So your bike is broken. Gears out of whack? Brakes not doing their job as well as they should? Perhaps you had an unwelcome interaction with a car. Whatever happened, you're likely in a foul mood – your biker's high severely harshed. You do not need attitude right now. We're talking to you, snobby bike shop employee who decided that since we drove our ailing bike to the shop in a car we weren't worthy of attention, causing our two-wheeled buddy to suffer. Things like this don't happen at Bicycle Sport Shop, because it's an everyman cyclery, likely the reason it's won 17 "Best of Austin" awards, including Best Bicycle Repair, over the years. It's the BookPeople of biking, the Waterloo of peddlers. Austin has enough cyclists to keep niche shops in business – all you hipsters on your fixies and speed freaks on your ultralight racers have your specialty spots – but BSS can outfit the new rider or make sure your racing bike gets the fine touch that it needs to perform. Of course that means you can get everything from fingerless gloves to headlights to really, really tight clothing, giving you the ability to walk in looking like a gas-guzzling newbie and walk out feeling like a badass bike messenger. Although a bit cleaner, we imagine. Classes, rentals, and custom bike fittings are just icing on the cake. The flagship store – once nestled back between Schlotzsky's and Zach Theatre – now sits proudly on South Lamar and is the centerpiece of a thriving South Austin biking community. The Joy Rides Cafe helps nourish the riders before or after rides, or, hell, maybe you needed a patch for your tire and a Greenbelt Smoothie just sounded delicious. But don't forget the North Austin location just waiting to help all the non-Central cyclers out there. Nothing becomes such a regular winner without helping the community. In Bicycle Sports Shop's case, the sponsored races and teams, bicycle advocacy (boo to Gov. Perry for vetoing the Safe Passage Bill), and several helpful Web accoutrements keep the shop on top of its game.
