How to buy a bike in Beijing - step 1

Well - i decided that it was time to start biking to work. However, I needed a bike. Not my Serotta. Not a mountain bike. I needed a real chinese bike - heavy, tough, and cheap.

I thought about getting a used Pigeon or other communist era bike but decided to go with a basic new Giant. Giant and Trek are the big brands here but Giant seems to be a bit more utilitarian.

Super proud of myself, I downloaded the name and phone of the store in Chinese to my ipad (my drive does not speak english). I had never been there but friends told me it was only 5 min away. Lucas and I hopped into the Minivan with our driver - Mr Duan.

To my surprise -we drove for like 45 minutes. Guess I got the wrong store. Mr Duan had to hop out and ask directions 3 or 4 times as well. We were in a VERY Chinese city outside of Shunyi where we live. Not another westerner in sight.

Finally - we got to the Giant store. Luckily, next door there were a bunch of cannons parked including shells. Lucas was certainly excited.

I found a nice cheap bike for $120 inside. However, when I asked them to come down in price (everything must be negotiated in China) they wouldn't drop a dime. I think this offended Mr Duan. He got on the phone and told me "better price - my friend --go". I figured what the hell and we got back in the car.

How to buy a bike in Beijing - step 2

After leaving the Giant store, we got back in the car and drive back to Shunyi. Lucas and I passed the time by checking out weird vehicles - like this one piled high with bottles for recycling. (the best was the day before when we saw someone walking his goat behind a motorized cart)

How to buy a bike in Beijing - step 3

So - after we drove back to our area, our driver brought us to a back alley in one of the rural "villages" of Beijing. These are the areas that nobody goes that is not local.

We pulled up to a sliding metal door, Mr. Duan honked the horn, and we drove into a dusty courtyard, driving around various small dogs rolling in the dust and barking at our tires.

Mr. Duan's friend came out and said hi (I guess - all was in Chinese). He then called someone, yelled into the phone, and the bike box behind Lucas came down the conveyor. They guys (all in offical Giant shirts) assembled the bike and let me test ride it around the dogs in the courtyard. $90 changed hands and the bike was mine - saved a whopping $30 vs the $120 retail price.

I must say, the savings wasn't huge in $$ terms but was a great experience. Also - I plan to get a nice mountain bike while here - definitely will go the wholesale route and have Mr. Duan hook me up.

How to buy a bike in Beijing - step 4

Step 4 - I became the proud owner of a 1000 lb Beijing bike. I still need to get a basket but as of next week, i am cruising to work in style.