 36 dollars. I said that cant be, he insited that 1 pack/serving was 36 f'n dollars. I told him it was not possible but thats what the computer said so i was wrong.

Instead of just asking the manager next to him he played with the computer for 10 minutes until i told him to forget it. Kids may be cheap labor but they do make you lose business. It may have only been $3 but still.

[synchronicity]

No doubt the entire 20+ satchels were 36 bucks. Muppet.

[drjones96]

"I always use starnuts on all carbon steerers" - Dumbest shop rat alive

[beatnik]

Your bike is too light

[santabarbara]

At a local shop:

Customer: "Is it true that taking 1 pound of weight off your bike is equivalent to taking 10 pounds off your body?"
Sales Rep: "Yep. Some people think they can just skip breakfast and be faster, but that's total BS. You go a lot faster with a pound off your bike"
(for the record the SR was not being sarcastic at all...)


I wanted to say something to the customer, but since the shop is going to be my teams title sponsor next year I thought i would avoid burning any bridges..

Ha! The beauty of marketing.

But who's dummer, the rep or the customer?

[Leviathan]

But who's dummer, the rep or the customer?

Oh wait, I know the answer to this one...

Into my LBS walks Toni Colom, local pro who rode for Astana - decked from head to foot in Astana gear, Trek in Astana colours, etc, go figure.

British customer standing next to me says in a voice way too loud "Why do these people insist on dressing themselves in Replica kit, dont they know how stupid they look"...