Flume Trail Bikes — Attraction in Incline Village-Crystal Bay

We do a guys trip ever year. All of our trips have been successful and fun until using this company. The location and place looked lively and filled with happy people....until you get to the actual bike rental spot. it's behind the cafe. Not a single smile was to be found from any of the staff members there. From the very start of filling out our names til the very ending. The equipment expert started calling out our names, he missed pronounced my name but I get that all the time so I wasn't upset. He repeated and I said oh it's actually pronounced this way. He then said "Ok, whatever'. That made my blood boil. I told him "No, this is how you say my name." This time he just shrugged his shoulders. We got our bikes and got dropped off at the starting point, 14 miles away. We asked the guy what the difficulty level was and he said it was beginner to intermediate. We were all new to mountain biking. Believing our expert guide we shrugged off the negativity and were ready to begin our exciting adventure. We started off great for the 1st mile but I could already see all of our guys struggling and two of our bikes broke down. They would not shift gears.(We just paid $70 each for broke equipment. Great. ) The guide said the first 4 miles was the most difficult but wasn't that hard. It was an incline so we expected it but boy was he wrong. It was not easy, it kept getting harder and more steep. Definitely not something to try if you have not been before. By the 3rd mile we were all off the bikes and pushing them up hill. We were winded, cramping up, sweating profusely and stopping every 20 yards. Most of our group are fairly fit. We play 3-4 hours of basketball 3 days week. So I'd say we were fit but this trail is not one I would recommend for people new to mountain biking. As a matter of fact after our events we did some research and it was actually rated as intermediate to expert level. After about 3.5 miles into, more than half the group decided it would be safe to turn around than to finish the 14 mile trail. At the rate we were going it would be dark and and cold also not to mention we had no cell service. 3 of us continued and it got even more dangerous as we proceeded. After you pass the summit its a down hill shot which could get very dangerous if you are not experienced. There was also ice on the trails and once you start getting to flume trail, the actual trail starts getting narrow. At the most dangerous sport it was bout 2 feet wide, hundreds of feet high and only enough to fit 1 person at at time. One side was rock and the other side was the side of the mountain. One misplaced footing means a fall to your death. Not something I would recommend to a beginner. The views were breath taking if you were brave enough to look during the ride. Even taking your eyes of the trail for second could spell disaster. Loose sand and narrow trails make it extremely dangerous. This continued for a good 5 miles. The end was fairly easy as it was just downhill. Myself and 2 others proceed onward and about half way through we got a call from one of our guys (we finally got cell reception at the top) saying two of our guys had a major accident. One of the guys wiped out and the guy behind him ran into the him, flipped over and landed on his back. He could not get up. The other guys had to ride back to get cell signal and call and ambulance and the tour guide to come pick them up. We later found out the guy that flipped over had broken his back. Fractured the T-7 on his spine. It would take surgery and 6 months of physical therapy. When this all happen the equipment guy was more focused on going back and getting the bikes than our injured friend. He said "We need to figure out how to get those bikes". Luckily the paramedics bought the bike back with them when they got our friend. If that's not enough reason to second guess this place then I don't know what else to tell you. Again not a trail for beginners. We didn't sign waivers now that I think about it. Highly NOT recommend for anyone new to mountain biking or not...

I have never posted reviews but I feel compelled to do so after the MOST HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE ever dealing with an owner of a local Tahoe business. The owner is very condescending and I believe has disdain for tourists........which ironically are the only reason he is still in business!!!!!!

This is copied from my Yelp review. Go there and you will find others who have had similar experiences. You will find doing business with this shop is like playing Russian Roulette!!!

"WORST EXPERIENCE EVER dealing with local business in Tahoe!!! I came up for the day from Reno with my fiancee to rent a bike and ride the Flume.

Dealing with the owner of this shop, I thought I would be in good hands.....I was horribly mistaken!

After putting aside him not wearing a mask, his toxic attitude and attempt at up selling us on a bike maintained in poor condition, he proceeded to become increasingly hostile.

When he made some comment about us not being locals and that I could take it (the bike) or leave it, I decided to not do business any longer with someone like this!!

Worst of all, as we went to leave, he sprayed my truck with a spray bottle, hitting my fiancee in the face with what smelt like bleach, while he smiled and said what sounded like obscenities under his breath. I could not believe it!

I will never use these guys for rentals or shuttles, as I routinely have......ever again!!

I would suggest staying far away from this toxic LOCAL lunatic and his business.......if you plan on having a good time in Tahoe."

I would suggest looking at other options such as bike rentals in South Shore as I will be doing so from here on out! No one needs that negativity!!!!

Update- In response to the owners comment, as you can see, even the owner is ok with his "shuttle driver's" (It was the owner!!!) customer service. It appears to be their business culture over there!!

No where in your response do you deny the accusations made or apologize for what took place. Instead you elect to produce a strawman argument. One in which you neither address the problem but instead redirect attention with, "oh I wouldnt be in business then, if that were true."

There are plenty of business out there a float with terrible employees.......hence the purpose of YELP......sir!!!

Its obvious you are only in this business to get as much money out of tourists (up selling) as you can and treat them poorly when you think you can get away with it. All the while providing no quality of customer service or quality product as bikes are poorly maintained and break down, as many other comments on other platforms have reveled.

If I would have done my research before doing business with you, I would have found another shop to go to!!! You guys are what give LOCALS a bad name and you seem to enjoy mistreating people from out of town.......which is SICK!!!!

I think others should be informed prior to selecting you as their bike rental and shuttle!!

That is...

We had a couple days in Reno and wanted some outdoor adventure. I was looking at kayak rentals, and saw that one of them also rented bikes. I followed a couple other links and saw that the Flume Trail is supposed to be an epic ride and that Flume Trail Bikes had the rental service most convenient to the trail. I made a reservation for Monday, October 10.

Our experience was very good. We arrived 30 minutes before our 10:00 a.m. rental time, as they suggested. Within just a few minutes, someone was checking us in and getting us our bikes, and showing us how to use them. I am not a mountain biker and the staff happily showed me everything I needed to know about my bike. I rented an e-bike (also called pedal assist) and my partner rented a non-electric hardtail. We'd reserved a spot on the shuttle to the trailhead for 10:30. The shuttle left right on time (and was full, so it was good we had a reservation). The driver was great and gave us the lowdown on the trail as he was unloading bikes.

The ride itself was great. To help, we had perfect early fall weather, dry and partly cloudy. There are three segments to the ride that the shuttle is designed for. First, a mostly gentle uphill on a wide, smooth road for a few miles. I was very glad I had an e-bike. I saw another woman likely in similar physical shape to myself with a regular bike and she was reduced to walking her bike up the hill.

The second third of the ride is the Flume Trail itself. I was worried that I'd get spooked by the heights and the possibility of riding off the trail onto a steep and possibly rocky incline. Well, I didn't get spooked, but I was on rather high alert the whole time, and I did walk my bike in a few short sections that were particularly exposed. The vast majority of the trail was smooth and easy to negotiate. If you have no experience with mountain biking and have a pretty strong fear of heights, this may not be the ride for you. Otherwise, it is fun and spectacular.

The final third of the ride was an interminable sandy downhill that I took at a snail's pace in order to avoid wiping out. That part wasn't fun, but it didn't ruin the experience, either. The trail ends right at the bike shop.

Both our bikes functioned very well. The only minor problem was that the post drop feature on my bike was a little sticky. But, since that was a slick feature that I didn't expect, I just didn't use it, and I was fine.

It's possible that other bike rental places in Incline Village are less expensive, so you could look into renting elsewhere and then use the shuttle service at Flume Trail Bikes.

Finally, I think the bike shop website mentions that you can buy sandwiches at the cafe next door, but when we went there they said they didn't make lunch sandwiches until 11:30. So if you're set on bringing a sandwich, get it...