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East Ridge Bicycles offers not only gear and accessories for mountain bikers, BMX bikers, triathletes and more. The Ringgold Road shop also offers instruction, group rides and educational discussions.
“We’re here to educate our customers,” said sales manager Chris Dodd. “That’s the most important thing.”
Education, he said, leads to finding the right bike for the right price.
“We offer cycles for all levels of cyclists at all budgets,” said Garth Mansfield, whose father, David, moved to the East Ridge area in the early 1980s from England and bought a Ringgold Road bike shop that had been around since the 1950s.
East Ridge Bicycles staff members Rhett Edmondson, Robert Bain, Garth Mansfield, Zac Holford and Chris Dodd, from left, can provide advice for all types of cycling.
Mansfield said customers are either hobbyists who ride for exercise or fun or commuters who rely on their bikes for transportation every day, and the shop tries to cater to all levels of interest.
East Ridge Bicycles will host local professional triathlete Zach Winchester July 9 for a seminar about triathlon transitions. East Ridge Bicycles sponsors Winchester, along with Kestrel Bikes and Zoot Sports, among others. For more information visit www.zachwinchester.blogspot.com.
Service manager Robert Bain, who spends his days repairing bikes, said he would ride his bike to work from home in Ooltewah if a viable route existed. But he said Chattanooga is becoming more bike-friendly, and he has hopes that East Ridge will too.
Dodd said a big part of the shop’s business comes from Bain’s work at the repair shop, though teaching customers how to care for their bikes is part of the shop’s mission as well.
“I would be happy if all my customers learned how to change a tube,” Bain laughed. But really, he said, he’d love to show customers what they need to know to enjoy the ride more, like how to change a flat.
Bain said the staff members are a close-knit group who were all customers first.
“We all hang out after work,” said Bain. “We are all truly friends.”
East Ridge Bicycles hosts group rides every Sunday at 4:45 p.m. The only rule is that riders know their limits and ride at a reasonable pace. The next ride, July 12, will meet at Apison Elementary at 4:45 p.m. and ride out to Red Clay State Park.
As the 22-day Tour de France hits Europe and U.S. televisions this month, the shop expects to see business pick up as more people become interested in the sport.
Dodd said racers to watch this year include Alberto Contador, the Schleck brothers and Levi Leipheimer.
But he and Bain agree that they cannot deny the power of Lance Armstrong, who rekindles bike passions in Americans every year he races.
“We saw that in the seven years that he was on top,” said Dodd. “I think that he is wonderful for American cycling.”
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