Toronto bike shop recommendations
Jason Spaceman
some bike shops in the Toronto area later this week to compare prices,
features, etc.
One brand I am particulary interested in is Cervelo, particularly the Team
Soloist and the Super Prodigy (maybe even the R2.5 if I could get it with
Ultegra components for no more than $3500, but maybe that is wishful
thinking, hehe).
I know that Racer Sportif on Bloor sells Cervelos, and I think Dukes might
sell them too; anywhere else?
Are there any other places around Toronto where I could find a good quality
road bike for between $3000 and $3500 Canadian? It doesn't necessarily
have to be Cervelo, I am willing to consider other brands within this price
range.
J. Spaceman
ajames54
Cervelo are made in Toronto up near Laird and Eglinton, I think
they sell direct... There are lots of decent shops in town, but
personally I believe in buying a bike from a shop that you want a
relationship with (one convenient to where you live)... two that
I have found to be excellent are D'ornellas (sp?) Lawrence and
Vic Park and Enduro Sport on Leslie.
Drop me an e-mail if you want ... the addi works.
KJB
(www.labicicletta.com). They have some real gorgeous bikes on display.
"Jason Spaceman" <I...@eat.spammers.for.breakfast> wrote in message
news:pp5Ya.63505$4UE....@news01.bloor.is.net.cable.rogers.com...
Christopher Brian Colohan
> I know that Racer Sportif on Bloor sells Cervelos, and I think Dukes might
> sell them too; anywhere else?
I do not have experience buying bikes in that high price range, but
when I bought a cheap Specialized bike at Dukes I was extremely happy
with the service.
Chris
--
Chris Colohan Email: ch...@colohan.ca PGP: finger col...@cs.cmu.edu
Web: www.colohan.com Phone: (412)268-4751
Jason Spaceman
> I've had very good experiences with Labicicletta in Toronto
> (www.labicicletta.com). They have some real gorgeous bikes on display.
Their web site says they are located on Castlefield, I always thought that
they were that shop located on Bloor, just east of Racer Sportif, on the
south side of Bloor. But I guess they aren't.
Does anyone know the name of that place (on the south side of Bloor)? I've
driven by it a few times but I've never been inside it, although from the
street I noticed that they had some good quality road bikes on display in
their front window.
J. Spaceman
Jason Spaceman
> Cervelo are made in Toronto up near Laird and Eglinton, I think
> they sell direct... There are lots of decent shops in town, but
> personally I believe in buying a bike from a shop that you want a
> relationship with (one convenient to where you live)... two that
> I have found to be excellent are D'ornellas (sp?) Lawrence and
> Vic Park and Enduro Sport on Leslie.
>
> Drop me an e-mail if you want ... the addi works.
Cervelo sells direct? Hmmmmm. Do they have a shop located at their head
offices (their web site says they are located on Industrial St. which is in
East York, I think). Would they sell to a lowly consumer like myself, or
do I have to be a dealer?
I'm out in Oshawa, the armpit of Canada, and there aren't a lot of good bike
shops out here; just used car and Harley dealerships :-). The few bike
shops that we do have tend to deal mainly in mountain bikes and do not
offer a huge selection when it comes to road bikes.
J. Spaceman
Derek Lloyd
I bought mine here:
Derek
--
Derek Lloyd dere...@interlog.com <*>
S. Anderson
news:EYExP6XOKI9c=2Ae+DMY...@4ax.com...
> On Wed, 06 Aug 2003 11:13:25 GMT, Jason Spaceman
> <I...@eat.spammers.for.breakfast> doth put forth:
>
>
Tony Pavan is great guy and he has great bikes, being the importer of
Pinarello. Unfortunately for Jason, he's at the 401 and Renforth..a bit of
a hike! But yeah, I know Tony and I'd direct anyone his way when I can.
Nice guy and very skilled.
Cheers,
Scott..
S. Anderson
>
> Their web site says they are located on Castlefield, I always thought that
> they were that shop located on Bloor, just east of Racer Sportif, on the
> south side of Bloor. But I guess they aren't.
>
> Does anyone know the name of that place (on the south side of Bloor)?
I've
> driven by it a few times but I've never been inside it, although from the
> street I noticed that they had some good quality road bikes on display in
> their front window.
>
>
> J. Spaceman
>
La Bicicletta used to be on the south side of Bloor just west of High Park,
east of Racer, but they have since moved. I've never really liked
Racer..personal reasons from way back. But they do sell high-end stuff.
D'Ornellas is nice and Eon is a nice guy.
Scott..
S. Anderson
>
> Cervelo sells direct? Hmmmmm. Do they have a shop located at their head
> offices (their web site says they are located on Industrial St. which is
in
> East York, I think). Would they sell to a lowly consumer like myself, or
> do I have to be a dealer?
>
> I'm out in Oshawa, the armpit of Canada, and there aren't a lot of good
bike
> shops out here; just used car and Harley dealerships :-). The few bike
> shops that we do have tend to deal mainly in mountain bikes and do not
> offer a huge selection when it comes to road bikes.
>
>
>
> J. Spaceman
>
>
I think they sell direct. It'd be a great opportunity to head down there
and check out their place. They'd be more than happy to help you out I'm
sure and you can see their operation. Oshawa isn't the armpit of
Canada...Welland is!!! ;-) Or is Welland the arsehole of Canada?!?
Cheers,
Scott..
Jason Spaceman
Would he have a Pinarello for between $3000 and $3500? :-) Any idea
if the 'house brand' Pavan is any good?
J. Spaceman
S. Anderson
news:65i3jv86k26p3bbie...@4ax.com...
>
> Would he have a Pinarello for between $3000 and $3500? :-) Any idea
> if the 'house brand' Pavan is any good?
>
>
>
> J. Spaceman
>
>
I'm sure he has some nice Pinarellos...my road racing buddy has bought
several there in the last few years. I think he was in the $3500 range for
his last one. Honestly, I'm not up on road stuff too much, except my 20
year old Rossin that I keep clunking along with. As far as the Pavan brand,
I don't think they're in the same league as Cervelo or Pinarello. The
frames are manufactured in Italy somewhere by some third party builder so
they may not be up to Pinarello quality. I'm not a big fan of carbon stays
on alu frames either so maybe I'm jaded. However, they're probably very
well assembled as they do good work at Pavan's. His shop is fairly small
and aimed mostly at the road racer: not a lot of recreational accessories or
even clothing. If you're ever out that way I'd recommend stopping in to see
him or Don Zuck, his associate. But he's mostly about importing Pinarellos.
Cheers,
Scott..
Jason Spaceman
wrote:
>
>
>Cervelo are made in Toronto up near Laird and Eglinton, I think
>they sell direct... There are lots of decent shops in town, but
>personally I believe in buying a bike from a shop that you want a
>relationship with (one convenient to where you live)... two that
>I have found to be excellent are D'ornellas (sp?) Lawrence and
>Vic Park and Enduro Sport on Leslie.
>
>Drop me an e-mail if you want ... the addi works.
I checked out D'Ornella's and Duke's on Thursday. The guy at
D'Ornella's showed me a couple of bikes that caught my interest. One
was a Specialized Allez Pro w/ Dura-Ace. Something like this model
--->
http://www.specialized.com/SBCBkModel.jsp?san=03AllezPro18&bl=road&JServSessionIdroot=pl43ihd8ox.j27004
I'm not too crazy about the Allez Pro's zebra stripe pattern, but it's
no biggie. The componentry on it is very nice though. The bike was
regularly $3900 but was on for $3250 or thereabouts.
The other was a Giant TCR Composite 1, something like this --->
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/cn/030.000.000/030.050.000.asp?dealerid=&dealercountry=&lYear=2003&bikesection=8805&range=82&model=9833
I like the fact that the bike is carbon fibre. It was on sale for
around $2950 or so.
Duke's didn't seem to have as much of a selection within my price
range, but they did have a Cannondale R3000 --->
http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/03/cusa/model-3R3KD.html which,
although out of my price range with the Dura-Ace and all; the guy at
the shop said that they might be able to rebuild it with Ultegra to
bring the price down. Or else order me an R2000.
Duke's also had a Trek 5200 ----->
http://www.trekbikes.com/bikes/2003/road/5200.jsp for around $3500
which caught my eye.
The only Cervelo I saw was at Duke's, and it was the P2K time trial
bike. Does anyone know why Cervelo puts Ultegra or Dura-Ace cranks,
derailleurs, and shifters on their bikes; but they put on 'Cervelo'
brand brake calipers? The brake calipers are completely black except
for the Cervelo label stamped on them. Are they any good?
D'Ornella's had this nice Orbea time trial bike, as well as an Orbea
road frame in the Euskatel team colours :-), which caught my eye.
At D'Ornella's the guy measured me and suggested that I would probably
ride a 58cm frame, whereas at Duke's the guy suggested that I would
require something closer to 60cm or so, although he didn't take my
measurements and said that if I do decide to buy a bike they would
take all my measurements at that time, and put me on a trainer to
observe my riding style, etc.
J. Spaceman
ajames54
<IEatSpammers...@rogers.com> wrote:
SNIP
>
>The only Cervelo I saw was at Duke's, and it was the P2K time trial
>bike. Does anyone know why Cervelo puts Ultegra or Dura-Ace cranks,
>derailleurs, and shifters on their bikes; but they put on 'Cervelo'
>brand brake calipers? The brake calipers are completely black except
>for the Cervelo label stamped on them. Are they any good?
Good enough ... basically it will be a cost issue.. the tri and
time trial bikes are built up with aero-bars, and bar-con
shifters rather than STI shifters. The break leavers they use are
designed for aero-bars (IIRC made by dia-comp) I don't know who
makes the calipers, there are a couple of companies who make
quite acceptable "non-brand" brakes (they are not that
technologically challenging after all.)
>At D'Ornella's the guy measured me and suggested that I would probably
>ride a 58cm frame, whereas at Duke's the guy suggested that I would
>require something closer to 60cm or so, although he didn't take my
>measurements and said that if I do decide to buy a bike they would
>take all my measurements at that time, and put me on a trainer to
>observe my riding style, etc.
>
I would expect either shop to do basically the same thing... but
I would lean towards D'Ornella's as being the one that does the
better job..
Jason Spaceman
La Bicicletta had a pretty big selection. I had my eyes on a Look KG
461 -->
http://www.lookcycle.com/english/catalogue/2003/cadres_kg461.htm
(I think it was a 461, I forgot to write down the exact model number)
that was built up with Ultegra. They were selling it for around $3250
or so.
They also had a Look KX frame and fork --->
http://www.lookcycle.com/english/catalogue/2003/cadres_kx.htm and they
said they could build a complete bike with Ultegra for around $3600
(OK, a bit out of my price range).
They also had a brand called Marinoni, I think they are a Quebec
company. Any info on them? Good? Bad? One particular model I
looked at ---> http://www.marinoni.qc.ca/html/eng_piumaxtra.asp had a
steel front triangle and carbon rear.
Racer Sportif had a Pinarello Surprise frame built with Mavic Cosmics
and Ultegra for around $2900 or so.
The guy at Racer Sportif also showed me an Aquila Titanio CR frame and
fork set that he said they could build into a complete bike with
Ultegra components & wheels for me for around $3600. I was impressed
with the looks and weight of the Aquila Titanio. It has a Ti front
triangle and Ti chain stays, and carbon seat stays. I'm not to
familiar with Aquila, but you can view the frame and fork in question
here --->
http://www.aquilacycles.com/Products/FrameTitanioCRStrada.htm
Where are Aquilas made? Are they a 'house brand' for some local bike
shops around Ontario and Quebec? Are they good? bad?
The guy at Racer Sportif really seemed to recommend Ti for a tall &
heavy bastard like me. Perhaps he was just looking to sell me
something more expensive, but I have heard some good things about the
ride quality of a Ti frame (although I've never ridden one myself).
Both shops said that they would measure me and get me to ride on a
trainer to figure out my riding style, etc. and to help determine my
frame size. La Bicicletta had a cool computerized setup to help with
some of that stuff.
J. Spaceman
John Forrest Tomlinson
> company. Any info on them? Good? Bad? One particular model I
> looked at ---> http://www.marinoni.qc.ca/html/eng_piumaxtra.asp had
a
> steel front triangle and carbon rear.
Marinoni is a good bike. I'm not real familiar with them now but when
I was (1980s-90s) they were very good value for top level racing
bikes. I believe a Marinoni won the 1984 Olympic women's RR (rebadged
as another brand). I loved mine (got it in 1986) and still do.
JT
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Davey Crockett
> I checked out Racer Sportif and La Bicicletta today.
>
>
> Racer Sportif had a Pinarello Surprise frame built with Mavic Cosmics
> and Ultegra for around $2900 or so.
>
> Both shops said that they would measure me and get me to ride on a
> trainer to figure out my riding style, etc. and to help determine my
> frame size. La Bicicletta had a cool computerized setup to help with
> some of that stuff.
>
I hope you will not take this the wrong way, but $2500 to $3000 is
an awful lot of money to spend on a bike especially as you do not
really seem to know what you want.
A good used steel bike can be bought much more cheaply, and used
bikes tend to hold their value better than new ones.
Possibly after riding for a while you would be in better position
to know what you wanted.
And Fit-Kit type machines? If you know your measurements, you do
not need them. At best they are only a guide and at worst they
serve to ~fit~ you to an expensive product that just happens to
be ~on sale, but only until tonight.~
Toronto bike shops?
A motley crowd if ever there was one. Personally I find mail order
more to my liking.
But try Eon D'Ornellas on Laurence (East about 2200 or something)
or Trail Blazer on Danforth (around 2000) you will get good service
from both places and Trail Blazer have some beautiful Bianchi's
that are made of real steel, fitted with Campagnolo components and
reasonably priced.
--
le vent a Dos
Davey Crockett
Mike
a top notch shop with great service and a nice selection of bikes.
They carry Trek, Giant and Cannondale road frames. Ask for Jean-Paul
when you give them a call or drop by. If you are planning on spending
$3500.00 on a bike then the trip out to Mississauga will be far worth
the drive.
By the way I am riding a Marinoni Delta Extra which is their aluminum
race machine with full real carbon triangle. I have full DA components
on it with the FSA Pro Team Issue crank. This is one sweet machine.
You will have a hard time finding a frame anywhere that matches what
Marinoni produces whether it be aluminum or steel. They even have a
carbon model out this year but I don't know much about it.
Best of luck in your search for the right bike.
Mike
"S. Anderson" <scott.a...@zsympaticoz.ca> wrote in message news:<5qkYa.3380$_a4.7...@news20.bellglobal.com>...
wadoflove
Hey JS,
If its not too late try La Bicicletta
http://www.labicicletta.com/www.labicicletta.com which is in TO. They
have been really helpful on the phone and they stock good high end
bikes, though not Cervelo. Have you thought about Marinoni? I am trying
to decide between Marinoni which are beautifully built but have no name
recognition here in Europe or Cervelo which now everyone knows about cos
of Tyler and the TdF. Last time I lived in Toronto (granted it was 14
years ago) I thought Dukes was a good shop and Racer Sportif were a
bunch of arrogant dickheads. Lousy service and a lousy mechanic who
nearly ruined the bearing races on my hubs by overtightening, I could
hardly turn the wheel when I got it home and had to buy some cone
wrenches to adjust them myself.
--
>--------------------------<
Posted via cyclingforums.com
http://www.cyclingforums.com
Jason Spaceman
> Hey JS,
>
> If its not too late try La Bicicletta
> http://www.labicicletta.com/www.labicicletta.com which is in TO. They
> have been really helpful on the phone and they stock good high end
> bikes, though not Cervelo. Have you thought about Marinoni? I am trying
> to decide between Marinoni which are beautifully built but have no name
> recognition here in Europe or Cervelo which now everyone knows about cos
> of Tyler and the TdF. Last time I lived in Toronto (granted it was 14
> years ago) I thought Dukes was a good shop and Racer Sportif were a
> bunch of arrogant dickheads. Lousy service and a lousy mechanic who
> nearly ruined the bearing races on my hubs by overtightening, I could
> hardly turn the wheel when I got it home and had to buy some cone
> wrenches to adjust them myself.
>
Too late, I already bought a bike from Duke's (a 2004 Trek 5200). I picked
it up 2 weeks ago after my order finally came in.
I did check out La Bicicletta though, and I was impressed with it. They
seem pretty thorough when it comes to fitting you for a bike. When I was
there they did have some Cervelos in stock although not a lot. The guy
mentioned that they are having a hard time getting orders from Cervelo
filled (Duke's also told me the same thing). Cervelo also had a display
set up at the World Road Championships in Hamilton, although they weren't
permitted to sell any bikes.
I liked the Marinonis I tested, especially this steel/carbon fibre model
that Bicicletta had (it would have been my 2nd choice if Duke's wasn't able
to get me the Trek).
Bicicletta also had Looks, Lightspeeds, De Rosas, etc. in stock.
As for Racer Sportif, yeah you kind of feel a bit of arrogance in the air
when you talk to some of the people there. I test drove an Aquila Ti when
I was at their shop. It seemed like a nice bike, but I don't know much
about Aquila or where they are made, frame quality, etc. So I decided not
to go with them.
J. Spaceman
Carl Fogel
> wadoflove wrote:
> > Hey JS,
> >
> > If its not too late try La Bicicletta
> > http://www.labicicletta.com/www.labicicletta.com which is in TO. They
> > have been really helpful on the phone and they stock good high end
> > years ago) I thought Dukes was a good shop and Racer Sportif were a
> > bunch of arrogant dickheads. Lousy service and a lousy mechanic who
> > nearly ruined the bearing races on my hubs by overtightening, I could
> > hardly turn the wheel when I got it home and had to buy some cone
> > wrenches to adjust them myself.
> >
>
> I did check out La Bicicletta though, and I was impressed with it. They
> seem pretty thorough when it comes to fitting you for a bike.
>
>
> As for Racer Sportif, yeah you kind of feel a bit of arrogance in the air
> when you talk to some of the people there.
>
> J. Spaceman
Dear Jason,
Your instinctive dislike of the French as exemplified by
Racer Sportif (who may be a fine bunch for all I know)
puts the Simpsons solidly behind you:
3 Nov 1996 Simpsons episode 3F23 "You Only Move Twice":
Supervillain Hank Scorpio asks: "Homer, what's your least
favorite country: Italy or France?" When Homer says France,
Hank replies: "Nobody ever says Italy."
There's a whole page pandering to Franco-phobia, its
lavish selection of anti-French bon mots studded with
gems from the Simpsons, at:
http://www.rotten.com/library/culture/american-francophobia/
24 Oct 1999 Simpsons episode AABF21 "Guess Who's Coming
to Criticize Dinner?": After a French pastry chef brusquely
shoos Ned Flanders away from a tempting éclair, Ned responds:
"A rude Frenchman? Well, I never!"
Of course, I understand that the French throw a pretty
good bike race every summer, and Peter Mayle makes them
seem impossibly charming.
Xenophobically yours,
Carl Fogel
wadoflove
> Dear Jason,
> Your instinctive dislike of the French as exemplified by Racer Sportif
> (who may be a fine bunch for all I know) puts the Simpsons solidly
> behind you:
> 3 Nov 1996 Simpsons episode 3F23 "You Only Move Twice":
> Supervillain Hank Scorpio asks: "Homer, what's your least favorite
> country: Italy or France?" When Homer says France, Hank replies:
> "Nobody ever says Italy."
> There's a whole page pandering to Franco-phobia, its lavish selection of
> anti-French bon mots studded with gems from the Simpsons, at:
> .rotten.com/library/culture/american-francophobia/
> 24 Oct 1999 Simpsons episode AABF21 "Guess Who's Coming to
> Criticize Dinner?": After a French pastry chef brusquely shoos Ned
> Flanders away from a tempting éclair, Ned responds: "A rude
> Frenchman? Well, I never!"
> Of course, I understand that the French throw a pretty good bike race
> every summer, and Peter Mayle makes them seem impossibly charming.
> Xenophobically yours,
> Carl Fogel
Jeez Carl,
Where did this come from? Racer Sportif has nothing to do with the
French apart from the name. For your education, the French are anything
but rude, a little self-centred maybe, but not rude. No, the rudest
people in this world are the AMERICANS. Perhaps not to each other but
when they are travelling. You know, the ones who descend on Paris every
summer, not having bothered to learn a word of French (not even Merci or
S'il vous plait) and have no idea of the customs of this country and
then walk up to people in shops and say "How much is this?" and when
they don't answer immediately they yell the same thing louder as if it
was a hearing problem not a language problem "HOW MUCH". Then when they
get the answer to their rudely asked question they say things like "In
yer money or my money?". I could give hundreds of examples of their poor
behaviour but I'll let you educate yourself by visiting other countries
and seeing for yourself. I've lived for at least 2 years in 3 different
European countries including France and Paris and have never felt that
the French were rude in comparison to the American Tourists.
The most insulting thing to be called as a foreigner living in Europe in
my humble Canadian opinion is "American".
--
[img]http://www.angelfire.com/blog/world_of_hell/omgf.jpg[/img]
Carl Fogel
Dear Jason,
Gosh, with that sense of humor you could almost pas
for a stereotypical French waiter, not a humble
Canadian.
Au revoir, eh?
Carl Fogel
Joe
> my humble Canadian opinion is "American".
Q: Do you know why they planted trees along the road in Paris?
A: So the German army could march in the shade.
ajames54
Actually it was so Napoleons army could march in the shade...
Lets keep the foolish jingoist BS where it belongs ... in RASF1
wadoflove
You're right. I just get steamed when people buy into this scary right
wing hate mongering without thinking about it. So put in my two cents
without thinking about others... for the record its not all Americans
who behave like loud mouthed boors in Europe, those are just the ones
that everyone notices! €8'B
--