Please don’t steal this!

There’s really no better way to get around in NYC than on a bike – warm sunny morning, listening to tunes, cruising over the east river – a personal zen moment for me.

This weekend I picked up a new bike (above) from Bicycle Habitat , and am completely in love with it. The folks there are super friendly and knowledgeable and they have a killer website that makes it easy to size up the market.

Going through the bike buying process was pretty interesting. First of all, they’re way more expensive than you’d think, with most entry level bikes coming in around $500. Seriously? There are also are like a thousand varieties, which makes choosing one a bit overwhelming.

Two days ago I was thinking I’d scour Craigslist for someone’s used bike, but that all changed after talking to Aden at B-Habitat. Taking into consideration my particular commute, height/weight, preference for speed vs. stability and what I thought looked cool, I was given a few options perfectly suited for me.

After going through this process and test riding a few bikes, there was no way I could go back to craigslist!

The lesson here: speaking to someone knowledgeable and passionate totally changed what I was looking for and eventually what I was willing to pay for the purchase.

A lot has been made about lovemarks, but you don’t hear much about about a ‘passionmark’ (copyright Tom Suharto 2008). Brands that seem to care more about what they do than others inspire a passionate consumer base and also ease rational concerns about quality and craftsmanship. As a result, they’re usually able to charge a price premium.

Some of my passionmarks: Sixpoint, Apple,and Lonely Planet.