WHAT IS GOOD GRIEF?

A 100% handbuilt custom bicycle frame and fork building company based in the mountains of Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA. We can design and fabricate any kind of custom bike you want– from track to tandem, gravel to grocery getter, or whatever weird ride you can dream up. We also sell bike goods (and bads) here.

WHO IS GOOD GRIEF?

A framebuilder with 15+ years of experience in the cycling industry who trained under master frame builder Koichi Yamaguchi, and worked with elite international and USA Cycling Team athletes during his tenure at the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee. It’s also his partner (a graphic designer and the paint department) and Eddy Merckx, the shop dog. We do it all– from frame fabrication to custom paint to packing your order…to getting zoomies out back when lying on the shop floor gets boring.

WHY ARE YOU CALLED GOOD GRIEF?

Our frame builder was once told (after explaining he had just completed the Colorado Trail on a fixed gear fully rigid MTB), “You like to wear your shoes out from the inside out, huh? Good grief.”. It stuck. If you want to get all woo-woo, we suppose our name could allude to the difficult yet rewarding nature of cycling, all mixed up in one– the good and the grief, if you will– but mainly it’s people’s reaction to our frame builder being a masochist.

WHAT DOES INDIGENOUS-OWNED MEAN?

Our framebuilder (and Good Grief’s sole proprietor) is proud to be Native American and a member of the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe. As an under-represented minority in the cycling industry (and most others, to be fair), Good Grief is proud to be a BIPOC-led company making pesa tabooadunadakwanonoedu (good-looking bikes). And, we do our best to work with and support fellow under-represented individuals, groups and businesses that are working towards better visibility within the industry, too.

WHAT DO YOU USE TO FABRICATE CUSTOM BIKE FRAMES?

Unless your custom build specifies otherwise, double-butted 4130 Chromoly steel tubing.

We offer a lifetime warranty on our craftsmanship and are always available to discuss repairs, upgrades, changes, or modifications.

WHY NOT TITANIUm/CARBON? IT’S BETTER.

It’s really not.

NO, I READ AN ARTICLE THAT SAID It’S LIGHTER/ BETTER/ FASTER…

For the million reasons that steel frame builders love steel (and fancy marketing makes customers doubt it) steel is and has always been the ideal material for bikes. Carbon frames have an atrocious environmental impact and end up in landfills once they inevitably break, and titanium is pretty spendy and can be prone to cracking. (It also comprises only about .6% of the Earth’s crust, so is a resource-intensive (and unsustainable) material to harvest.)

We make sturdy, reliable (yet still sick) steel bicycles that will last a lifetime, are pretty much infinitely recyclable and repairable, and that people can enjoy – not to set land-speed records or worry about 5 grams of weight difference– but to ride and love and embrace the JOMO. (That’s the “joy of missing out”).

HOW long does it take to get A custom bike?

Exactly 3,476 hours. No, seriously. There’s no way to answer this question. From the initial concept to the final build, we aim to have your bike ready for you in 4-6 weeks. But, as it goes with custom, every bike and build (and person) is different, so sometimes there can be last-minute changes or you’ve asked for something fancy that takes a little longer to fabricate. But, once you kick off your custom build, we’ll work with you to determine a build timeline so you can know what to expect. And, we’ll share regular updates on your bike’s own page on the site so you can see your build progressing and follow along (and show all your friends).

I DON’t LIVE IN AMERICA, CAN I STILL GET A CUSTOM GOOD GRIEF BIKE FRAME/FORK/STEM?

Absolutely! Email us here and we’ll discuss custom bike shipping options that will work for your country. Same for orders for the shop.

DO YOU OFFER REFUNDS?

FOR CUSTOM BIKES/PARTS:
Only in very exceptional cases. We offer a lifetime warranty on the craftsmanship of what we produce, so if you feel your bike, bike part, or other custom item has a production defect or issue, please email us here so we can sort it out.

FOR ONLINE ORDERS:
We accept refunds on online orders that are damaged or defective. You have 7 days from your order delivery date to begin a return. All items must be unused/unworn and in the original packaging with tags on, etc. You are responsible for return shipping. We do not accept or process refunds without prior authorization, so please email before shipping anything back to get your return authorization code.

Please email us here to start a refund.

DO YOU SHIP INTERNATIONALLY?

For custom bikes, yes. For the online shop, not directly (but email us and we’ll see if we can get what you need to ya!).

At the moment, our online shop offers shipping within the contiguous 50 states USA only, as well as APO/FPO addresses. International shipping coming soon.

WHY ARE YOUR FRAMES EXPENSIVE? I COULD GET A SURLY/SPECIALIZED/SALSA/OTHER MASS-PRODUCED FRAME FOR LESS…

You’re welcome to do that, and many of those brands make fine bikes, but we offer 100% custom, hand-crafted bicycle frames and components, so our prices reflect the time, care, and consideration we put into making a made-to-measure bicycle or bicycle part just for you. We’re proud to be 100% handbuilt, made in the USA, indigenous-owned…and just the right amount of different.

IF I POST A REVIEW ON MY SITE / YOUTUBE CHANNEL / SOCIALS WILL YOU SEND ME A FREE FRAME?

We prefer to let people discover and experience our bikes organically. But, you’re welcome to start the custom-building process here– we’d love to build you something exceptional that you’ll be stoked to post about.

DO YOU SPONSOR RIDERS?

Potentially. Send a personality-packed non-shred reel, and let us know why we’d be a good fit here.

I’m LOCAL…CAN I PICK UP MY ORDER IN PERSON?

Of course! For smaller online shop items, just choose “local pickup” at checkout, and for local bike pickup, we’ll let you know when your custom build is ready so you can come on by.

WHAT ARE YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL/SUSTAINABILITY STANDARDS?

Glad you asked! As a small business, we aim to keep ESG standards high, with fair working conditions, sustainable production methods, and a general attempt to create less waste in the world.

We use steel to fabricate our bikes, which is infinitely recyclable, repairable, and long-lasting, and a much “greener” option than, say, carbon (which has an obnoxious carbon footprint, is expensive, can use poisonous epoxies and polymers, and often ends up in landfills once they break.)

We also aim to use zero plastic in our packaging (even our packing tape is paper) and choose recyclable or compostable materials when available. (Our t-shirt bags are 100% natural, recyclable, and compostable, for example). The plastic we do use is in our vinyl stickers (paper ones don’t last very long out in the world, unfortunately), and a very small amount of products (like key charms, which we will not stock again once sold out), but we try our best to limit the amount of plastic products or non-recyclable items we make, stock, and sell. The poly mailers we use from time to time are made from recyclable, low-density polypropylene material, too.

The not-so-easy-to-make-green stuff:
We use an oil-based enamel paint to hand-paint each downtube logo, which is then finished with a clear coat. We also use aerosol paints. And, we also offer powder coating, which uses powder-based pigment which “bakes” to the metal of your frame or component at very high heat. Where possible, though, we try our best to work with vendors whose products offer more sustainable solutions.