My Badger Bicycles saga finally ends
I don't know whether you remember my original post about my attempts to get in touch with the guys at Badger Cycles, Rob Pennel or Josh Patterson. If not, some of the background for this story can be found here, in the original story: I'm trying to get in touch with Rob Pennel of Badger Cycles.
Today I wanted to offer up to you a conclusion to that story. I'll also give up some of the details of what took place in the 5 month time span between then and now.
First off, let me just come out and say the story has a happy ending. I have my frame. That's great news. The story that goes with it is nowhere near as great. If you read it through you'll likely agree with my position on the whole ordeal, which is basically, that I got lucky.
I contacted Rob in early June of last year and asked him to build me a frame to replace my Karate Monkey. All went well in the beginning. We had long conversations about fit and performance. Drawings flew back and forth between us. I had every confidence I'd be riding something really special at the end of the process.
I signed off on a final drawing and started deciding on my components list. Soon after that, they sent my frame to Spectrum Powder Works to be painted. After that, everything went silent.
Fast forward a few months. I'd had on-and-off email conversations with Josh Patterson, Rob's second in command at Badger Bicycles, for a while; but nothing had come of it. Near the end of January I sent Rob a message which basically said,
Let's finish this. My frame is done. Finish it and get paid for it.
I was astonished and delighted when Rob replied. He told me I could work with Spectrum, pay for the paint job myself, and that we could call it good. Rob put me in touch directly with Spectrum. I was on my way again.
The good people at Spectrum were expecting my call. I picked a color and requested expedited treatment. A few days later it arrived at my doorstep.
Whatever it was that shut Badger down happened after my frame had been built and sent to Spectrum. All that stood between me and my frame was Rob Pennell's agreement to step out of the picture and let me take over the process. That's exactly what happened too. I have not heard from Rob since.
I can't say much for Rob's business judgment. From what I can tell he basically walked away from his business - all his customers and obligations - without a word of explanation. But I have to give Rob credit for this much: Had he not replied to that message, Spectrum would have eventually just tossed my frame as abandoned.
I also have to give him credit for being a fine frame builder. I asked the guys at Hartsburg Cycle Depot to do the FrameSaver, facing, reaming, and all those other important things you do to a new frame. I also asked them to check all the dimensions and alignment for me to see whether I had a great frame, or just some beautifully painted garbage. Mark's a frame builder, carves his own lugs and all that. He checked and re-checked, and gave my frame two thumbs up. It not only looked good but it had been built very well.
So there's my story about my Badger Cycles frame. Like I said I got lucky.
And my luck hasn't ended there. Yesterday was the final build. I have to say this bike is stunning. Oh, but that's another story. Stay tuned.
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I am so happy for you!
Your choice of color is very nice! I think I speak for many when I say that I am anxious to see more pictures of the build!
I'm working on them
I'm working on them. Hang in there and I'll get them put up for you all to see. Sorry for the delay. It's been a pretty busy day around here today.
Lucky Dog
That bikes amazing in person... Can't wait to see the final build pics. That bikes gonna make you at least 5 times faster ; )
Hey that's right
Hey that's right I'd forgotten you dropped by that day and got a look at it. I think it turned out pretty well, even if I do say so myself.
But maybe that'll just be me. I guess I'd better work on it some so you all can judge for yourselves.
Where is Spectrum
Rob has refused to talk to me since last June. I have suspected that my frame was at one of his Painters, siting there, waiting to be painted and that Rob probably was broke and unable to get the frame out the door.
Where is Spectrum? Is it in Kansas? I'd like to call them myself.
Spectrum Powder Works
Spectrum Powder Works is located in Colorado Springs, CO. I spoke with Liz there. I highly recommend her for her friendliness, helpfulness and professionalism.
Best of luck to you in finding your bike.
Lucky
Have to say after reading the story that you got extremely lucky. If the frame is such a fine piece of work how did the company go out of business. The name of my Blog is Biking Badger so would have been interesting to own something with the same name.
Rob did not go out of
Rob did not go out of business for lack of talent or business sense. His son was critically injured when the car he was riding in was struck by another driver. Rob dropped everything during what turned out to be a very long period that his son was receiving medical attention.
The story is way too complicated and way too personal to explain it on the interweb, but the short of it is that Rob had to lay out every penny that he could find to keep his son alive and keep from losing his house - plain and simple. This process has pretty much bankrupted him, through no fault of his own.
I'm not saying he handled everything perfectly, but a few bad apples pretty well led him to shut down all communication with everyone except a few friends. His priority was on his son, so the rest got backburnered, and I think it snowballed to a point where a person can't deal with it.
He has resumed work in an industry that he used to work in order to get a steady check coming back in, and he's working to send things out as he can. He's literally at probably the lowest point in his life and clawing back toward steady ground. Most people don't know him very well, so they naturally mistrust the flakiness of a lot of framebuilders. I know him well, and I am positive that he will either come through with product or refund money to all parties as he is able. While it may sound lame, the best advice I can give is to be patient and polite, and he will eventually come through.
my Badger
I gave rob a check paid in full for my new bike. And that was last summer. This winter I changed my life and moved to Mexico to be a guide at Verana in Yelapa.
I go back to the states in august till Hommie Fall Fest then it's back to Vacation, I mean work in Paradise, I mean Yelapa.
I hope that sometime this summer I get a bike, I would love to have a badger, and I would love to have Rob want to build it. When we last chatted it was important for rob to understand that I understood his problems, and I have great simpothy for his sitchuation. You gotta deal with the cards life hands you.
Rob offered me a re-fund, and I was like Rob, if you want to refund my money, cool, if you want to build me a bike cool, but you do what you want. You make the bike when your ready...
There arn't a lot of people willing to wait that long, but then again, A lot of people don't know Rob, or how cool the guy can be.
I was really happy when he said man, the people who hound me, and get mad at my sitchuation, well, I really don't want them riding my bikes. I want my friends and cool people on them.
if your waiting, and you can, be paitent, realize that life can get outa control.
some day I'll have a badger,
and if not, I'll have re-fund, and a new
para gliding kit.
There are two Rob Pennells
There are two Robs. The one who takes care of his friends, and the one who avoids the customers that he's shortchanged.
You must have dealt with the friendly "rob." The rob that I gave my money to a year and a half ago was jerking me around for months before the medical issues with his kids.
He's also not contacted me, returned my messages or offered any explanation since he last called me and yelled at me over the phone almost a year ago.
I am fed up with people defending this guy. All he has to do is contact his customers and be truthful. But he doesn't seem capable of that.
That's not the behavior of a "cool guy."
He wasn't jerking you around
He wasn't jerking you around for months before the medical problems. He had several legitimate issues with painters that cost him serious amounts of time, money, and black eyes. His "excuses" about paint were legitimate. He was being "truthful" as you put it, and it wasn't good enough for you, evidently.
If he yelled at you on the phone the last time he talked to you, it was probably b/c you got a discount price on a pro deal and had the audacity to complain about time frame b/c your frame got bumped behind customers willing to pay full price. When you get good pricing, sometimes you suffer on the time scale.
Obviously Rob has the time
Obviously Rob has the time to talk to his friends about his customers' orders, but not enough time to talk to his customers about their orders!
Rob gave 4 people price breaks on frames and promised a 2-3 week turn around in February of 2007. He was very happy to take the money for those frames. He was very happy to have his logo on $8000 of merchandise, as well as retail merchandise which was sold all year by another sponsor.
At the time the frames were built and in the 6 months prior to that (going back to fall of 2006) he never made any mention that he would hold back those frames and put other orders ahead.
Since the spring of 2007 I have repeatedly sent messages to Rob telling him that we would pay shipping and even pay AGAIN to have the frames painted, AT NO COST TO HIM.
I have recently learned directly from Rob's painter that in the 10 Months since Rob turned his back on his customers those frames that we have been waiting on were long ago painted and shipped back to Rob!!!!
If there is some reason that those completed, painted frames cannot be shipped I'd really like to know.
In the mean time, I'll have to assume that he's jerking us around, because he doesn't have the decency to contact me and tell me himself.
If there are other Badger
If there are other Badger buyers out there looking for their frames and thinking that Spectrum has them, you'll be disapointed. I did some detective work and found that Spectrum has two frames in their shop at this point. Badger's previous painter has one frame in his shop in Oregon.
Any other frames that were ordered or paid for up to this point are probably in the hands of the builder.
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