New Bike Shops! (Part II)

This is Part II of a post about Cincy’s two newest urban-oriented bike shops - Reser Bicycle Outfitters OTR and Spun Bicycles. Read more about Reser OTR in Part I.

Spun is the brainchild of Judi and Dominic LoPresti, who are well known in the local bicycle community for their volunteer work and commitment to bicycle advocacy. Spun had their official grand opening last weekend, and so far they plan to carry Raleigh, Masi, Haro, Surly, Redline, and a bunch of BMX brands. In terms of price point, they plan to carry entry-level to mid-range bicycles, but Dom says he can get anything you want - just ask! He also mentioned that they plan to get close-outs of last year’s models when they can too, so that they can transfer those savings over to their customers.

Additionally, they carry a full line of Diamondback bikes for kids, starting at just $120. According to Dom, the Diamondbacks are a step up from what you could buy some place like Dick’s Sporting Goods, but these will last longer and are at a great price point. 

Like Reser OTR, Spun is also selling used bikes, which I think is awesome. I know a lot of people who are interested in getting back into bicycling but are hesitant to make a larger investment until they know whether or not they’ll stick with it, or even what kind of bike they really want. Craigslist has some good bikes every once in awhile, but it just isn’t a great option for people new to bicycling unless they happen to have a bike-geek friend who can help them figure out whether what they’re seeing is a good quality bike in decent shape. So I’m really glad that Reser and Spun have decided to deal in used bikes, because I think it’s going to make purchasing a bike so much more accessible to so many people. 

MM: Why did you open in Northside?

Judi: It's filling a niche for the residents in Northside, they need a bike shop here. Too many people ride bikes here for them not to have their own neighborhood bike shop. Everybody rides bikes. We're definitely catering to something that's been needed in the neighborhood for a long time. 

MM: What do you want people to know about Spun? What makes Spun unique?

Dominic: Spun Bicycles exists to make people enjoy the lifestyle of having bikes in their lives, and what it can do for them and the people around them. That’s really what it’s about; it’s not just a bike shop, it’s a place where people can come hang out and enjoy bike culture.

Judi: We created a bike shop where people can come, hang out, watch TV, drink a beer from next door...we wanted to make it a destination. We wanted to recreate that bike shop you remember as a kid, the one you never wanted to leave. We wanted to be a friendly shop. Approachable, less intimidating for the average bicyclist who isn't looking to get into racing. We wanted to carry affordable bikes, all under $1000.00, and cater to the neighborhoods needs. There are plenty of race shops in the city we can refer people too, but we won't be selling carbon fiber bikes. Dominic also wants to promote the sport of BMX and so we carry plenty of that as well. We'll be carrying skateboards this summer.

Judi, Dom, and John

That’s it for Part II of New Bike Shops!

New Bike Shops! (Part I)

Last weekend I stopped in at the grand opening of Spun Bicycles in Northside. Spun is the 2nd new bike shop to open in the city within the last year (Reser Bicycle Outfitters opened their Over-the-Rhine location last June). Two new shops have opened recently out in the burbs as well: Freedom Gear Cyclery in Anderson, and a new Montgomery Cyclery location in Western Hills (down the street from Bicycles and More).  

Both Reser OTR and Spun have kind of an urban focus which I think is really cool, and which I hope is indicative of real growth in the number of city residents using bicycles for transportation. The last few annual city surveys have always indicated that Cincinnatians use bicycles for recreation more often than they use them for transportation. But I think we're probably getting pretty close to the tipping point, which in my opinion makes us more of a well rounded cycling community.

As it turns out, trying to write about both shops in one post made for a really, really long post. So, this is going to be a two part post: Part I on Reser, and Part II on Spun. 

Reser Bicycle Outfitters OTR

Reser OTR's main brands are State (single speed, fixed gear bikes), Public (classic European city bikes/errand running bikes), and Orbea (flat bar road bikes), but they also sell Origin-8 and Torker. And they sell a lot of used bikes; in fact, half the bikes in their showroom are used! (And they offer used parts too!) Below are a few excerpts from a conversation with Store Manager Matt Baker.

MM: Why did you open in OTR?

Matt: We opened in OTR because of the population boom and resurgence of the whole OTR district. The population is growing up on top of itself, it’s becoming more densely populated; I think it’s one of the fastest growing urban cores in the country right now, and there was no bike shop. It seemed crazy in a city that’s this easy to ride around in, that there wouldn’t be a shop in the middle of it. So, we did that. 

It’s an easy city to ride around in; it’s not the biggest city, the traffic is slow and there are lots of traffic lights, and as far as riding in the city goes, it’s safe. Though we’re not known for being a big cycling community, we will be soon. We’ve got all of these businesses moving into OTR and Downtown, and condos going in, and the developers in the area have done a great job with all the low income housing too, so we’ve got a super diverse, increasingly dense population of people who ride their bikes.     

                                                         

Chase and Matt

MM: What makes Reser OTR unique?

Matt: We’ve got a lot more options for city bikes, and bikes you can put racks and stuff on to run errands and go into Findlay Market, and get around town. And we have a huge selection of used bikes, and very urban accessories. 

We don’t have any spandex. We have heavy duty overpants that are meant for keeping the pants they go over top of dry and clean in all weather. We have jackets that you can wear all day without looking like you’re about to go on a roadbike race. 

We’ve got hardshell helmets. We’ve got a huge selection of locks that are great for Downtown, not just lightweight, cool looking locks, but stuff that is going to keep your bike from getting stolen – which is pretty important around here. 

We carry bags and baskets and racks and backpacks that are built for taking a lot of abuse and being used on a daily basis. It’s not just that we’re in an urban center, we are urban-centered. Everything we have is meant for real heavy use, and being used by people that are going to be relying on their bikes everyday like it was a car.

Skirt garters

Bike polo hot balls

Brooks gear

That's it for Part I on Reser OTR. Stay tuned for Part II on Spun!

Cinci Gets Green Lanes

Last week Cincinnati became the first city in Ohio to install green bike lanes. The bright (basically florescent) green color is being used to highlight conflict points where motorists must cross the bike lane in order to make a right turn or because they are coming off of a ramp. Research has shown that the bright coloring increases motorists' awareness of bicyclists at points where their paths cross. Cincinnati is starting with five green segments on Ludlow Avenue where it intersects with Spring Grove Ave, Old Ludlow Ave, Central Parkway, and the Cincinnati State driveway.

It really is BRIGHT green.

Green pavement has been used in a small number of cities nationwide, such as Chicago, New York, and DC. Some cities have used green pavement along the entire length of bike lanes,  some use green only in the intersections, and some use it only in the weave areas (like us). If you want more information on how colored pavement is being used elsewhere, NACTO’s Urban Bikeway Design Guide has a pretty good description.

In Cincinnati we are using green “thermoplastic” in our lanes, versus green paint. Thermosplastic is the material that is typically used in lane lines and stop bars, and it has a lifecycle of roughly 5-7 years. It comes in sheets, which are laid on the roadway and then torched so that the plastic melts onto the asphalt. We requested that the thermo be made retroreflective (so it’s visible in the dark), and we also had “skid-resistance” added  to the material (silica is added during production, and then again to the surface immediately before the material is torched). We’ll be looking for feedback from area bicyclists as to their experiences with the material in both wet and dry weather...

They placed an epoxy/glue on the asphalt before they laid and torched the thermo.

The installation of these lanes is a huge achievement for Cincinnati, in terms of the City Administration’s willingness to try something new. Hopefully it will lead to improved safety for cyclists as well. Studies in Austin showed that motorists were twice as likely to use a turn signal before crossing the green areas, and studies in Portland showed that motorists were significantly more likely to yield to cyclists when colored pavement was present.

The Coolest Thing You Never Heard About

The fifth annual Moshtrocity took place in Cincinnati last weekend. The weekend-long freakbike fest is hosted by local bike club Mosh & Brew Cycle Crew and includes a scavenger hunt, cook out, bike polo triathlon (organized by Cincinnati Hardcourt), and bike games like chariot racing, tall-bike jousting, and foot-down.

This was my first year attending any of the Moshtrocity events so I don't know about past attendance, but it seemed like a really great turn out to me. There were eleven teams competing in the polo triathlon, which consisted of polo, foosball, flip-cup and mini-golf. This is only the second year that polo has been a part of Moshtrocity. The Cincinnati Recreation Commission built Cincinnati Hardcourt an official polo court last year, and Cincinnati is now one of only four cities in North America with an official, dedicated court. Which means hopefully we'll be hosting more and more tournaments here in the future.

Mini-golf windmill made out of bike polo mallets

There were at least 70 people at the bike games saturday night when Bike Polo Guy and I left around midnight. In addition to Cincinnati folks, we had groups come in from Columbus, Cleveland, Lexington, Louisville, Chicago, and Nashville (including a pretty big contingent from Rat Patrol clubs). Seeing so many people there (including from out of town) really brought home how much our bicycle culture is growing. Pretty amazing.

One of the chariots

The start of the race

My photography skills stink

Baby M on a small-tall

Tall-bike jousting, photo courtesy of Mel Fickenscher

I forgot to take a picture of the keg of espresso-flavored home-brew that may or may not have been sitting in the parking lot saturday night, but it was pretty awesome.