Mt Airy Bicycles

Well, I had read some bad reviews about this bike shop in Mount Airy, but because they had a larger inventory — and a place to try out bikes — my friend and I drove from Silver Spring to Mount Airy to try out some trikes. We called the shop a day ahead and spoke with Larry about coming in and trying out a couple of «old lady» trikes. I told Larry what we were looking for and he said he would have some for us to try and that we should be there between noon and 4pm. We had done a lot of homework about trikes for adults and went to the shop with some understanding of the trikes, different brands and pricing.
Let me say that the bad reviews I had read about this place we’re NOT about the employees — and not even about the bikes themselves — they were pretty much negative in response to Larry and his demeanor toward customers. We went with an open mind and thought that we could narrow down our choices. Neither of us expected to be so disrespected and dismissed by this man. When I asked him if he had any trikes for us to try, he was almost annoyed that we asked. There was one very used one on the lot that was not even assembled well and he motioned for us to go get it and to try it out in the parking lot. I asked him about a style called the Tri-​rider that I had found on the Internet that was made in Canada and now being made in the United States and had great reviews. He did not even look at me as he sneered and said that this bike was called a boomerang bike, because they always came back to the shop. He said that before he even saw the picture or anything. As a matter of fact, he wasn’t even familiar with the Tri-​riders themselves. He just said that. Not once did he look at us as he spoke.
My friend and I talked with 2 employees who WERE extremely nice, Willie and Mike. These two guys were helpful, kind and considerate. As we were leaving, Larry came out from the back to tell an employee to do something or other (and not in a nice way) and I asked him if it was possible to see any other trikes. He said, «Well, if you want a heavy bike that is hard to steer and unresponsive, we have some in another location, but they are hard to get to and transport.» He said that he would need at least a days notice. I kindly reminded him that we did give him a days notice and we were here because he told us to be here when we spoke yesterday. He sneered again and walked away. Say what?
My friend and I got on my phone and Googled other bike shops on our way home and we stopped at one and called another. What’s funny is that both owners of these shops had either worked with Larry or knew Larry. And both of them corroborated our impression of him.
I guess what is sad is that my friend and I will definitely find the right bike or trike for us, but this man’s total disrespect for customers and employees will probably not change. He probably has a very successful business just because of the volume of inventory and the amount of used bikes he has on the property. More power to him. As for me and my friend? We would rather be respected and acknowledged as customers then to be treated as less than significant.
Kudos, Willie and Mike and the other employees who put up with Larry’s crap. You definitely earn your paycheck! Weird how everyone in the «biz» had the same impression as well. What does that say?
Overpriced used bikes, but large available inventory. Great place for test rides.
Take Xanax with you.

They have an impressive selection of bikes of all (weird) types, fantastic racing frames, and rare spare parts. I just bought a pair of gloves there, but had a ride with an interesting beach bike. They have a big parking lot where you can test the bikes and a not so highly frequented street when you really want to take it for a longer test ride. The owner is a nice guy. Can’t say anything about the price fairness but keep in mind that this is an actual store with real people in a real community.

This bike shop is great – but you need to ask for Greg. Greg only works Saturdays (after noon) and it’s worth waiting until then to visit the shop.
The shop has a great selection of bikes (old and used) and gear, but someone needs to retrieve the bikes and other items for you. Greg is very personable and always in a good mood. He’s extremely knowledgeable about bikes – including recumbent bikes. And he doesn’t try to sell you the most expensive bike or accessories that you don’t need. He gives you plenty of time to try out bikes and encourages people to think about their purchase – rather than rushing into anything.
I suggest, however, that you call the store and make sure that Greg’s around and available to help before heading to the shop.

Horrible service. Came there ready to buy. Old guy started to help me and then said «oh I’ll be back in a minute I need to help another customer.» 20 minutes later and we were still there waiting. Left. Won’t ever come back.

I regret having driven an hour from DC to go to this place. I went because they were the only authorized dealer in the area of a folding bike I was interested in. The owner was friendly enough to me initially and sent me on a test ride on the bike. I liked it and came back ready to buy it. However, when I got back, the owner was talking to someone else and simply ignored me. No problem – another guy came up and asked if I needed help. I asked if he could show me how the bike folds down (the whole point of a folding bike), and instead of showing me on the bike sitting right in front of me, he smugly said that I should go home and look on YouTube to see how it folds. I left, walked out into the parking lot, and bought the bike on Amazon on my iPhone… At a significantly lower price. Please don’t waste your time going here – these guys obviously don’t care about your, or my, business.

You gotta be prepared for weirdness. Weird bikes, weird people, — it’s full on weird times. It is a welcome breath of fresh air from most bike stores. All the staff are happy to help, they may just have a slightly odd way of showing it. Come open for possibilities and bizarre conversations, and you’ll leave happy.

Awesome selection, but pricing leaves a lot to be desired. I don’t mind paying a fair price, but what I don’t like is unreasonable markups, which is the name of the game here. Maybe if you give the secret handshake they’ll treat you with respect and give you a honest price and good customer service.

Not a good experience at all. I’ve been to practically all the shops in the area looking for a good fitting bike and wasn’t impressed at all with this shop. Felt rushed and that I was an inconvenience when I asked for prices on the unpriced bikes hanging outside. The guy got insulted when I said that 2003 was used when he insisted it was brand new. Prices were extremely high on the used gear, way above market. When I pointed out that 5 year old used bike with 105 components cost significantly more than the equivalent new bike they had hanging up next to it the reply was a short «ok, let’s get you into the new one then.» I won’t ever be buying a bike from this shop. Sorry to have wasted my time gong here. There are better options all over the place.

While a lot of people seem to really love this place, I was less than impressed. It has pros and cons, but I think the cons heavily outweigh the pros.
We will start with the good aspects of the shop: it has a giant selection of all sorts of bikes. Particularly this shop is one of the few places around that specializes in tandem cycles. They had a a lot of new and used road bikes, mountain bikes, fixies, commuters, bmx and practically any parts you could think of. They also had a really cool collection of old steel racers hanging from the ceiling just like their other shop in College Park. This collection included a Proteus frame (another shop in College Park who made their own steel frames in the 70’s) The staff was friendly
Now for the bad: The prices!!! I was looking at some of the used bikes and parts and getting price quotes that were often over MSRP for the same product new. Few of the bikes were marked with prices, so you had to ask the employees (which lead to wildly outrageous quotes). An example was a fairly beat up Cannondale CAAD7 which they priced just under $ 50 less than a brand new CAAD9. Then I decided that I could use another pair of pedals and asked about their used LOOK selection. As I went through a filing drawer full of old, outdated LOOK pedals, the person who seemed to be in charge was quoting me $ 150 for some giant, heavy pedals that weren’t even KEO (LOOK’s newest type of pedal and cleat system). You can buy LOOK Keo Classics for less than $ 150 new. When I asked if the pedals would work with my Keo cleats he immediately assured me they would. Upon further research online, they would not have (good thing I didn’t buy them).
They have a great selection and it is a fun place just to look around but I would be hard pressed to actually buy anything from Mt Airy Cycles simply because their prices are outrageous. I’m sure I could have haggled them down some but I doubt enough to make it worth it. Also while the older gentleman who seemed to be in charge (and possibily the owner) was very friendly, he was looking to make a sale more than he was looking to get me the right gear.