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Review content:
I?m an athletic 40 yr old male enthusiast rider who is 5?10?, 150 lbs. I don?t race or compete, because I?m overly competitive, a bit of a character flaw. What I do is ride all the time ? solo, with a friend, or up to a 30 person group; road and mountain.
5 years ago, thanks to a friend I got the bug for mountain biking. I picked up a full suspension MTB from a LBS at the end of the year on sale. The next year, I suffered through mud season. So, I picked up an entry level road bike from another LBS at a great price. That, combined with decent components, was my sole buying criteria. I didn't know what I didn't know. And neither of the LBSs were about to tell me what I didn't know. They were just happy to push me through the process and get the sale.
Over the 5 years, my riding steadily increased. And the ratio of time in the saddle on the road bike to the MTB, did so, too. Unfortunately, the knee pain, saddle and hand numbness, and lower back stiffness also did so. Any ride >35 miles caused knee pain that was so excruciating that I couldn?t ride more than about 50 miles. And when I got off the bike, I was relegated to the couch. This summer, I decided it was time to upgrade to a bike that would allow me to increase the amount I ride, enjoy those miles more, be pain-free the rest of the day, and increase my speeds.
Husam did it all. He scheduled me for a fitting a few days after I called. He took the time to get to know me and what I wanted to achieve. The fitting revealed I have short legs, a long torso, and short arms. Not an easy fit, but Husam figured it out. We then looked at frames and set-ups, all the time Husam working with me to recommend what I get and explain what a little more or a little less money would buy me.
I ended up with a Museeuw MC2, Selle SMP Glider saddle and full Ultegra set-up. I?m about 10-15% faster. The third ride on my new bike was 90 miles ? twice as long as I could ride on my now trainer (which ATA retrofitted to have as close a geometry as possible to the Museeuw). No pain anywhere when I was on the bike or once I got off. I?ve put 700 miles on the bike. I wanted to wait a little bit to write the review to make sure that I wasn?t just infatuated with the new bike and that the service levels continued after the initial sale. I love the bike and the folks in the store treat me like family.
If you want a great ride and to establish a long-term relationship with your LBS, there is only one place to shop in the greater Boston area ? ATA.
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