It’s a shop that opens with a chime reminiscent of a bike bell—a pleasant little ring to say you’ve arrived. Once you enter, you know that CBI Bikes on Iona Road is clearly the place to come for every style, size, and brand of bicycle. From brightly-colored children’s balance bikes to technology-laden E-Bikes, CBI is covered floor to ceiling with bicycles, tires, helmets, gear and yes, even bike bells for sale.
Photo by Tavin Marler
Opened in 2017 by longtime mountain biker Hal Wright, the shop named for the phrase, “Can’t Break It,” is run by people devoted to the sport of biking. Manager Trent Fell said he’s so passionate about biking that even when he tried to segue into another career, he rode right back into this one.
“Hal knew me as the ‘bike kid’ because growing up as his neighbor I was always riding around the dirt hills behind my house or tinkering with bikes on the sidewalk,” Trent said. “I’m passionate about bikes.” He believes that what sets CBI Bikes apart from other bike shops in the area is their devotion to the sport. “We live and breathe biking,” he said.
That fervor for biking is evident in the shop’s offerings. At both their Pocatello and Idaho Falls locations, CBI Bikes sells apparel and gear in addition to carrying top biking brands such as Pivot, Scott, Rocky Mountain, Yeti, Kona, Santa Cruz, Julianna, and Cervelo. They sell kids’, road, and mountain bikes. They have snow bikes with 4-inch tires that you can ride on sand dunes, too, especially after cold weather creates a crust as smooth as pavement.
And while they will always be a high-end road and mountain bike shop, their next big goal is to offer a huge selection of E-Bikes. With soaring popularity, E-Bikes are becoming the perfect option for distance biking or closing the gap of accessibility issues. “E-Bikes are perfect for older bikers as they’re able to exercise and enjoy the fresh air. I just sold a trike to an 83-year-old who can no longer ride a regular bike. Now he can stay active and pedal between his favorite fishing spots,” Trent said.
CBI Bikes also keeps on hand a cadre of bike mechanics, there to repair anything from a flat tire and severed brake cables to adding a dropper post to your bike seat or helping you create the full-on custom build of your dreams.
“We’re a full-service bike mechanic shop, and we can repair any brand or model,” Trent explained. “We fix wheelchairs and walkers because they use the same brake cables. We do full-service suspension systems, custom bike builds, and wiring for E-Bikes.”
Whether you want to upgrade components, change the aesthetics, or enhance your ride’s performance, CBI will work with you to create the bike you want. When you purchase a bike from CBI, you’ll not only get help customizing the bike so it’s positioned perfectly for your shoulders, hip, and hand positions, but also a free 1-year tune-up.
If you’re a biking guru seeking to ride competitively, CBI can help with technology upgrades that sound like science fiction: electronically activated gear shifting with fine-tuned precision and zero lag time, transmission drive trains that sense the terrain and intuitively shift into the correct gear, or Bluetooth dropper posts that automatically raise and lower your seat for the best leg extension on your ride.
However, if you haven’t pedaled down the sidewalk since your childhood, CBI can also help you find your way back to the joy of biking. They offer rentals so you can try out a bike, and they also feature inspiration from their Ambassadors—local advocates who love all types of riding and share on their socials.
If you’re looking for a community to ride with, you can join CBI’s riders on summer Tuesday nights; they’ll announce their locations on their socials and you can meet them at the trailhead. And while Idaho Falls City is working to connect bike paths across the city all the way to the Greenbelt, there are local options such as free, well-marked trails at the Gem Lake Bike Park and dirt tracks with easy jumps at Ryder Bike Park on Sunnyside.
Open to all ages and skill levels, biking brings a therapeutic kind of freedom. “It’s fun, it’s challenging, and it’s awesome to be out in nature,” Trent said. “For me, it clears my head because I only have to think about what is in front and immediately around me. It gets me to that Zen-like state of flow.” So if you’re ready to balance on that bicycle seat again or maximize your carbon fiber ride with full suspension, ring that little bell on your way into CBI Bikes.
For More Information
CBI Bikes
792 E Iona Road
208-360-9542
info@cbibikes.com
www.cbibikes.com