[Mowerman]

Howdy, I grew up where SJ, Campbell, and LG all come together, and will be visiting the family over thanksgiving. Was thinking of renting a bike, and checked out Trailhead Cyclery as it is the closest shop to where I will be staying. Their website quotes $75 to rent a bike.

I rented a Trek fuel in Tahoe this summer for $30, and down in SoCal where I live shops charge around $40

Is $75 the going rate for the Bay Area? That seems way steep and makes me not want to rent a bike at all.

Anyone know of any other shops in that area that charge under $50?

Thanks in advance.

 

[spec306]

Tread Bikes in Campbell..

Rental Bike Services

 

[Mowerman]

^^ so you are confirming that $75 is the going rate, thanks.

 

[singlespeed.org]

Tread and Trailhead are the 2 shops I recommend checking for rentals.

For decent bikes, $75 is the going rate (for first day - lower for second day and beyond). Basically, you are renting the shop's demo bike when it is not in use as a demo. So, in general, you are riding $3-4k bikes. And these two shops will take some time to ensure the bike is fit to you.
(Note: they normally "rent" their demos to people demoing, and refund the price if you buy a bike - this way they avoid the issue of people saying they want to demo a bike when really all they wanted was a free rental).

There are some shops up in SF that rent lower end mountain bikes for the $35-40 range, but not sure anything like that exists in the South Bay.

 

[bchains]

Try REI in SJ..

 

[snowjnky]

Calmar in Santa Clara for sure. James has a good Demo Fleet.

 

[spec306]

^^ so you are confirming that $75 is the going rate, thanks.

No.....you stated that you were looking for a rental for under $50 which Tread has.....they are just cruisers. Gotta be specific Good enough for the family to pedal around town on. But, yes, for a high-end demo MTB it seems that ~$75 is the going rate. If you purchase they usually apply the $75 back as a credit.

 

[mellowyellowCJ7]

I can say that the Pivot Mach 5.7 that Tread will rent you is a blast to ride!

 

[Mowerman]

No.....you stated that you were looking for a rental for under $50 which Tread has.....they are just cruisers. Gotta be specific Good enough for the family to pedal around town on. But, yes, for a high-end demo MTB it seems that ~$75 is the going rate. If you purchase they usually apply the $75 back as a credit.

I don't need a "high end demo" but I would like a mountain bike to ride and not a cruiser.

Is there no middle ground for under $50????

 

[o3zone]

http://www.epicentercycling.com/rentaldemo-bikes/ but santa cruz...

 

[gxglass]

Is there no middle ground for under $50????

There probably is something available.

The following approach has worked pretty well for me for finding rentals:

1) enter desired destination city name in google maps (Campbell would be good in this case because it's a pretty specific location)
2) type in "bike shop"; write down list of shops and phone numbers
3) type in "cyclery", "sports", etc to get shops that #2 missed.
4) call all the shops.

This will pick up a lot more shops than just the ones that have been listed so far. Also, you can't hope to get every shop's bike rental lineup/pricing on a forum like this, but on the phone it takes just a minute.

 

[WaitWienie]

Well if you plan it right you really get the bike for 2 days, which is why I don't mind. You can pick it up in the morning go ride keep it for the night ride it the next day and just drop it off before the shop closes. So technically it is less than $40 a day.

Chris

 

[Mowerman]

thanks for all the feedback. I figure I have one morning to ride, so would really only need to have a bike for half day. Putting the rental/demo fee towards a new bike is not an incentive, as I live in SoCal, and already have two bikes.

 

[De La Rosa]

thanks for all the feedback. I figure I have one morning to ride, so would really only need to have a bike for half day. Putting the rental/demo fee towards a new bike is not an incentive, as I live in SoCal, and already have two bikes.

Mowerman, did you ever figure this out. I'm in the same predicament (years later).

 

[Mowerman]

Lol, no.
It is a gouge to rent a bike in this area compared to everywhere else in the state.
Plan on $75 plus tax.