Professional Coaching and Bike Fitting

  My favorite Cafe in the world, with the best tea and coffee. So many varieties of tea! Never a long line. But wait, they offer fitness classes and have a bicycle shop to boot. 3 of my favorite things all in one place. I go here weekly since they opened and the service is amazing!! The owners are fabulous people who care about Redlands.

  Great people there and a great facility.

  A little more than a year ago my wife rather bluntly observed, “you’re getting kinda fat.” After I finished my blueberry muffin and wiped the tears from my eyes, I decided, that’s it, I’m going to take my fitness and health seriously. Several months later I somehow completed the Tour de Foothills on my mom’s old endurance bike, which didn’t fit me very well and was causing some some knee and hip pain. Nevertheless I decided I liked riding bikes and wanted to do more of it. I had it in mind to buy a Trek Madone as my new bike, mostly because I thought they looked cool, but was a little unclear about the right size to get. That’s when I found Bikecoach in an effort to do a pre-fit. The answer turned out to be no Trek Madone, thanks to my gorilla like proportions. Rachel took significant time to explain my numbers to me and give a range to search within. Despite only being about 5’ 10” I ended up with a 58cm Fuji 2.3, a bike completely off my radar, and larger than anyone else would have thought appropriate. But this is where listening to actual experts rather than bro friends comes in; this particular frame combined with 170mm cranks fits me like a glove when riding. I put in around 8-10 hours a week on average, including plenty of hard riding, and the only pain I feel is muscle fatigue, no more sharp pains in the knee, etc. If I had listened to a Trek salesman (doing their job), or other well intentioned but superficially knowledgable amateurs, I almost certainly would have ended up with something less ideal. . . and more expensive. Beyond the pre-fit to find the right bike, and post-fit to dial in the actual bike, we spent time selecting a new seat. Bikecoach has many test seats in stock. Just as with the bike fit, having selected the best possible seat for me now means I simply don’t notice the seat. After this whole process, I just ride my bike without being annoyed by things that aren’t fitting or sitting quite right. It makes a HUGE difference in the bike riding experience and is some of the best money you can spend. Rachel is attentive to details and takes the time to explain them. But wait! There’s more. During the fitting process, where I shared some of my intentions at getting more fit on the bike, Rachel suggested I join something called an “early bird’ clinic, where racers get ready for the coming season by dusting off some basic bike handling skills, and doing a short race. This was the first clinic and race I had ever done. Despite being politely set on fire by teenagers during the race and realizing how fit I wasn’t, I had fun and learned a lot. Since then I’ve gotten more into training and racing with the mentorship and ongoing skills clinics provided by Bikecoach. Even if you have no intention to race, I strongly suggest attending clinics and practicing the skills they teach. For sure what I have learned there has helped keep me safe riding by myself on the road, inside “spirited’ group rides occasionally surrounded by folks convinced their on a stage of a grand tour, and inside the somewhat crash prone world of entry level amateur racing. For those of you with kids, Bikecoach has programs and support specifically designed for juniors, including bikes that can be rented, which can really help during those years when they would otherwise quickly outgrow potentially expensive equipment. This is a great opportunity for kids who want to do some kind of competitive sports, but aren’t into other types of team or ball sports. Or it can be an additional sport that builds deep fitness and more importantly, toughness that carries over to other sports. Finally, the cafe part. I’ve traded in the blueberry muffin for marmalade zucchini bread, which is an essential part of my post clinic recovery strategy. . . Mmmm.

  Rachael was my mentor for nine decades, so that she and Sean and the boys' have been fantastic friends in addition to motivators. I've learned to adore Spin Courses and those courses inspired me to understand biking and attain my healthy dependence. Now I could have good coffee to go for this!

  Great eats and drinks especially after a bike ride! I had a bike fit done with Rachael (owner) this week and immediately felt the difference in my hip that had been bothering me for a while! She is thorough and knows her stuff. If you're looking for affordable, quality service, I recommend here! Also check out their other services offered and if you're a cyclist looking for a group to ride with, these guys are a solid, safety centric group that you won't regret joining!

  A fantastic new local treat for the area. Local coffee, tea, and baked goods on top of fitness and cycling. Perfect. I hope to stop by more often.