Scenic Routes Community Bicycle Center
By Zachary Morvant
“How’d it go at the post office today?” That’s what Jay’s girlfriend asks him when he gets home from working at Scenic Routes. You see why when you step inside. This isn’t your typical bike shop.
“Slow is forever” is stitched into sweaters and other soft goods. Against one wall is a turntable, shelves thick with records, and a Chemex coffeemaker flanked by all the necessary accoutrements. With the “Death Monsters Ahead” stencil on the floor and the conspicuous absence of performance-oriented, high-priced carbon bikes, it reminded me of a now-defunct shop I used to live near, Pedal Revolution, crossed with some kind of anarcho-cyclist cooperative. Even though I identify in many ways as a freak for speed, I felt welcome.
Jay puts the final touches on a customer’s bike. Photo: Zachary Morvant / @zmorvant
Jay and I discuss the origins of the bike I rode in on (I had felt the need to blend, so I left my fast plastic rocketship at home): a Dutch townie-style contraption I bought at the SF Bicycle Coalition’s Winterfest auction after a few IPAs suckerpunched my frugality, dragged it into a closet, and replaced it with a generous impostor. “That definitely looks like a Surly Cross Check fork,” Jay says, squinting. “But the frame looks like something else.” He rattles off a brand name I don’t recognize.
Scenic Routes was born out of the early days of the pandemic. Jay had been working in restaurants and, like many in the service industry, was laid off as the world shut down. A vision of helping folks fix their bikes began in an apartment and then migrated to a new home in San Francisco’s Inner Richmond.
Joel, the turntable, and stacks of wax. Photo: Zachary Morvant / @zmorvant
Jay describes Scenic Routes as a community center for bicycle culture. That “means that sometimes we are compelled to drop our wrenches and take a seat on the couch while one of our friends shares the stressors of their week. It means that sometimes we are busier flipping records and pouring cups of coffee than we are fixing flats. It means that when anyone under the age of ten walks through our doors, suddenly the most important part of our job is picking out the perfect sticker and adorning it gracefully on the littlest of bikes.”
They host events almost every week:
- 1st Thursdays are a free flat-fixing class
- 2nd Thursdays are “Night Moves,” accessible, no-drop night rides with hot chocolate
- 3rd Thursdays are “choose your own adventure” mechanic classes
- Last Thursdays are community nights
There’s also a “Girls, Gays, and Theys” ride. Allies are welcome — but are reminded to leave space for the people whom the event is for.
The shop entrance, motto in sticker form, and a stencil some might recognize. Photos: Zachary Morvant / @zmorvant
Scenic Routes also offers a membership program with different tiers and respective benefits. The perks range from “our undying love” to discounted tuneups all the way up to “You can come into the shop and yell ‘I pay your salary’ and it’ll kinda be true.” I picked some of the more flippant ones, but there is serious value to be had in parts and labor for the regular rider.
With a genuine belief in community, cooperation, sustainability, and the bicycle as an integral part of one’s life, Scenic Routes is about the furthest you can get from a Big Brand™ bike shop. It’s the kind of place I think is essential to getting (and keeping) more folks on two wheels in a way that reaches beyond the marketing personas we’re served, helping to weave the bicycle more handily into the fabric of our everyday.
Their in-house refurbished bike brand is named for the California scrub oak. Photo: Zachary Morvant / @zmorvant
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