I was working on an ad pointing out the benefits of buying a bike from Chain Reaction Bicycles, for altruistic reasons, of course! It started as way too much text, boring stuff that nobody would get through reading. The reality is that you’ve got to say everything you need in maybe 7 lines, that’s it. I had maybe 200.

I could have tried to distill it down to 7 ideas, with the ability to click on each one for more info, but that’s cheating. Then I remembered these goofy animations anyone can create on the ‘net, where you have these characters that you write words for. The website is www.xtranormal.com. So I threw something together which you can see here-

I’m not sure if it’s too over-the-top or not enough. Obviously, the point is to highlight some reasons why you should buy a bike from Chain Reaction Bicycles, and obviously, it expresses some frustrations I’ve had dealing with customers who value a great deal on an inappropriate bike (maybe wrong fit, maybe wrong type) as being more important than our dedication to making sure you get the right bike, the right fit, and maintaining a sense of ownership & responsibility for that bike for as long as you own it.

Let me know what you think!  –Mike–

What would Christmas be without a visit from Santa? And that’s what we got today, as Brad dropped by on his Madone in full Santa dress, one of the few out riding this winter seriously over-heating!

Christmas Eve can be a tad bit crazy for the retail business, as you’re dealing with all manner of last-second issues with a rock-solid time requirement for resolution. Today has been no exception, and so far, so good! The pink girl’s bike that a Dad had been looking all over for and called shortly after we opened… somehow we had it in stock, and I personally went over it making sure it was spotless & shining & installed the airspeed indicators (OK, handlebar streamers if you wish) and on any other day I might be wondering if this is the best use of my time but not today. The smile that little girl is going to have when she gets her new bike is even more important than a happy Madone 6.9 uber-high-end roadbike customer (which, interestingly, would be Brad in the Santa suit!). That’s what we’re here for. That little girl is our future!