The Bike Barn

Riding a bike in the South Okanagan is close to a year round proposition. Winters are mild by Canadian standards, the valley floor between Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake is flat enough for anyone, and the old rail grades and benchland roads above town give stronger riders as much climbing as they want. That mix keeps commuters, road riders, mountain bikers and summer visitors on borrowed cruisers all needing the same thing eventually, which is a shop with a stand and a mechanic.

Shops differ in what they carry and in what they will take on. Some are geared toward new bike sales, others toward service, and the depth of a workshop ranges from tubes and tune ups through to wheel building, suspension and drivetrain work. Turnaround is the question worth asking in this valley, since bench time gets scarce once the weather warms and the touring season starts. If you are travelling, ask about rentals and about whether the shop will look at a bike bought somewhere else, and give as much notice as you can for anything more involved than a puncture.