"I found a fantastic deal on a 2017 Santa Cruz Bronson CC on their website. I was not sure if I wanted to work with them after reading the many negative reviews. I made sure to call and talk to someone about the availability of the frame and components. I wanted to switch out a few components and trim down the bars as well. Josh was very helpful. He looked for the parts I wanted, talked to the shop guys about my concerns with others, and made an effort to find the best deal for me as well. Mine was built, shipped, and received within 11 days. Bike is GREAT!!! All around fantastic experience. So fantastic, my husband decided to get a new bike from them as well. He had a great experience with each person he talked to about his bike (at least 3 or 4). He made sure to call and stayed in touch with the progress about his bike. Some parts were on order, and switched others out, and his was built and shipped within a week of mine. I think regular one-on-one communication is where they shined. -Brooke"
"Ordered on the 2nd, got to my city on the 4th, package lost. They would do nothing to help"
"I bought a pinarello gan k from backcountry, which is the same company as competitive cyclist. My experience has been great and so, while I was hesitant because I first googled reviews for both sites and I have seen many negative reviews, I gave backcountry a call. They didn't have a "gearhead" availalble to talk to me and so they referred to competitive cyclist. The confirmed that they have the size that I want and went ahead to purchase online and gave the order id to the gearhead who was on the phone with me. About eight days later I received the bike and I was very happy.
On the same day that I received the bike, I went to there site again and noticed that they've dropped the price by $275 and so I called them to asked to be refunded for the difference, which the associate on the phone gladly did. Doubly happy.
A couple of days later, I tried the new bike and noticed that the front shifter was stuck and so I called them for an exchange, Tommy sent me an RMA, I'll end up paying just $6 for the shipping back, at the same time I asked Tommy if he could send me a bike that is one step smaller than I originally ordered which he did. I noticed that they even shipped the new bike on 2nd day air! As I'm writing this review, my replacement bike is out to be delivered and I'm about to ship the defective bike to them.
So, I'm very happy with my experience with backcountry / competitive cyclist. Although my experience may be different than others, I think it's a good idea to call them first before placing an order online - and maybe specially for items that are on the pricier side."
"I bought a high end road bike that was custom built. Was shipped it was not assembled right. Had to take it to the local bike shop and have it totally worked over. The wheels had brake track failure. They refunded them but only wanted to give store credit. Visa had to get their legal dept involved to make them issue a credit to my account. Then the reluctantly did not want to issue a credit because they put my bike on sale with 90 days of my purchase date (their policy). Constantly calling them for customer service which is horrible. They say they will call you back on issues but never do. Then they blocked my phone # from receiving calls. I have finally had it and filed a complaint against them with the state attorney general's office. Would not advise anyone to have them build you a bike!!!!"
"More expensive than other website, they add tax which other webside doesn't have"
"Placed an order 24 of april and was told I would have my bike in two weeks. One week passed by so I asked why here was no status change on my order. After speaking with a few of my LBS I was told that I should of had my within a week or the place that I ordered if from should of got it by then to build. 5-1-2017 Got on the live chat they offer and I was told that they had to contact their buyer to get an order status and that the original selling agent would have email it to me later that day. Waited all week until friday, did the live chat and what do you know. It was the same answer as before. So i called and Still no status, at that point I was wondering how the hell this company stayed in business. Needless to say I cancelled my order right there on the spot, went to my local LBS and they sold me a nicer bike for less with taxes! They treated me like crap and I placed an order for over a grand. Don't wast your time with the online bike shops. They're garbage!"
"Worst online shopping experience in years. Bought a pair of Assos cycling gloves (great product, by the way). Promised 2 day shipping, even called and spoke to a company rep who told me that the product would be delivered in 2 days. Took 6 days! Didn't receive the product until after the big organized bike ride I was signed up had taken place. I tried calling their shipping company, OnTrac, and was put on hold for 36 minutes (36 min, 2 sec to be exact) before I gave up. Then when I called Competitive Cyclist to complain about the delay the customer rep acted condescending and told me I had ordered too late in the day to receive 2 day shipping, completely disregarding the fact that it took 6 days for their 2 Day Shipping to get their product to me. Buy Assos products (no, I don't work for the company, just love their products as a cyclist). Just don't buy from Competitive Cyclist or trust their shipping company to deliver on time."
"I had a great experience with the purchase of a new Ibis mountain bike. Gavin McBride worked with me the whole way. He was knowledgeable but not pushy, and he delivered what he promised. The delivery was on time and packaged carefully. I am very satisfied, and a friend of mine had a similar experience with a mountain bike purchase this spring also. "
"Have to agree about the bait and switch tactics. When I was shopping for a frameset, a lot of results on Google came for CC with item no longer available. But in the end I found a great frame at a good price and bought from them.
I started by chatting with "an expert" to make sure the frame I wanted was available. The website was suggesting it was in stock but after a chat with Greg, he told me the size I needed wasn't really in stock. He offered to place an order with the distributor and it would only be a matter of two weeks before they get it and could ship it to me.
The price was 2200$ + 95$ for shipping and I was getting 225$ back in store credit. Because I chatted with someone instead of placing the order myself, they paid the shipping for me without even asking for it and I was invoiced 2200$ on November 21. After the transaction, I asked two technical questions about the bottom bracket and the Front Derailleur and Greg was able to answer right away. I had the feeling he wasn't just a salesman.
I received Shipping confirmation from UPS on Wednesday December 3 with a tracking # and the package arrived on Tuesday December 9 (UT>NY).
Not seeing anything about my 225$ Store Credit after that email, I chatted with an other Expert on December 4 and received it in my Account right away. Was able to purchase a few missing component for my built and received it with my frame on December 9."
"Bait and Switch is right. They got me to buy using their lifetime, no questions asked returns policy then simply refuse to honor it.
DO NOT BUY from Competitive Cyclist or any of the related sites. You have been warned."
"Have made several orders over the past year. All orders have been for various parts and tires. No issue with any of the orders. The products were exactly as ordered and delivered quickly.
Responding to email asking for technical information is not their strength. If you have questions - use online chat or call. I never got a response to my email.
Quick update - everything delivered as ordered. Half of the items were on back-order. CC notified me when they arrived to their store and I received them 3 days later. Nice!"
"They will not stand up to the promises made for purchases , I purchased items a couple of years ago (garmin edge 810 , shimano 9000 crank and nite rider 1800)
i paid their top $ prices because they offered a lifetime return policy .
i now find out that because they policy changed to their current return policy , my products no longer are under that guarantee
i bought it from them so that if any issue comes about , i know i could just return it to them , rather than deal with repairs
i totally understand that their policy changed , but the products i purchased should still be covered by the policy or guideline i purchased them under
that is bait and switch for sure (buy this now because of this promise, we change the policy , our promise means nothing)
i will never buy anything from them again
i will not recommend them ever again
you can find cheaper from your local bike shop
"
"These people are the worst spammers I have encountered since the advent of the internet. I made one purchase, and opted out of marketing emails. They still started spamming me every day. I have unsubscribed numerous times, as well as now sending them emails back every time they spam me.
I still get DAILY spam from them. If something is a couple dollars more elsewhere, save yourself the frustration. I will never do business with them again
"
"Your customer service and freight prices are shocking.
$75 to send a pair of bib shorts and a cycle jersey to Australia
Gavin McBride assured me he would rectify the freight issue..(in regards to a reduction)that was a month ago, still have not heard from him.
CC there are plenty of other online cycle suppliers who would have my business.
Poor
"
"I have ordered several hundreds of dollars worth of clothing and accessories from Competitive Cyclist believing in their 100 % guaranteed returns policy and when I attempted to return items that were either unused because they did not fit properly, the salesrep simply gave me a run around stating.... "The item we do not sell anymore. Why would it take more than 1 year to return to return something? We cannot even sell that anymore." By this, I simply read that they could not bother in abiding to their 100 % guaranteed returns policy meaning they are happy to take my money but when it comes to returns, it is only when they feel like something can be returned. It was a fool or me to think this was REI where 100 % returns are that, plain and simply and not this horse trading stuff. Competitive cyclist lost me and the worst part, I really liked their items until this morning. NEVER again. Competitive Cyclist, you should check my order history. "