Seward Bike Shop — Local services in Seward

The bike shop itself is nice, however we called a day ahead for two large Kona MTB rentals for a ride up to lost lake. The shop assured us we were good to go and had set the bikes aside (this was not the case) . After arriving the rentals were at the agreed upon rate ($125) no issue here. The issue arose with the quality and accuracy of the rentals. Both bikes were ill maintained, slipping gears, worn pedals (causing pedal strikes), unlubed chains so they hopped skipped and squeaked the 26 mile ride. Additionally the bikes were never fitted for us so we had to do all the fitment and maintenance to get them to be rideable. Oh and the two larges turned out to be a MEDIUM and a large. We didn’t find out it was a medium until we got 5 miles from the shop. I’m 6’1 and a medium doesn’t cut it. No refunds were issued for the incorrectly sized, unmaintained, squeaky bikes. No effort was made to apologize or correct the blunder.

My recommendation is to use discretion at this shop for rentals and rent from somewhere in Anchorage. Or, buy a bike bag and fly with your bike. Save yourself $133.75 (with tax) and $20 for a bear spray rental.

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TL;DR: don’t rent bikes from Karl/Seward bike shop. They are expensive, poorly maintained, and worst of all, unsafe

Went here to rent bikes for a ride along Seward highway. Karl rented a (mostly) nice E-bike to me, but rented a poorly maintained, extremely unsafe bike to my partner. His bike had a loose fender, bent steering column (headset), and a flat front tire. Moreover, the gears kept slipping out and the brakes barely worked. My bike seat (before I got on, ofc) smelled of human feces. When my partner told Karl that the steering column was bent to the left, Karl told him that my partner was imaging it. Karl then shamed us for not wanting to do more than a brief bike ride along Seward highway, even though it was cold and wet out, and we had plans for a hike later that day. Given that we could only bike 10 miles due to the condition of my partner’s bike (we were considering a 15-17 mile loop), I was quite disappointed. They were also quite expensive for the amount of use that we were able to get out of them....

I needed a few accessories for my mountain bike while visiting Seward. The staff was extremely courteous, helpful and informed. When the bike bag I bought didn't quite fit, they cheerfully swapped it out for a new (and more expensive) bag at no charge. The staff even installed it with a smile.

While I was there a mom and daughter came in and asked about bike chains. Although they were unsure what they needed, the staff very pleasantly and patiently talked with them about what they might need and when to bring in the bike to be serviced.

My impression - in this world of shrinking customer service - is that Seward Bike Shop is all about service. Plus, they are in a train car and the owner helped develop that property at the harbor. I can't say enough great things. Support local and go to Seward Bike Shop for all your bike needs,...