Monday, October 27, 2014

Here's a Shop That "Gets" Our Starling


Gladys Bikes, a women-owned shop in Portland, introduces their newly built 1x8 Starling in the following manner:

LIKES:
  • Meandering rides on city streets with no particular destination in mind
  • Taking the long way home from work
  • Cruising through puddles on Spring day
  • Trips to the farmer's market, followed by rides home with a basket filled with produce
  • Anything by Loretta Lynn
  • That feeling like you're flying that you get when you ride downhill from Pittock Mansion or Mount Tabor
PERSONALITY HIGHLIGHTS:
  • For $900, she's a steal
  • 1x8 gearing makes it perfect for city riding, with nice low gears to get you up the hills (and higher ones for flying down them)
  • Strong steel frame makes for a smooth and stable ride
  • Mixte style step through allows for a great deal of stand over clearance for a wide variety of rider heights (approx. 5'3"- 5'8")
  • Lots of clearance for fenders and racks, meant to haul anything you need it to rain or shine
  • Robin's Egg Blue [we call it Peacock Blue] for the win!
  • Stem and handlebars can be set to the height and length that are perfect for you, so it fits just so

The beauty of building a bike from the frame up is you can more fully suit the ride to the customer. The Starling's geometry is not a one trick pony. She can be built "sportfully" to take on long sightseeing rides, as well an easy going cruiser. Semi-custom builds are definitely something to explore if your shop hasn't been doing.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Sandra's Privateer Update

Hi Evan,

Logged 1,958 miles on my New Albion Privateer for the National Bike Challenge. I started logging the miles once I was in receipt of my bike beginning in May. Not a bad way of breaking-in a new bike!

Sandra