The Internet Is Broken!

Oh my god, I think I broke the internet!...oh wait...no, it still works.
However, the perl-based web form I was using for some reason decided to stop working. This means that all of you folks who have recently tried to send an appointment request using the online form will have recieved an error message, and your request most definately did not reach me.

This problem was pointed out to me a couple of days ago, but as to what the problem is I'm clueless. I've tried a couple of minor changes to the script, to no avail, and I'm afraid I don't have much time to devote to this issue for at least another week. Which means that the convenience of not even having to pick up the phone to get your bike(s) fixed is just going to have to wait. Meanwhile, if you can't wait for me to fix my website before you need to get your bike fixed, give me a call! (contact details are on the website).

If anybody out there knows how to debug perl scripts and wants to play the role of Good Samaritan, I'd love a hand with this. I will trade my labour for yours if you can get it working! Email me if you're interested & I'll give you more details.


As usual, thanks again for reading. Feedback is always welcomed and appreciated. Leave a comment, make a suggestion, and check out the website!
Don't forget to vote in the poll on the right hand side of the blog!

And if you feel so inclined, please click on the Google Ad links and see where they take you! You don't have to buy anything, just click through! I found a neat little chainless-drive bike in one of the ads!

Web poll added: votes needed!

Blogger has added web polls to their list of widdgets for their users, and I've taken them up on it! I've added a poll to the right-hand column asking my readers what they use their bike for, and I'd love it if you could take a moment to vote. This is my first web poll, so be gentle with me.

You can have multiple selections, and can come back and change your vote if you'd like.
Also, if you use your bike in a way that isn't listed in the poll, send me an email and I'll add it for you (and I'll let you know when I do it so you can go back and change/add your vote).

Depending on the response of this poll, I'd like to do more. Polls on favourite local riding spots, best post-ride refresher spot, preferred components, etc. What I'd really like to do is come up with an easy way to have several polls, or a single, larger survey, on one page to make it easier (and maybe fun?) for everybody. But I'd like to do that without having to pay for a professional service.


As usual, feedback is always welcomed and appreciated. Leave a comment, make a suggestion, thanks for reading, and check out the website!

Don't forget to click on the Google Ad links -every click counts!

Another Weekly Special

Well, it's time to come up with another "weekly special"...

THIS WEEK'S SPECIAL!

SNG Alloy Road Brake Aero Lever w/carbon finish
*Quick release
*Return spring
*Comfortable rubber hood
*Black hoods with carbon finish on levers
*Fits all drop or moustache handlebars
$12.00 / pair (reg. $19.95/pr.)

I still have the tires from last week's special, so I'm going to keep them on sale for another week.


As usual, feedback is always welcomed and appreciated. Leave a comment, make a suggestion, thanks for reading, and check out the website!

Don't forget to click on the Google Ad links -every click counts!

Snow on the ground, Weekly Feature

First "official" day of business : Snow.
Second "official" day of business: Snow.
We're off to a great start!

One of the things I had planned to do this year was to have a weekly special where I featured a service or product. It's probably going to be more work than I want to do, but it'll help to keep the website fresh and hopefully, drive customer interest up.

So here's the first special of the year. It's a fitting product considering the weather outside.

THIS WEEK'S SPECIAL!

Innova Studded Tire
700c x 45mm
Black
114 replaceable steel studs
$50.00 / pair (reg. $99.00/pr.)

Only one pair available, so the first interested person gets 'em!

So there you have it. My first special of the year!
As usual, feedback is always welcomed and appreciated. Thanks for reading, and check out the website!
Don't forget to click on the Google Ad links -every click counts!

Trek Recalls girl's MT220 bike

If you bought a Trek MT220 Girl's bike for your daughter in the last 3 years, you might want to pay attention to this.

I thought I should help spread the word about a product recall that Trek Bikes issued on one of their girl's bike lines earlier this month. I only learned about it this morning, as I've been somewhat slacking in keeping up with the bike news because I've been so busy with FHF and the move, but it's especially important to since it concerns the safety of kids.

Apparently, the gussetted models are not affected by the recall, but for full detail please visit the Trek Bikes Safety & Recall webpage and download the 2008 Trek Girls' MT220 Bicycle Recall.pdf to find out exactly which models have been affected. If you have any further questions or concerns about the safety of your bike, contact your local Trek Bikes dealer and see what they have to say.

Won't somebody please think of the children? Oh wait, they did...

Park Tool Sues Serfas Over Pump Colour

When I try to explain to people how competitive the bicycling industry is, I usually get a "yeah, yeah" type of look. "Of course it's competitive" is the standard reply, "they are, after all, in the business to make money." Well, uh, gee. Thanks for the intro to Economics 101.

Then I move one to explaing how for each price point (which can start at $300, and go up by increments of $50 - $75) every one of the large manufacturers has a bike, and usually they are all comparable to each other. Trek's $600 bike is going to be right on par, for quality & value, as a bike from Specialized, Giant, or Norco. And the same thing pretty much applies to bikes that costs $300 or $3000.

Of course there are differences between brands, and Product Managers have to make those tough decisions to stay within a certain price point, such as "if we downgrade the suspension fork, we can upgrade the drivetrain" or "we can put double-walled rims on, but we'll have to use a cheaper handlebar stem and saddle." But when you are comparing "Bang-For-Buck" value, most of the big players in the industry are neck-and-neck. There are always exceptions to the rule, however, and occassionally you come across a product that blows it's competitors away by increasing that "bang-for-buck" value.

For any competitive industry, especially one that is exceptionally secretive about sales figures and market/product research & development, it does seem like there is a lot of, um..."imitation" that goes on (you can call it "copying", "borrowing" or just plain "ripping-off" if you'd like). And the latest episode of squabble over "copying" is brought to you by Park Tool Co. and Serfas Inc., with Park Tool's Lawsuit over Serfa's use of the colour blue in their pumps.

You can read more about it here.

Personally, I'm not sure who I side with on this one. I'd love to anybody else's opinion about this.

Once again, thanks for reading, and check out the website! Don't forget to click on the Google Ad links -every click counts!

Resuming service on March 8th!

The move is on!
(wasn't that a Kenny Loggins tune?)

Well, we've started packing and will finally be out of the apartment and into the house this Thursday. With so much to do, I am freaking out just a little bit, but I'm sure it'll work out fine. After all, there is no other option.

I figure it's going to take the first week of March to sort things out, so I am officially announcing...
the first day of service for 2008 will be Saturday, March 8!
Until then it's just phone calls, my friends. So we can still make house-call appointments, arrange to have your bike picked up, offer advice, and generally talk your ear off.
That is, except for this Thursday and Friday, due to transfering our service over. Man, moving is a drag.

New Website Up!

Well, it's been a long time coming, but the new website is finally up. Continual Cycles v3.0 is here! After having a third person say "Oh, you're still in business? I checked out the website a couple of times and nothing seemed to be happening" I decided I'd better get off my butt and re-vamp the site. There are still a couple of things I'd like to work on, like the planned photo gallery, but for now I'm happy with what I've got and I'm hoping that you'll like it too. Bicycles aside for a moment, I'd like to talk a bit about the new site.

I'm excited about the new site because I'm using CSS for layout and am now XHTML 1.0 compliant and, aside from a totally new look, I've slimmed down the size (in Kb) of each page. I've also done away with that hokey javascript drop-down menu bar that was the site navigation. Not that the site was large, by any standards, but it makes me feel like I've upgraded my skills and besides, the site will load faster.

Now that I think about it, it's a little like getting a better bike, one that was lighter and faster than the old one. Sure it can go a little faster because it's lighter, and it will be more fun to ride, but it will ultimately take an improvement of skills to really make that bike come alive.

Still in the works is a photo gallery that (hopefully) people can/will upload their bike & bike related photos to. All I need to do is choose a format, learn how to make a decent thumbnail bar, compile a bunch of photos, and find the time to accomplish all this. No sweat. Maybe I'll make a T-shirt that says "Photo Gallery 2009 or Bust!"

All kidding aside, I'd love to hear what you have to say about it. Check out the website. Leave a comment, and thanks!