As a bike store owner, it’s somewhat of a right of passage to own a custom bike. I’d been dreaming and scheming about what this would look like over the years and had finally settled on the direction I wanted to take things. In my line of work I sell incredibly capable bikes that perform at their intended purpose exceptionally well. In choosing a custom steel bike, I needed to be intentional to not make a bike that would be outperformed/overlap too much with the modern bikes I encounter on the daily.

Ibis are hosting a demo day with the Oso, Ripley AF and Ripmo V2S!

We’re very pleased to announce that Cowichan Cycles is once again carrying Norco Bicycles!

Spending time in the bike shop and seeing the best and worst of the industry, it’s hard not to run into a few “who thought this was a good idea” and “if only they did it this way” moments. Historically, it has always been a helpless frustration. Things could be better but there was nothing I could do about it. It wasn’t until I met my now business partner, Emory Rempel that I felt empowered enough to search for solutions instead of waiting for fixes.

My time on Forbidden started out on the Druid, their inaugural bike. Although short(ish) in travel, and not overly aggressive in geometry, the Druid rode like a bigger bike than the numbers suggested. The rearward axle path and chainstay growth as the suspension compresses, absolutely makes the bike feel like it wants to go faster and find more bumps to gobble up. I had a ton of fun on this platform and it definitely whet my appetite for what a bigger version of this beast might do. When Forbidden dropped the Dreadnaught in the spring, my interest was piqued.

The objective of this blog style format is to open up conversations and have objective and casual discussions about what we use and why we use it. Hopefully, this comes across more like a genuine conversation with a friend over a coffee or beer than a sales pitch or corporate product launch. Yes, we sell bikes and components, but at the end of the day, we are all just bike enthusiasts that are on the hunt for products that speak to us. Not every bike is decision must be 100% performance based and we value charm and aesthetic just like we appreciate performance and reliability. This first “staff rides” piece should serve as a great Segway into the unique process that is bike building.