Was crusing down the road to go pick up some perscriptions when I saw this thing in someone’s yard. I couldn’t help but stare at the contraption. We all know that Schwinn‘s parent company Pacific Cycles created a hoop-dee version of the classic Schwinn Stingray into a hacked up O.C.C. style to appeal to modern kids. What was created in 2004 was this:
The bicycle weighed a ton, the replacement tires were hard to find, and was cumbersome for anything but riding around the cul-de-sac. I’m pretty sure manufacturing was canceled after a few years.
Luckily we have neighbors who are willing to customize and modify their little cruiser bikes in an attempt to make them cool…
Schwinn Bikes, owned by Dorel Industries has been upping their game for the past two or three years concerning their department store bikes. I enjoy speaking about these bicycles because well… I am based in West Virginia and not every person who wants to ride a bike wants to own a fifteen pound (thousands of dollars) road bike, or the latest mountain bike shown on bikeradar. There has to be a middle ground between the trash sold at Wal-Mart, and the Independent Bike Dealer products. Dorel is finally learning that mountain bikes with fifty doohickey springs, and other trash is not going to last, and if they put out a quality product, people will notice. I’m not a fan of Dorel, but sometimes you have to acknowledge a good product.
The Schwinn Solitaire fits this description to a T. It comes in Male and Female versions and retails for $239.
Check out the specs:
Frame: Aluminum
Fork: SR Suntour Threadless
Shimano 7spd Trigger Shifters
Generic Brakes and Levers
SR Suntour Crank
FENDERS AND RACK
Shimano Front/Rear Derailleur, and Freewheel Cassette.
Somewhat-Generic 700 C Wheels
As you can see, the false flashy aspects are there for the disposable items, while the wheels are somewhat disappointing. I am so proud to see that they are 700c, to get away from sizing bicycles by wheel size, but the availability of tires and tubes at department/big-box stores are still somewhat scarce. The Fenders and Rear Rack are somewhat there for decoration, but I am sure they have a functional role too. Just don’t expect much out of them. The aluminum frame and SR Suntour fork is the most impressive part. Trek, Cannondale, and several other of the large bike companies probably had their frames and forks made in the same factories as these. No Lie. Trek’s 2008 Navigator 2.0 was very, very similarly specced in 2008 but started out at $300-400. While you are not getting a wonderful warranty and lifetime service on the bike when you buy it from a big box or department store, the $50-150 in savings may be worth the ignorance.
More than likely, you will have to do the walk of shame to a bike shop to get the wheels trued, and derailleur hangers/derailleurs correctly aligned/adjusted. They will give you a look that will burn into your inner consciousness and make you wonder why you got the Schwinn Solitaire instead of a LBS bike, but then you forgot that you’ll probably end up only riding it once or twice a week at max… and that is perfectly fine.
Now think about it… This bike is more expensive than say…. a NEXT MTN X-BIKE whatever with so much useless and outdated technology that isn’t worth the metal it was stamped out of. While a Tourney derailleur is not the best that Shimano makes, it is most definitely more reliable than some $0.85 stamped metal derailleur you can find on alibaba.com.
Once again, how can you go wrong (if you have your LBS build the bike, not Wal-Mart) with a bike this versatile and well priced when trying to start riding a bike? If you have to buy a bike from Wal-Mart, use your common sense and choose something with quality, not just wacky shapes and flash. If you see this bike at your local Wal-Mart, at least take a look at it and see that there is always an exception to the rules; Wal-Mart can and may sell some quality bikes in-store…
This was only a sampling of what was wrong with the bicycles. The handlebars were being moved by my thumb and index fingers, while I tried to hold the wheel with my knees.
Yesterday evening while out on a ride, I received two phone calls from unknown phone numbers. Googling didn’t help, neither did white pages reverse lookup, or PIPL.com. Seeing how they were local numbers, I decided to call them back. It was Wal-Mart; their unlisted office numbers.
I spoke to a woman named Linda who was calm, friendly, and seemed concerned in a way that the business would want her to be; you know what I mean. Right off the bat, she knew who I was, and what I was calling about. I went over my findings, and clarified to her that this was not the first time that more than half of their fleet of bicycles (In her terms, Toys and Accessories) would fail a safety check due to one reason or another. Linda stated that the bicycles have been flying off the shelf since Easter, which is the usual kick-start to the bike-selling season. I am not sure if she told me this to assure me that this instance was due to being busy, or that it was an isolated incident, but I could tell where this was going.
She stated that all they do to a bicycle once they receive it is install handlebars. I told her that this is potentially the first problem, and that the whole bike should be looked over once it is in their hands due to the fact that I have seen frayed cables, loose pedals, housing installed in bass-ackward ways, and other things that could cause the bicycles to abruptly fail. Linda assured me that these issues were due to bicycles being returned to the store, and being put back on the shelves. “You can tell, see? The tires will have mud on them and stuff. It’s easy to know.” She could not confirm whether bicycles were reconditioned or just placed back on the shelf after being returned, but that they were sold AS-IS.
Seeing what I will now call the 6/10 handlebar problem was something under their control according to Linda’s own words, I decided to push with that, telling her again that these bicycles which I checked THIS WEEK could potentially cause harm to someone who is unknowing about bicycle safety. Linda stated that she will forward this concern to the department manager for the section that bikes are in, and that she will also address this issue to the associate who builds the bicycles.
She then thanked me for my concern, and said she could understand that a “cyclist would be concerned with things like this”.
At the end of the call, I do not feel any more reassured that problems like this will change. I took the time to try to reach a human being, but I still have that sinking feeling in my gut that people are at risk if they don’t know anything about bikes. I guess all that can be done now is to pray that people don’t get hurt…
Once again, getting a late night necessary item or two at Wal-Mart had me checking the bicycle department like an after hours security guard wanders around a mall looking for hoodlums.
I act like things should change every time I walk into this little area, but they do not. All of the accessories look like a supply truck took a number two, expelling product all over the place in no particular order. The bicycles are a little more conservative, I didn’t see as many bastardized bikes that were made with monster coil springs and junky frame designs reminding you of old Giant Warps circa the late 90’s.
Versus what was actually in the racks:
This Schwinn was $190-something; it would be what I would choose, if I had to ride something from Wal-Mart.
What was the worst part about this trip you ask? Stems. Yes, Stems. I tried lightly turning the handlebars of ten bicycles while they were in those awkward racks, and SIX of the bikes’ handlebars moved while the wheel stayed still. This to me says that someone is not properly doing their job, and needs to to understand that there are lives potentially at risk.
Just like every time I am in the bike department, I took out my trusty pen and scribbled on whatever paperwork was on the bike. I clearly wrote
HANDLEBAR STEM IS LOOSE. DANGER.
I know this is a bit overkill for something that may only need a few twists of an allen wrench to fix, but not everyone knows that it would need to be done in the first place. Look at how many old and young drivers forget to change their motor oil and filter, and end up doing 15,000 miles with it until excessive wear causes something to not function optimally. This happens a lot more than you think…
I really wish there is more I could do. Something like write a manifesto of discontent to the store operator to show that they are possibly contributing to the 100+ reported cases a year of Mass Merchant Bike related injuries. Should I even go as far as telling them I could do a better job?
That is right. Cycling is a dreamworld. The sportive cyclists, the racers, the club riders, or even the tight-jean hipsters skidding all over for the hell of it are in a fantasy world. Even I am in a fantasy world. Being able to spend ten hours or more of your week on a bicycle worth more than many people’s cars is a world apart from everything else.
There is a broad difference between what we would consider a typical cyclist and the typical bike owner. From an outside realization, most people see bicycles as toys or things meant to rust out in the back yard. You can thank that all bicycles have been sold in the toy section of department and big-box stores for as long as I can remember. Bicycles have been relegated as something to look down upon. (This could spark a whole week worth of posts)
I decided to take a ride around town and see if I could find any examples of any serious or utilitarian bikes or cyclists; here is what I found.
Buckhannon is a college town. There would of course be bicycles. The ones here were all low budget department store bicycles left out in the elements all semester which make me wonder why they were brought to campus in the first place. There were no outstanding specimens or anything I could say anything special about in concerns of the usefulness of the bike. (more…)
WV Cycling 