We Are a Rider's Shop
Big Swingin’ Cycles was founded in the Sunset District of SF in 2000, 21 years ago, by Lori & Brian Bruckner. In 2003, a second location was opened in SF’s Marina district on Lombard St next to Mel’s Diner, and in 2006, the two locations were merged into one spacious location in the current building in SF’s Russian Hill neighborhood. In April of 2019, after an extensive two year renovation, The Lodge was opened in Fairfax to provide existing and new customers a “base camp” to launch trail, gravel, & road rides in Marin, as well as to serve as convenient place to demo bikes and stop for quick repairs and pick up critical parts.
Passionate riders their whole lives, Lori & Brian wanted a local shop with reach beyond the neighborhood to enthusiastic riders across the Bay Area. Over the past two decades, with a massive amount of help from our amazing staff, they’ve helped build a solid community of riders across the spectrum: road, mountain, gravel, adventure, and more. With the recent opening of The Lodge, near the trails in Marin, they’ve solidified Big Swingin’ Cycles as a premier resource for riders needing the best equipment and a solid workshop that can keep riders on the road & trail.
Over the past two decades, we've had a Herculean amount of help from our staff, which has included many professional riders, mechanics, & icons of the Bay Area cycling scene and beyond: Alex Gibson, Sean McBride, Emmerson Aalto, Brett Winters, John Blackwell, Nate Espiniosa, David Peitz, Alexis Colin, Jeremy Wright, Seth Webster, Chris Reed, Colin Beardsley, Justin Abbot, and Justin Fraga. These are amongst the finest people we've ever met, and we're forever enriched by the time we worked & played together.
We’re extremely proud of the contributions we’ve made to riding in the Bay Area over the past 21 years: Helped start and perpetual sponsor of high school mountain biking in SF, supporter of Nor Cal High School Cycling League, supporter of SF Urban Riders, including assistance with trail building & maintenance, founder & promoter of Lion of Fairfax Cyclo-Cross race - fundraiser for local schools in Marin County, sponsor of AIDS Lifecycle, MS Waves to Wine, and Bay Area Super Prestige Cyclo-Cross series, sponsored both Golden Gate and SF Try Clubs, in addition to McGuire Real Estate Road Team, Team Cycle Couriers, Godspeed, and Team Dolce Vita, supporter & sponsor of SF Bike Coalition.
Charlie Ellis - Charlie comes to us from Durango, Colorado. Durango is to cycling what Nashville is to country music. Charlie grew up in Durango and rode under the tutelage of legends like Ned Overend, Travis Brown, and John Tomac. His everyday rides growing up included the Colorado Trail, Hermosa Creek and Horse Thief. He took up mountain biking as something to do when there wasn't any snow on the hill. He’s the guy that will beat you to the top of the climb, and two turns down the descent, be out of site once again. And we won't even talk about his aerial prowess. He worked for several, legendary shops in Durango, and is a Master Mechanic - want to waste the day away talking about spring rates, shock progressivity, and high speed rebound adjustment? He's your man - He's also one of the most humble, friendly people you'll ever meet. Current ride: YetiSB165, YetiSB5
Jeremy Wright - Jeremy is one of the most competent bike technician's in NorCal (and he's pretty damn fast on the bike too!). A native of Oakland, Jeremy cut his mechanic teeth as both a moto and auto tech for BMW. HIs passion for Cyclo-Cross racing resulted in his transisitioning out of the moto world and into bikes. Lucky for us! In addition to working with us, he spent a great deal of time at River City Cycles in Portland, one of the US's top shops. We're super stoked to get to work with Jeremy every day.
Lori Bruckner - Mom, Marathoner, Mountain Biker, Merchandiser, and now Restauranteer. Co Owner / Founder, Lori Bruckner grew up in SoCal, and also graduated from Cal Poly SLO. Lori cut her teeth in retail working for high end clothing boutique’s in Santa Barbara. Moving to the Bay Area in the 80’s, she worked her way through, and up the food chain in both Procurement and Sales for some of the world’s greatest brands: Limted, Emporium, Macy’s, Calvin Klein, & Sears. She’s the best kind of athlete - the one who runs and rides for the pure intrinsic value of the activity. She’s loving her Yeti SB115 and often leads casual ladies’ MTB rides from The Lodge.
Brian Bruckner is the founder of Big Swingin’. Growing up in the central valley, he was always around wheels: dirt bikes, bmx, then road & mountain bikes. Living on the central coast in the 80’s and attending Cal Poly SLO, he was an early triathlete, and mountain biker. While on the Central Coast, he worked for, and helped expand a local surf shop, developing a life long affection for small business. After graduating from Cal Poly, he moved to the Bay Area and worked in technical sales & marketing for over a decade, ultimately leaving as a VP of Sales & Marketing for a leading company in the industrial engine control industry - he can review Yeti's lineup of bikes with you, as well as the latest lineup of Cat Diesel Engines :) He now lives in Marin County and has a massive portfolio of trail knowledge for all of California. Current ride: YetiSB140, All City Cosmic Stallion gravel / road bike.