I’m a bit peeved today, well yesterday really, I’m over it now. As I’ve mentioned previously, it looks like I’ll be riding in RAGBRAI this year and am in the process of getting my Bike Friday NWT dialed in for the trip. More precisely I’m putting on miles and trying to wear things out so I can take the bike in and get new cables and such.
One of the things I’ve noticed is that I don’t really care for the flat bars on my bike. They are fine around town and on rides up to about fifty miles. After that I really get tired of the limited hand positions. The easy solution seems to be to get a set of Ergon grips.
I’ve decided on the Ergon GC3:
In some situations people simply need more hand positions. Employing the much proven ergonomic grip body of the GC2, the GC3 introduces a hollow formed glass fiber reinforced ergonomically shaped bar end. Featuring rubberized inserts for positive grip, like all of Ergon’s bar ends it can be independently positioned relative to the grip and acts as the clamp preventing accidental rotation.
Everything I’ve read about them suggests they are great. Kent Peterson, a fellow I’ve read on various email lists I belong to and trust says good things about them. That’s enough to give ’em a try.
Here’s the peeve part. I’d decided to get these about a month ago. For once I decided I would give a specific LBS a little business. I was thinking they’d do some work for me in the near future and I’d helped a friend buy a bike there. I’d found them to be good people.
I dropped by and asked if they had the GC3 in stock. “Nope, but we can get a set.” Great! I gave them my contact information and waited. A couple of weeks later I checked back. No shipment.
Now, a month later I still hadn’t gotten a call so I called them.
It seems I’ve fallen through the cracks.
“Yep, we got in a big shipment of Ergons.”
I said I’d ordered the GC3, large, in the grip shift configuration.
Nope.
I ended up ordering them off Amazon last night and even ponied up for expedited shipping which will, in the end, cost me the same as if I’d gotten them from the LBS. I’d have preferred to give my money to the LBS instead of a place out of state and Amazon. I wouldn’t even have minded waiting a month as I was really too busy for longer rides the last couple of months.
In any case I’m not going to mention the name of the LBS here, for now. I’ll give them another chance in the future. But I have to say that this one of the reasons people prefer to order online. I’m pretty sure they didn’t order my grips and just figured they’d get a set when they ordered a variety. I could be completely wrong, one reason I’m not naming them now, but I’m still peeved.
Sigh. I really need to go ride my bike. 🙂
Aloha!
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