EVENT: SF Bike EXPO 2010

This weekend, I attended the 3rd annual SF Bike Expo - an event that combines a showcase of new bicycle products with the opportunity to shop for used gear as well. The event is held a the Cow Palace in Daly City, California and is held annually around the same each year. I had a lot of fun last year here and had high hopes for the next ones to come.

This year's expo was significantly smaller than I remember, it felt like only half the vendors showed up compared to the previous year's. Although the event was smaller, I did have a decent time attending and just wished I studied the expo a bit more beforehand. I found myself enjoying the EXPO more than the swap meet this year and it gave me an idea of what to expect next year. Swap meets are fun when you have a list of items to hunt down but the Expo can show you products you might need and haven't thought of. As usual, a lot of designer style items were on the Expo side - very trendy shirts and accessories. I was also surprised to see Timbuk2 and Rickshaw Bagworks there selling their bags at almost half price - something I really wanted to own. But recently I have been spending quite a bit and while I was there I've already spent about $120 into items I didn't necessarily need so I had to pass just to control myself.

There wasn't much to photograph either since most swap meets are very similar and have that flea market type feel. I have been to a lot of swap meets before and the SF bike expos this year was a little disappointing because of all the high prices of all the vendors. I felt like parts in general have either gone up or the merchants just wanted to milk as much money as they could. I saw cheap caps selling for double what they were worth and $50 rear derailleurs that I could easily find $20 elsewhere. I guess the cycling world has gotten a lot of attention these days and people are more interested in parts this year. Honestly I couldn't say I spent a lot of time digging this year since I felt I had enough parts and couldn't think of anything to get for myself. After skimming through most of the merchants, what I've found myself purchasing this year was a vintage dura-ace 7400 rear wheel with new spokes and a 7-speed cassette. This wasn't something i was looking for since I had no idea what to purchase at the event but it was one of those items that were difficult to find for the right price. The wheel costed me $80 and another $20 went into a wool jersey recommended by a friend I took along the trip. The other $20 went into an arm warmer - something I thought of looking for when attending this event.

After coming back from the event, I googled at some of the vendors I saw and felt stupid not to prepare for this expo because there were a lot of neat items they were showcasing along with some great prices. Next year hopefully the expo will be larger and I will do my homework to make sure I can scarf up some exclusive deals. Some of the vendors I liked were Timbuk2, Rickshaw, Krieg, Clif Bar, the old man who sold me a wheel, and possibly more vendors if i only had done my research ahead of time. There definitely will be a next time - I'm going to plan on spending more next time I come.