{"id":93,"date":"2011-06-23T18:03:40","date_gmt":"2011-06-23T23:03:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sevencycles.com\/blog\/?p=93"},"modified":"2025-11-05T18:14:22","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T23:14:22","slug":"forbes-journalist-and-seven-owner-larry-olmsted-extolls-the-benefits-of-a-custom-built-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/forbes-journalist-and-seven-owner-larry-olmsted-extolls-the-benefits-of-a-custom-built-bike\/","title":{"rendered":"Forbes Reviews Seven Cycles"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_95\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-95\" style=\"width: 375px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"no-border wp-image-95 size-full\" title=\"Sevenaxiomslx1\" src=\"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Sevenaxiomslx1.jpg\" alt=\"Seven Axiom SLX\" width=\"375\" height=\"229\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Sevenaxiomslx1.jpg 375w, https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Sevenaxiomslx1-300x183.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 375px) 85vw, 375px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-95\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Seven titanium Axiom SLX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cI was not planning to buy a Seven when I toured the company\u2019s Massachusetts\u2019s factory for research, but once I saw how beautiful the welds were, how perfectly and lovingly the frames were made, I had to have one.\u201d<\/em><\/strong>&#8211; Larry Olmsted, Forbes<\/p>\n<p>We were excited to read Larry Olmsted\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.forbes.com\/larryolmsted\/2011\/06\/23\/why-you-need-a-custom-road-bike-2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Great Life article on Forbes.com<\/a>, extolling the benefits and advantages of his Seven, and of custom-built bikes in general. We felt he had some good insights and wanted to share a few points that Larry made about why buying a custom-made bike is really to any rider\u2019s advantage.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Price:<\/strong> As off the rack stock bikes have significantly raised their prices in recent years, custom bike prices have remained steady.\u00a0Olmsted points out that you can order a custom frame with a complete kit, like the Seven titanium Axiom SLX for a price comparable to a stock bike.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cThe titanium Ax<strong><em>iom SLX is Seven\u2019s lightest model\u2026 will last a lifetime, and can be purchased complete and ready to ride for $5,800.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>People:<\/strong> Custom bikes are made-to-order, one at a time, with skilled and experienced artisans using the highest quality materials.\u00a0We were especially honored to read Olmsted\u2019s thoughtful reflections on the quality of work and pride in craftsmanship that he observed during his tour of our manufacturing facility.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Quality Control:<\/strong> The quality control on a custom bike is by definition higher and more exacting than any mass-produced bicycle. \u00a0But it is rewarding that Olmsted got this impression while on site:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cI was not planning to buy a Seven when I toured the company\u2019s Massachusetts\u2019s factory for research, but once I saw how beautiful the welds were, how perfectly and lovingly the frames were made, I had to have one.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Performance<\/strong>: Olmsted hits on one of the primary reasons to get a custom bike: tailored performance.\u00a0For example, he has found anecdotally that he and his friends who ride Sevens and custom-built bikes have significantly improved their speed and performance.\u00a0Olmsted favors steep climbs, and even if a stock bike fits perfectly, that bike will not ride ideally for you.\u00a0Stock bikes are made for averages \u2013 average use, average road conditions, average sized riders, average conditioning.\u00a0 Are you average?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Unique Customer Service:<\/strong> Customer service at Seven is critical to everything we do. As Olmsted points out, Seven\u2019s Custom Kit is designed to extract both the type of ride desired and the precise physical specifications from the customer.\u00a0 Once the Custom Kit is completed by Seven\u2019s performance design team, we communicate directly with the customer\u2019s retailer. Seven is the only bike manufacturer that bridges the gap between the customer and the retailer in this way. \u00a0We have found that when the three of us &#8211; the customer, the retailer and Seven &#8211; work together, we can most effectively deliver a bike that meets or surpasses the customer&#8217;s expectations. We appreciate that Olmsted found our unique process of such value.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cWhen I got my bike made by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Seven Cycles<\/a>, there were over 100 different questions and measurements involved. While fit in a bespoke suit translates to looking better, fit in a bespoke road bike translates to feeling better and possibly avoiding knee injuries from massive repetitions of an off kilter pedaling stroke, along with the various back, neck and arm pains associated with riding.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Thank you, Larry, for helping shed light on some of the misconceptions about high-end bikes \u2013 whether custom or stock \u2013 and for enjoying your Seven. We hope to see you on the road!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cI was not planning to buy a Seven when I toured the company\u2019s Massachusetts\u2019s factory for research, but once I saw how beautiful the welds were, how perfectly and lovingly the frames were made, I had to have one.\u201d&#8211; Larry Olmsted, Forbes We were excited to read Larry Olmsted\u2019s The Great Life article on Forbes.com, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/forbes-journalist-and-seven-owner-larry-olmsted-extolls-the-benefits-of-a-custom-built-bike\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Forbes Reviews Seven Cycles&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[5],"class_list":["post-93","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","tag-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=93"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17942,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93\/revisions\/17942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=93"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=93"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sevencycles.com\/7\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=93"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}