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| - Incredible. INCREDIBLE place.
I actually found this place on yelp, looking for different things to see and do during my first visit to Pittsburgh. I do weekly bike rides in Buffalo with Slow Roll and have become such a big fan of bikes, often checking out any old-looking ones when they're locked up on the street, so needless to say, I was blown away by the collection they have here.
Mostly I was pretty eager to see the Pee-Wee Herman bike, being such a huge fan of the movie and owning a schwinn named after the star himself, but I didn't realize how much I'd fall in love with the entire collection like I did. The amount of bikes they have here is absolutely incredible, ranging from schwinns to models I've never heard of, limited editions, bikes with steering wheels, tandems, side cars--you'll see things here you never knew existed before!
Most of the bikes on the main and second floors are stacked side-by-side one another, with a few pieces against the walls, plus scattered parts (like seats hanging from the ceiling, there's a wall of frame parts too). Make sure you check out the second floor since I almost didn't, not realizing it was right past a set of doors near the back of the first floor and around the corner. You'll definitely find the most memorable pieces up there. I felt like a kid in a candy store exploring the building and getting to see such bizarre bikes.
The whole museum is free to visit, though they do run of of donations to keep the doors open. The museum also doubles as a bike shop, where they do numerous repairs as well as sell bikes and bike parts. Super cool! I did my part by buying a Bicycle Heaven t-shirt (I got the one with Pee-Wee's bike on it, of course), plus I donated a little extra. I love seeing bikes of all kinds being appreciated in one magnificent place.
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