By blackmountaincycles,
Filed under: Shop stuff
Do you say “two thousand twenty” or “twenty-twenty?” I’ll bet it’s the latter. When it comes to how to say years in this new century (which is already 20% through), I’ll look back to the 1900’s and think “what did they call 1920? “Nineteen-twenty.” Not one thousand nine hundred and twenty. Twenty-twenty. But will this ’20 also be another Roaring 20s?
Twenty-Twenty also marks the 13th year for Black Mountain Cycles. Seems like a long time, but it also doesn’t. It’s gone by pretty fast. I’m also getting better at this retail thing. Better, not great. It took me a long time to really figure things out that should have been obvious. Like is it wise to open a retail bike shop in a small rural town that is also a tourist (the car driving, sight-seeing type tourists) destination being decimated by Air BnB rentals (go ahead count how many Air BnB rentals are in the Pt. Reyes Station/Inverness area – people used to live here, not just vacation here).
It is also a cycling destination. Big cycling destination. To the bakery, that is. Not that that’s a bad thing. I stop by one of the several bakeries in town a couple times each week. Those cyclists won’t be able to support a bike shop, though. Folks tell me I must be super busy on weekends with all the cyclists in town. Nope. Last weekend, which happened to be a nice sunny Winter weekend, I sold 5 tubes, a couple of CO2 cartridges, frame pump, couple pair of gloves, 12t Campy cassette lock-ring, and replaced a broken shift cable to folks walking into the shop. Might keep the lights on, but won’t pay the rent. I, however, did get orders for a couple of frames and a complete bike via the internet. So, all those cyclists who appreciate the fact there is a bike shop in Pt. Reyes Station, you can thank those folks who are buying Black Mountain Cycles frames and bikes. Without them, I couldn’t justify maintaining a retail presence in town.
Because of that, my in-store retail inventory of accessories has been further whittled down to the essentials and items that support the complete bikes I build. It’s helping my bottom line, but it’s not going to help the one person passing through on their bike who needs that one widget. They might be out of luck. In a rural setting, I simply cannot stock every part for every situation. This is especially true in today’s bike retail landscape where there are massive amounts of standards that shops in urban settings have to have in stock because everyone needs it now. Brake pads, bottom brackets, chainring sizes, tire sizes, rotor interfaces, rotor sizes, grips, and now all the tire colors!
With that, 2020 is going to bring some changes.
- Hours of operation – after working virtually every Sunday for 13 years, I’m going to be closed on Sunday, in addition to the already closed Monday. My official Sunday hours will be “Closed – or by appointment or chance only.” There are a lot of folks who do want to make the drive (or ride) out to the shop to purchase a frame, or pick up a bike on a Sunday. And I’ll accommodate them via an appointment. Just let me know a day or two before you’d like to pick something up on Sunday.
New hours of operation (see Sunday)
- Prices – I’ve held the frameset price the same since day one. I’m often told my frames are too cheap. Kinda nice to hear. I think the prices have been fair. But expenses are going up and, therefore, so are frameset prices, but not for currently in-stock frames. Those will stay the same until I need to order more. Which leads me to:
- MCD frames – a new run of MCD frames is coming at the end of February. Colors are Mayfly and Desert Orange. The price of these MCD frames will increase from $695 to $745. The only change is the addition of triple “anything” type cage bosses on the fork and the rear thru-axle threading will change from 1.0t to 1.5t thread pitch. Pre-orders/deposits for these new frames will be opened soon, hopefully within a week or so. I’ll let you guess which is Mayfly and which is Desert Orange.
- Frame and wheel shipping costs are going up by $8. It’s just costing more to ship.
- Future of rim brake frames – I’ve mentioned in the past that I’ll keep doing the rim brake frames as long as there’s demand. The Monstercross frames I received at the end of 2018 are almost gone and I’ll be ordering more soon. The way I look at it is I’ll keep doing a model of frame if each production run will sell through within a year, or so. The Road frames, on the other hand are selling at a slower rate and I still have a lot, except for the smallest and largest frames. Those may be the last of the Road frames I do. Who knows, maybe the orange Molteni style graphic frame has run its course and a new color would do better? That’s a big 5-figure bet. Not sure yet. Got to sell through the ones I still have in stock before I can even contemplate continuing with a rim brake road frame.
- New frames – yes, I am working on something new. And it’s really freakin’ cool. I’ve been riding on a prototype for a bit and it’s really fun. As soon as I iron out a few details and get some drawings of other sizes done, I’ll post some into. Stay tuned. It’s going to be big.
- And finally, did you see? The Radavist compiled a list of the Top Ten Beautiful Bikes of 2019 and an MCD owned by Spencer down in Austin made the list. I thought that was pretty damn cool. Good job Spencer! Thanks, John Watson. And speaking of John Watson and The Radavist, the new Desert Orange MCD color was inspired by John’s incredible photos of the American Southwest.
Several years ago, when I was on Facebook, I was a member of a mechanic’s group. I wanted to be there to learn something. However, it seemed a more common theme was one of right and wrong ways to do things. I don’t deal well in absolutes. In fact, I pretty much abhor them. There’s just different ways to do things. Something that works well for me might not work for you, but the end result is the same. Why did I even go there with that? I was watching a documentary on John Coltrane and this quote by Trane hit home with me: “I just couldn’t believe that one guy could be right. Because if he’s right, somebody else has got to be wrong.” I like that quote and had to figure out how to fit it in this blog post.
Now, a lot of that might sound a bit complain-y. It’s not. It’s just facts. It’s not easy surviving in retail these days and I’m lucky to be able to live here and have a business that is flexible enough to adapt to the times and find a way through all this while maintaining my focus – which is the Black Mountain Cycles framesets and bikes and building as many custom wheels as I can manage.
Shop wall in 2020
Black Mountain in the shadow of clouds rolling through after a storm. It’s a pretty great place to live.
(What’s playing: Nina Simone “Feeling Good”)
Where To Start
25 responses to “2020 – New Year, Renewed Focus”
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May you have a great 2020 and beyond!
Thank you, Jon. And same to you too!
Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd.
-Voltaire
That, too, is a great concept. Thanks for sharing that.
Thank you for the amazing bikes and happy 2020.
Thank you, Jonathan! Happy 2020.
My favorite bike shop!!!
Thank you, Patrick!
I will be interested to learn about what you are up to with the new frame & fork.
Retail is definitely changing. I think you seem to be on top of it all.
Lovely new MCD colors, by the way. Cheers!
Thanks, Mark. Hope all is well with you after Europa.
From one rural area to another…
Your Monstercross has made small-town life in NoDak a complete enjoyment. The bike has traversed all types of terrain, and your assistance has been very fast and accessible when needed. Thank You!
Thank you, Jason. I’m glad the bike has enhanced your NoDak experience.
Thanks for being patient with my occasional drop in question or two (I live in Petaluma and am frequently passing through PRS). While I appreciate your physical presence, I am also heartened by the deepening of your digital business (digital retail is my bread and butter too, so I get it). It’s great to see you translating the innovations of Cunningham, Potts, Ibis, Salsa, et. al., and manifesting them for us in the form of Black Mountain Cycles. Kudos!
Thank you, Tim!
hoping the new frame fits larger tires but is still a drop bar design. Maybe fit 2.4’s or so.
I’ve never got one of your frames because I need a slacker seat tube angle but maybe the new frame is the one. I still follow along and love your bikes and focus.
I think you’ll be pleased. Can’t comment on the seat angle as I always though my frames were on the slack side, especially the larger frames. More setback to the seat post?
Mike-
Thanks for selling me tires and my rim brake MC frameset. Your always the first shop I turn to when I need advice and parts.
Truly sorry to hear about the death of the rim-brake frame. “Eddy” is by far the best deal on a steel road frame and mine puts a big smile on my face every time I ride it. I picked it up in person and Mike and his shop are what this sport needs-personable, inviting service. It reminds me of the old days and that is not a bad thing!
Mike,
I am truly blessed to have found you via the internet all the way from NC! I so enjoy my orange “Eddy”! It’s my go to for everything from road to bike-path gravel rides except for my work commute frankenbike. The time you took to listen, answer my questions and fit my body and budget were wonderful testaments to your customer service ethic. After it’s first 3500 mi or so and it’s first gravel crash, everything is still in working order! Quality workmanship is evident. Many thanks and good luck in 2020!
I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for what’s next at BMC. My MTB conversion commuter could stand an update when my funds allow… but must have pannier/fender compatibility 🙂
Thank you, Brian. And here’s to many more fun miles!
Coincidentally, earlier today I removed myself from said Facebook Mechanic’s Group for much the same reasons you mention. There is enough negativity in the media without having to deal with it amongst our peers.
I hope one day to purchase an MCD frameset. It’s one of the few that is affordable on a semi-retired bike mechanic salary, and a great deal at that. I think the price increase is justified.
Ride on
Those new orange and green colors (combined with white) look like the flag of India. They have a wheel on it too, crazy times.
When will the next batch of Monstercross frames will be available? Thanks!
I would expect them October-ish.
So glad to hear you’re going to keep making rim brake Monster Cross frames — retro or not, mine is an absolute blast to ride!