There are gobs of small mountain bike manufacturers churning out wonderful frames made from steel, titanium and many other materials (even bamboo!). Sometimes, it gets hard to distinguish them.
Owner and fabricator Steve Garro runs a one-man shop. He produces about 30 frames a year, and he exhibits care for each frame and its owner-to-be. Interestingly enough for someone using steel tubing and old-world craft skills, Garro puts the Internet to work as his front line in getting customers involved.
That doesn’t mean you order online and get a bike dropped off on your door: Garro posts frequent photos of frames as they begin life as seemingly random collections of steel frames. Under his torch, miters and other equipment, they become heirloom-grade bicycle frames.
The photos are a nice touch. It’s a sign of pride, and he’s welcoming his customers into the process and care that goes into making a custom-quality frame. He recognizes the bond people have with their bikes, and he’s found a way to stoke that fire hotter.
As consistent and cost-effective as huge manufacturers are, they can never match what Garro is making. Yes, they might be lighter. Cheaper. Easier to get (according to his blog, Garro has an 11-month backlog). But that’s not necessarily what people are looking for when they visit the Coconino Cycles website.
Some people have paid the most attention to the fact that Garro is still building frames at all following a very nearly fatal accident in 2005 (see the FlagstaffLive.com article about it). But it sells him short to make that the focus of everything written about him. Really, it’s his commitment to creating rolling works of art for his customers and giving them an enhanced sense of belonging to their bikes that should take center stage.
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