Cyclepath of San Mateo

Reviews 5

MA

Matthew Teborek

Folks, Ive had the pleasure of knowing Arkadiy since April 14 I was very out of shape and had decided to purchase a bike and get back on the road and spin. I researched options and landed on the Cannondale Bad Boy 9 for my location, purpose, circumstances and budget. Cyclepath was my local Cannondale dealer. I ventured over and met Arkadiy. We chatted, I explained my goal and budget. He looked up the bike and agreed for $760 it was perfect. He ordered it, put it together, got me the all the necessary bits and bobs. 4 months later I returned 40 pounds lighter so grateful for this man. I screwed some things up to which he quickly corrected and educated me. He is the Obi One Kenobi of cycles and I have recommended him to numerous friends and coworkers who are cycle enthusiasts. Everyone one has echoed my sentiments. He knows his trade better than any and is a man of exceptional character and someone Im proud to call my friend. A few things Ive heard and would like to retort as I feel Ive earned the right. If you drop off your bike for service and disappear for over a month, you should expect to compensate him some on storage, he has a small shop and lots of work. Its not like you wouldnt expect to park your car at SFO long term parking and not pay something after 30 days. Then to try to negotiate the little fee he asked for that was totally fair, is petty in my book. Next, if you come and tell him your budget is $500 and he says he really has no options and you should check Walmart, hes simply being realistic. If you go to Walmarts and drop over $700, dont bash him because you originally told him $500 at his shop and ended paying up more at Walmarts. Look at me, I got a awesome bike from Arkadiy and Cannondale for $760 and someone to service it and help me achieve my goals and someone I can call my friend to boot! I road a lot when I was younger and bought a beautiful road bile in 84 from a friend who was a rider and raced for the Bulgarian team. He sold me a bike he built for cost if $2k. Ive held on to that bike ever since. Im getting ready to have to shipped out and cleaned and tuned up for my next phase of getting back into spinning. In short, I wont let anyone else other than Arkadiy touch those wheels. Happy trails, Matthew

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Greg Marsh

Read the fine print: AVOID. I had a similar experience as others with the rude, insulting owner. If you leave your bike there for longer than 30 days, be prepared to negotiate to get it back. Plenty of other bike repair choices without having to worry about dealing with him. Over the summer, I brought my old, generic mountain bike for a tune-up which I was told would be $85. My bike was probably not even worth that, but it needed some work. As we were traveling, did not return to get it for a few weeks. Apparently, this was a big mistake, and an insulting exchange followed: Him: "What does this say?" Pointing to bottom of the sales slip. Me: "I dont know. What am I looking at?" I was looking at a couple initials scribbled at the bottom. Him: "What does this say?" Me: "Im not sure." Him: "WHAT ARE YOU BLIND??" This was an actual quote. Now I see he was pointing below initials to the fine print that read "Not responsible for items left for longer than 30 days." Me: "Oh, Im sorry about that, I didnt see that." Him: "Im going to have to charge you a storage fee." Me: "How much?" Him: "I dont know, a lot." Me: "How much are you going to charge me?" Him: "$30" So, apparently now Im negotiating to get my bike back because hes not responsible for anything left longer than 30 days." Me: "Im not paying that. The bike is not worth $115. You can keep it." Him: "..." Me: "Im sorry I didnt realize the 30 day thing, Ill pay you $15, but not paying more than $100 for this bike." So, ended up paying $100. Probably should have left it. Either way, will never go back.

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Rebecca Chan

I decided to give Cyclepath a try despite the low reviews because some of the more current reviews mentioned they had a nicer owner. If thats the case, then I feel sorry for anyone who had to deal with the previous guy because this guy who was in the shop today was absolutely terrible! I came in and the owner was talking to someone and neither of them acknowledged me so I couldnt tell who the owner was. Then after some looking around he goes "Can I help you?" I told him Im shopping around for road bikes but I wanted to compare a few. I also mentioned I wasnt really sure what size bike I should get yet. He immediately tells me that the only way to know what size bike I should get is with a bike fit, but a bike fit is a few hundred dollars, but would be free if I bought a bike from his store. PUH LEASE. I know what a bike fit is, and I know I dont need to get one before I buy a bike. It sounded stupid. Then he asks me what I want to buy. I tell him Im riding a steel frame and would want an upgrade, but unsure of how much I want to spend. He responds, "You tell me how much you want to spend, and Ill tell you want kind of bike youre going to get." I thought it was kind of rude. So I just left. He only had about 10-20 bikes on the floor anyway, and some of them were clearly used so it just threw me off.

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John Or

It is a small shop with great brands and a great owner- Arkaidly that gives you personal service. You can just go in and talk cycling with him, he is passionate and knowledgeable about cycling. I went in for a fitting and I got way more than the fitting service, he coached me on the correct posture and pedal strokes. He even asked me for my phone to make videos of pre/post so I could learn and practice. This is precisely the value of a LBS. It is true that I could get things on-line at a little discount here and there, but the knowledge I learned from him are the real nuggets...support our LBS to keep them open, build a relationship, and the quality service, knowledge, and support you could get...definitely helped me big time in cycling. I have seen people hanging out to just chat about cycling even way past close hours, as long as you aint too snobbish, he welcomes the stop-by and chat because he is not a business guy, but an ex-pro that still loves the sports of cycling.

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Brian M

I recommend Cyclepath, and its owner Arkadiy, to all my friends and family. As a former competitive cyclist, Arkadiy provides great advise to novice and seasoned bike riders alike. He offers a full range of bikes and services to suit your individual needs. I recently bought a bike at Cyclepath and i am delighted with my purchase. I had unique fitting requirements. Arkadiy took the time to ensure my bike didnt aggravate my chronic sore back. Also, he coached me on important body mechanics and cycling tips. Other stores cant offer his expertise. If youre like me and have been disappointed by the other stores who have inexperienced sales people whose only interest is selling, I suggest you talk to Arkadiy first. Thank you Arkadiy!

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