On a rainy, cold, and nasty day, which has been our frequent occurrence this week, it’s hard to think about riding a bike. But not so in Moosach. There, four men passionately devote themselves to this topic, rain or rain.
Nicholas Schick, Nico Windecker, Jens Schubert and David Farmer founded a company together that CS Cycling Sport. At Taubenstraße 1, in the old rooms of the village shop, you will now find high-tech carbon bicycles instead of mason jars, which Schubert and Schick proudly show and explain. There is a lot to explain, because not only are the wheels complex machines. Each of them is custom made. There are no off-the-peg products here. That’s why the four also call themselves “bike tailors”.
For Nick Schick, custom-made bikes are completely normal. “When I was a kid, I was given a regular bike,” he recalls. “After a few days I took it apart. It felt wrong.” Since then he has built every bike he has owned himself. And there were a few. Schick was never a professional, but definitely more ambitious and accomplished than most.
Nick Schick has been tinkering with bicycles since he was a child. The great demand for customization in the environment was a driving factor behind the company’s creation.
(Photo: Christian Endt)
Schick is originally from Florida, he has been living with his wife in Moosach for six years. When he arrived he joined bike clubs and was soon in his garage working on bikes that friends and acquaintances brought him. “Over time it became so many that I had to clear out my garage and spend a lot of time on it.”
Then, on one of those nights where you sit together and goof around a bit, Nico Windecker suggested that you could turn it into a business. Windecker, Farmer and Schubert are also cycling enthusiasts. The latter, for example, has been racing bikes since first grade, “everything you can imagine”. I got my first girlfriend when I was 16, my priorities shifted – but my passion for bicycles remained.
After the four friends looked at the competitors’ bikes, they thought: we can do it better and cheaper. After some back and forth, they finally founded their company. First, they started selling their bikes online. They have assembled 50 to 60 pieces so far, and more are in the works. Each of the four currently has a regular job, at BMW, as an IT consultant or in the satellite communications industry. In the medium and long term, however, they want to focus exclusively on their passion.
Everyone already has their role in the company: Farmer is the engineer who designs the bikes, Schubert assembles them, Windecker takes care of the finances. Schick’s specialty is taking biometric measurements and guiding drivers through the process. “Most people adapt to their bike,” says Schick. “We adapt the bike to the people.”
Customization is based in equal parts on modern technology and many years of experience
High technology is not only found in the wheels. The movements of the driver are recorded using high-speed cameras, and the data obtained is included in the adjustment process.
(Photo: Christian Endt)
Small details like hand size also play a role.
(Photo: Christian Endt)
They used a “mixture of science and black magic.” When a customer comes to Bike Tailors for the first time, he or she is first of all asked extensively: for which route should the bike be used? How often and how far do you drive? Do you have previous illnesses, such as a knee injury?
Then almost every imaginable measure is taken: arm length, shoulder distance, hand size, distance between the buttocks. To do this, the bike cutters use a variety of different devices, from simple rulers and a nunchaku-like object to determine the ideal handlebar position, to high-speed cameras and special software that help to see the angles of the extremities as you ride.
But all technology cannot completely replace experience. “The theories about what the ergonomically best angles are are constantly changing,” says Schick. “I keep myself updated but rely heavily on my twenty years of experience in the field.”
The nunchakus can be used to determine the optimal grip position and shape.
(Photo: Christian Endt)
Schick performs a trick for demonstration purposes. If you hold said nunchakus in a comfortable position with your eyes open and then with your eyes closed, there are clear differences in posture. “That’s because you have a visual idea of what the posture should look like,” explains Schick. However, the body often speaks its own language.
After the customer’s body has been made transparent, it’s finally a matter of clarifying the final design questions. Which accessories should not be missing, which color scheme should be used. Here, too, the focus is on individuality: “Sometimes people send me pictures of things – not bicycles – whose design they think is great,” says Schick. He could use this as a guide in order to finalize the bike.
The end product costs several thousand euros
The whole process, from the first step into the store to the first pedal, takes about four to ten weeks. “Depending on how much time the customer takes for his decisions, it can sometimes take a lot longer,” says Schuster. But the effort would be worth it. Not only can it be a lot of fun, but the customers would also gain trust through this process.
As far as time, individual design and costs are concerned, Schick sums it up with the saying “the sky is the limit”. The basic prices of the bikes are several thousand euros, so not really anything for the weekly trip to the supermarket, but not unusual for high-quality products either. The whole shopping experience is aimed at bike enthusiasts and those who want to become one.
However, there is no typical customer who buys from Bike Tailors. “We have a wide range,” says Schick. “From semi-professional frequent riders to Nicole who glues her plastic frog to the front of the handlebars and is just happy that she has a bike that fits her body.” It’s probably fun to drive even in the rain.
The bike shop at Taubenstraße 1 in Moosach will be open for the first time this Saturday, January 7, from 2 to 6 p.m. All interested parties are invited.