September!

Heya! It’s starting to be my favorite kind of riding weather – YASSSSSS, fall – and the inquiries haven’t stopped! Thank you, thank you, thank you, but at the moment, I’m really sorry, I cant. The 2020 COVID bike boom has been such a great thing in the big picture, but I’m at a place where I’ve had to make the decision to shut BMB down for a little while.

I don’t think it will be permanent. Once I’m done with my Halloween job, I will have to assess various things- for example, if I’m able to source the parts I need via traditional distribution methods, I will be happy to start working on bikes again come November! For now, the parts/supply struggle is just *too much* for me and I need some steady/wage income along with a hefty dose of time in the saddle. I am super excited to be tag-teaming a car/bike commute to salem for work for the next several weeks!

If you’re the type to do your own repairs, please reach out if you need parts- I have a good selection of some things, (certain tires, tubes, brake pads, certain wheelsets, cassettes, accessories, shifters, cables) and am lacking in others (namely derailers, cranksets, freewheels, certain wheelsets, certain tires and tubes, OMG BRAKE LEVERS, etc.) For some of the things I do have, I bet I can even match amazon prices and beat shipping times, just shoot me a text if you know specifically what you want or need!

On the giveback bike front, even with the enormous amount of help I received, I wasn’t able to get to everyone on the lists, and I wasn’t able to keep my target of 1 bike per week. I’m really grateful for the help I got and I’m really sorry I didn’t get to everyone. I did, however, give out 20 bikes (so far- still hoping to eke a few more out) to those in need this year. Considering how difficult it’s been to even get a bike (let alone parts,) I feel like it was a pretty good thing overall!

Thank you all for your support, your patience, and your understanding this year, it’s been one wild ride, that is for sure! Please do your best to stay healthy and take care of each other. ❤

August!

It’s August and the cycling season continues to be as wild as ever! With this in mind at the moment I am no longer taking on new customers for anything other than really small quick jobs like flat fixes, pedal swaps, etc. I’m sorry! I’ve got a waiting list heading into September and I need to catch up before taking on anything else (aside from the really small jobs which I try to fit in quickly!) Of course if you’ve already reached out and we’ve talked about your appointment you are still in the queue and will be hearing from me soon!
Text is always the best way to get in touch with me – 334 – BIKES – 34. I’ve had some issues with customers not receiving facebook messages so that’s super annoying and sad to hear! If you’ve chatted with me on facebook and haven’t heard back, it’s safe to assume there’s something buggy going on with my app or facebook in general – please send me a text if you are still needing work.

If you have bikes that need a lot of work or well-riding bikes that just need tune ups, I am thinking at this point winter might be the time to get the work done.  Please email bigmikesbikes@gmail.com me for those inquiries – pictures would be helpful so I can give a throughout estimate – and I will start going through those emails as the summer starts to wind down. I will do my best to offer relaxed rates in exchange for your patience and understanding on winter repairs. Thanks!

July updates!

Bike world is still pretty chaotic but there’s some excellent news- shipping times have greatly improved across the board! Unfortunately parts availability is still making things difficult and I’ve had some van struggles at the same time- turns out parts shortages are real in the auto repair world as well as the bike repair world!

New repairs inquiries are steady, but starting to cool off a bit- I’ve met so many amazing new customers and this makes me happy! Still, I’m keeping my waiting list towards the end of July for tune ups and bigger jobs so I can catch up in the give back bike realm.

Unfortunately I missed many weeks of my target 1 bike per week- bike world has been *that much*. That said, I’ve got 3 going out this week and another 3 next week to make up the difference.  The waiting list for give back bikes is long long long which is great- I’m excited for the demand! I’m trying my best to manage the difference between the ‘first come first serve’ waiting list (of which I now have 2 with some outreach help) and pushing out bikes that are really close and don’t need much to get out. It just doesn’t make sense to have a bicycle sit unridden if it only needs 30 minutes of work vs those that need 4+ hours. Further complicating things is the lack of inexpensive consumable parts for these bikes! Of course with these give back bikes, I have to make sure I’m keeping my customers (and my family) happy at the same time- I am doing my best, it just takes more time than *any* of us would like.

(BTW, If anyone would be able to gift some scrap metal removal to help out in the process, please let me know.)

I’m starting to see the Stage Fort Park vendor space as a thing again soon, at least maybe 1 day a week- but I’ve got to get caught up first and see how things play out.

The best way to reach out is via text 334-BIKES-34 or Facebook Messenger. I do my best to answer phone calls and emails when I can, but often I cannot. If you want instant voice to voice contact or instant email replies to arrange a repair, please consider trying one of the other shops on our island, you might be happier! Hopefully this will change as things settle down, but that’s how it is for now.

Thank you for understanding and for your support. 🙂

BMB operations in 2020!

So sorry to leave the lovely bicycle people of Cape Ann hanging-
I’m back in business, in fact I have been for about a month, but here’s the rub – without school and without free babysitting from my awesome off-island at-risk ma, my time is more limited than it has ever been.

I am doing my best to keep up with everyone who has reached out and asked for service, while trying to fit some give-back bikes in at the same time. I’ve had to leave a lot of customers unread as I try to fit everything in – it’s safe to say things like communication and task-switching are not my strengths, and these types of things have been seriously exposed during our new normal! I really appreciate everyone’s understanding and patience with these difficulties!

Unfortunately supply chain and shipping issues have made things extra difficult as orders are taking longer than ever to arrive *and* as demand has exploded across the nation (yay!), those orders are only being partially fulfilled.

With all these things considered I’ve had to make the difficult decision to raise prices. 😦

+ Tune ups for 2020 start at $80 – Tune ups are preventative maintenance for bikes that are in good working order. They include cleaning, lubrication, adjustments, minor wheel truing, etc to total approx 1.5 hrs of labor. If you don’t have that kind of money to spend (trust me, I *understand*,) or simply don’t want your bike cleaned, I offer a quick tune rate of $45 that includes approx 30-45 minutes of work with a focus on the most important things first (i.e., piecemeal adjustments where needed most: like I’ll true tf outta that wobbly rim (no tacos BTW,) get those brakes adjusted and make ya ride safe, but ya derailer might rub a little and ya spokes still got those cobwebs in ’em.) I just cant put 4+ hours into a $65 “tune up” anymore and be able to break even (not the least of which pay myself.) I’m sorry.

+ For the first time ever I’ll actually have to consistently enforce my $25 minimum mobile service charge.

+ I may have to raise prices on certain parts. My most commonly used chains are up 50pct from the last time I ordered them! I will always do my best to stock only nickel-plated chains to help keep the rust at bay in our salt-water drenched community- for now most chains are still $20. Tires may also become a concern- last week I ordered 14 hybrid tires split across 2 distributors, only 4 arrived! As of now all tires are still $25 each – to keep things simple and to keep the costs distributed amongst all – This may need to change to something like $22 for kids tires, $28 for adults, we will see.

+ Free used parts and 20% off all new parts and labor for those on SNAP/EBT, free school lunch, disability, or those who are recovering from addiction (or tryin’) still applies! The school-based give back project has been put on hold for obvious reasons, but I am still repairing and giving out free bikes to those who qualify- just one by one and very very slowly as I try to work everything in.

+ There will be no bike rentals at BMB for 2020, but Cape Ann Electric Bikes is still operating, so call them instead! It seems likely the Stage Fort Park pop-up space will be shelved as well, but I am still holding out hope to resume at some point in the future.

+ Of course social distancing protocols have been quite easy to follow with the mobile model! I also disinfect surfaces with isopropyl alcohol upon return.

Thanks for reading my long-winded official announcement, stay healthy, and keep on pedaling!

Temporary *pause*

Hey there, I just wanted to drop a quick update that Big Mike’s Bikes will be on pause due to the current ongoing public health issue. As everyone else, I am hoping this will be very short and I will update as things progress. Stay safe, everyone, and keep on pedaling!

 

— Mike