BICAS — Local services in Tucson

As a member of the LGBTQ community, I really appreciate what BICAS endeavors to do for minorities. I love their initiative and the events that they organize.

As a casual cyclist and consumer, I'm done. I will not shop here. They overprice their used bikes and bike accessories to an eye-popping degree. They have a model for bike repair that is great in theory (a mechanic teaches you how to fix your own bike, watches you do it, checks your work, and you just pay by the hour/for any parts you might buy). It's supposed to be empowering. Teach a person to fish style bike repair. Love the idea. That's the In Theory. In practice, mechanics are not teachers and the folks I have worked with when going in to make simple repairs have actually been unable to communicate to me the basics of bike maintenance. The last time I used the mechanic-teacher model there, the guy got frustrated that I didn't understand what he was saying and that I didn't have the hand strength to perform a certain task. I didn't comment on that because ok I get it. I'm a teacher. Even I have students where I think to myself "how is this not clicking for you? still??" Maybe I caught them on a bad day. But what has been consistent is the price for used bikes and merch. My god. I cannot afford to shop here but I can afford to go over to other bike retailers in the area and buy better condition used bikes for way less. I suspect that the pricing cliff is to fund all of their awesome initiatives. To which I suggest: maybe do fundraisers and take community donations so that you can lower the cost of your products and still do all the one of a kind, outstanding things you do for the community.

But tldr I've pretty much given up shopping here or going here for mechanic help. I think if you have a lot of patience and money to burn, awesome, support this good cause. But if you just need an affordable used bike or you'd feel more comfortable with a bike mechanic fixing your thing for you, BICAS won't fit the bill.

Not trying to be harsh in my review btw. Just have had consistently similar experiences here over the...

Our business donates a lot to them and they are now taking advamtage of this. Recently we recommended a customer go to them for a used bike. First off the woman at the register was very rude and wouldnt answer his questions about a 2008 Electra Cruiser Deluxe. So being a commumity based small business he gave us the momey to purchase thw bike for him. First and for most the woman was extremely rude and when my pregnant wife and I wheeled the bike to the register she came out from behind the counter to ask if we were going to pay for it lol very rude and does not need to be working in this place. Secondly and this is where I am pretty upset. Most if not all of these bikes are donated, meaning they pay nothing and give nothing in trade for you bringing them a bike. The 2008 Electra Deluxe is blue booked in good condition at $85 fair price right? They had marked $200, this I thought, was a mistake and asked if we could pay less due to the condition of the bike. She stated " I do not bargin thats why I am behind the register" let me remind you, we have been doing business here for about 2 years on and off so I asked if I could speak to someone who could and she huffed tried to argue and then disappeared for a couple minutes, came back and said she doesnt bargan. I told her the real value and she went to the computer amd looked up the $599 bramd new version and said no lol anyways I took out the customers $90 that we should have paid and gave the difference of $110. That is your tip for the thousands, I and my customers would have continued to spend amd donate to you. Way to treat...

I appreciate what this place is doing for the community, but won’t be coming here again as it is a health risk in this heat.

At this point, the mask mandate very much felt like a political statement rather than a health one. To have to sign a form that basically says I won’t be a piece of shit is also a bit unsettling and odd. Sometimes a place tries and forces itself to be so inclusive that it very much does the opposite. This is that case.

There are some serious health risks in restricting your airway with a mask, especially after having biked to this shop in 100+ heat. The shop itself is also ironically poorly ventilated and cooled. I’m writing this review for the owner to read, with sincere concern for the health of the staff and others who come here.

Please look into the peer reviewed papers that go into the psychological and physiological impact of wearing a mask, namely the increase in CO2 circulation, and their lack of effectiveness in genuinely reducing the spread of disease; there are much better and less risky ways to reduce contamination. Mandate people to wash their hands before handling tools, as a better...