Bodfish Bicycles & Quiet Mountain Sports

Chuck, Lisa, and Colby at Bodfish helped me pick out my new mountain bike, and I couldn’t be happier with it. I’ve been thinking about a new bike for years, but the huge variety of styles, parts, components specs, and sizes available were getting me stuck. I really appreciated their help and guidance cruising through the selection process and getting me exactly what i wanted. I got an awesome Trek mountain bike, the perfect size, great components, good color, and feels great on the trails. They put it all together, added cages, better handlebar grips, seat and the whole nine yards. My new ride has been awesome on the trails this spring, and I’ve been riding more often than ever. I can’t thank Bodfish enough for setting me up with the perfect ride!
While you’re there, check out Chuck’s awesome books including «California Dream Cycling with Bodfish (Sixty of the Finest Bicycle Rides in the Golden State).»

This place is run by a guy named Chuck. Very friendly and knowledgeable. He will make sure you get what you need and his service/​maintenance on bikes is outstanding.

Great shop! Showed up at ten til five with a broken chain and he fixed it right on the spot even though it was quitting time. While fixing it he gave me many tips on easy repairs that will not make him any money (except that I’ll go back whenever I can and I’ll tell everyone!). He has an interesting sense of humor that Deano just didn’t get. He’s not likely to cow to the bay area folks just because they are waving their credit card at him. Chill out Dean, let the guy set up his shop before barging in and expecting something immediately. When I got their at closing time, I definitely was not expecting the service I got… By the way, he does have great hand drawn maps for free and he wrote the first mt. bike book published. I bought the book out of respect for him being a pioneer of something I love to do.

I don’t like to give 5 stars, and I rarely review outside of restaurants, but I can’t think of a nicer bicycle shop. If you’re belligerently looking for a battery, go to the Holiday Market. If you’re looking for a cheap, used «kick around» bicycle, check the thrift store. Two things make this bike shop stand out: First, in addition to a healthy selection of bikes, Bodfish sells outstanding snowshoes (made in Colorado), as well as quality kayaks. Second: Chuck, though a bit shy, is very friendly and knowledgeable of the region. He has written a handful of hand-​lettered books, chock-​full of trails and the secret spots only locals ride. The Bodfish books are far better than any «northern California bike trails» book you’ll find at a big-​box store. If you’re willing to pay a tiny-​bit more $ for caring, knowledgeable service from a guy who will hand-​draw you a map and tell you where he would ride, come over to Chester. Bodfish has a devoted regional following.

We arrived at 4:45 pm on a Friday with a racing wheel with a broken spoke and a ride planned the next morning around the lake. The next closest bike shops are in Susanville, 45 minutes away (and after closing time). Colby was our man! He actually HAD the spoke AND was able to install it (rear wheel, cluster side of course), and true the wheel not bothered about going past closing time. What a great experience for us! Really made our day because we were able to ride the next morning, and then ride Mt. Lassen hwy the next. Now I have a Bodfish T-​shirt that I proudly love. If you are driving through Chester, stop in, check out the white board, pet the dog, say hi to Colby, and look at all the bike stuff they have. This is a really neat bike shop. Thanks Colby for b’n there for us!

Stopped by the shop to pick up a gift for my Beau. My Beau is a lifelong hardcore cyclist and has a few of Bodfish Books including «Butte Country Bicycle Journeys with Bodfish C 1979. His books are like the Bibles of cycle routes, and roads!
Bodfish was ahead of his time when he wrote them decades ago.
I think he may have a newer book too!
After hearing him mentioned over the years, it was great meeting Bodfish! What a nice guy!
His store is packed with high quality stuff for the gear head! Unlike the young uppity punks at stores in Chico my Beau has encountered, Bodfish knows his stuff!
If in Chester, be sure to stop the store!

This place is not customer friendly. My wife and I waited for the store to open and we arrived a few minutes after they opened. I just needed a battery for my cycle computer and they had it in stock. The guy said «I have the battery but I have no idea how to put the new one in.» I asked if I could borrow a knife and the instructions from the packaged computer and he said «we are trying to open, so you are going to have to wait.» I guess we should have known the owner would be nasty when he told my wife, who had called his dog buddy, that his dog was a female and that she didn’t like to be called «buddy» (well, excuse me – I did not know the dog was so sensitive). I told the guy, I am a customer, I waited for you to open, no one else is here, couldn’t you help me and then put the 20 beach cruisers in front of your store. He told me «well, if you have a special problem then you will have to wait, otherwise go to the next bicycle store down the road.» Great attitude for a business person. If I owned the business, and a customer was waiting at the door, I would help the customer (they are going to pay some money for one or more products) and then finish everything else. Another oddity, the guy said he had no computer to look up the circumference for the tire (it is also in the cycle computer instructions, which he would not share with me). I told him we would just go on our ride around Lake Almanor and the young guy, who said he couldn’t figure out how to change the battery told us to «go back to the city.» If it wasn’t for the rest of the great businesses in town I would think all of Chester was this nasty. Turns out this was the only difficulty we had in our week near Lassen NP. Do not patronize this guy. He does not deserve the business.

Beware of this tourist trap bike shop. There are great bike shops in Chico, Redding and Reno, as well as great on line retailers like Performance Bike. Bodfish treated me poorly, the owner flew of the handle when I tried to return a defective road bike. He did give me a refund though, but gave attitude and flipped me the bird as I was leaving. Whatever… I will make my purchase elsewhere and I advise you to do the same.

After spending weeks researching bikes and visiting shops in Chico, we decided to take a break and head up to Lassen for a hike. On our way back, we decided to stop at Bodfish just to check things out. The store’s been there as long as we’ve been spending time in the Lassen area and we’d always wanted to check it out. Good thing we did! My hubby’s a solid 6’4″ and finding a bike that would fit him was quite the challenge. Chuck (the owner) had numerous bikes for taller menfolk in stock, and was more than willing to pull one down for a test-​drive. We got a quality bike at a reasonable price with excellent service.
Chuck carries something for everyone, all the way up to high end Gary Fisher. Not only can you purchase bikes but you can rent them as well. I spied a pretty purple tandem bike sitting in the parking lot just waiting to be ridden around town. Not into cycling? He also carries kayaks during summer, and snowshoes & cross-​country skis in winter. The Chester area is great for recreation and if you find yourself in the area, drop into Bodfish and say hello. You’ll be glad you did.